Ballad of Valentine

This book is written in rhyming format to the tune of “Oh My Darlin’ Clementine”, and it’s quite funny. The whole premise is that a young man is in love with his Valentine, and he keeps trying to find ways to tell her, and catastrophes keep happening. It’s funny, it’s entertaining, and I always sing the whole thing to the tune of the song— my kids now sing along with me and it’s always peals of laughter with this story. A huge favorite!!

We have about five books in our Valentine's Day collection, and this is the most requested one, probably because I sing the text like a fool and it makes my kids laugh. I have the same concerns about this story as the "History of Art Geek" reviewer, but my kids don't seem to care one little bit. I think the pictures look a little messy, and I'm sure some of the vocabulary goes over their sweet little heads, but that doesn't seem to make it any less enjoyable for them (or me).

I got this book for my 2.5 yr old based on a review I read and it IS as good as the review said. My daughter loves the pictures and the song. She loves it so much she brings it to daycare to share with her friends and teacher.

This is a clever and witty yarn that my boy begs me to read again, and again. And yes, I do sing it, even though I can't carry a tune very well. Tricia Tusa's watercolor illustrations are loosely rendered with lots of movement. She uses economy to express the characters and landscapes, and one might describe them as messy. Her palette is soft with light shades of brown, green and blue with accents of pinky orange for emphasis. Although she's thrifty with the details, the faces are expressive, and alive. I like this 32-page story, especially when compared to the typical Valentine fare; however, I think some of the vocabulary is overreaching. For example, three-year old children aren't typically familiar with Morse code, cyclones, or quicksand. On the other hand, the lyrical text, and singing attributes warrant extra points. The artwork is messy, but interesting, and the fact that it's now available in paperback throws it into the 5-star category. Fun read for the young and old alike, 2 to 102.

We check out many books from the library, and after two to four weeks, we return them. Our two girls were almost in tears as we returned this one. So, being the soft-hearted-can't-spoil-'em-with-books dad that I am, I ordered this one as a keeper. It's so much fun to sing this book to my toddler and preschooler and have them fill in words that I pause at!Yes, the pictures are cute and make the girls laught too. Greatest of all, this my mother (Grandma to the kids) loves singing to them as well. Any book that can please toddlers, preschoolers, parents and grandparents deserves an easy *****!Bottom-line: Don't borrow from the library--buy this book!