BOOK MARKED
12 Heartfelt Books
for February
Discover Stories to Warm the
Heart This Month
BY JENNIFER ROTHSCHILD, COLLECTION ENGAGEMENT LIBRARIAN
ARLINGTON PUBLIC LIBRARY
Love is in the air with these books about romance,
Valentine’s Day and sweet treats.

Explore stories of first crushes, elaborate Valentines
and subverting romantic tropes.

PICTURE BOOKS
“Porcupine Cupid”
by June Jason,
illustrated by Lori Richmond
Porcupine loves romance and decides to play
Cupid for his friends. Unfortunately, he thinks
this activity means he should stick them all with
arrows (he uses his quills.) The reaction is not
quite what he hoped, until he posts a sign for a
party where everyone can complain about the
“Poke-y Porcupine Problem.” As the animals
complain, they each find someone to pair off
with—even someone for Porcupine in this cute,
pun-filled story.

“Valenslime” by Joy Keller, illustrated by Ashley Belote
Victoria Franken is a slime scientist. She even
brought some of her slime to life to make her
friend Goop. As Victoria makes Valentines for
all her human friends, Goop realizes he would
like some slime friends, so Victoria sets off to
make the perfect slime companion for him.

This book is filled with all types of slime and a
few of Victoria’s nonsentient slime recipes to
try at home.

“Love, Violet”
by Charlotte Sullivan Wild,
illustrated by Charlene Chua
Violet thinks that Mira is the greatest and
wants to impress her with grand adventures and
treasures, but every time Mira tries to play with
her, Violet gets shy and can’t speak. In order
32 Washington FAMILY FEBRUARY 2022
to tell Mira how she feels, Violet makes her a
special Valentine. When the Valentine falls in the
snow, Violet must find her courage to still give it
to Mira with wonderful results.

EARLY READERS
“The Course to Chocolate”
by Harriet Brundle
Follow along with the Chocolate Box food truck
to discover how chocolate is made and turned
into some of our favorite treats. This book is
part of the Drive Thru series, which uses food
trucks to explore the journeys our favorite foods
take to arrive on our plates.

“Little Critter: Just a Little Love”
by Mercer Mayer
Little Critter has delighted generations of young
readers. When Grandma gets sick, Little Critter
and his family decide to visit to make her feel
better. They make a card, pick flowers and apples
and make egg salad to bring, but something goes
wrong at each step. No matter what happens
though, a little love at each hiccup can help solve
any problem.

“Teeny Houdini:
The Super-Secret Valentine”
by Katrina Moore, illustrated by Zoe Si
Bessie Lee doesn’t let her lack of height stop her
grand ideas. When she is asked to make a special
Valentine to welcome a new student, she thinks
big. Bessie’s Valentine has glitter, tape and her
special brand of magic. When nothing works



BOOK MARKED
out the way she planned, will she be able to fix
her problem?
MIDDLE-GRADE READERS
“The Big, Fun Kids Baking Book”
from Food Network Magazine
Aimed at beginning bakers, this book helps young
chefs create the sweetest Valentine’s Day. A range
of sweet cookies and cakes and savory muffins and
quick breads give children much to explore. Kids
will love the section of fakeout recipes, with cakes
designed to look like grilled cheese sandwiches or
spaghetti and meatballs. Tips, tricks, trivia and a
photographic index help round out this useful (and
delicious) book.

“TBH, No One Can EVER Know”
by Lisa Greenwald
Victoria has been working hard to plan the
school’s Valentine dance, but her mother’s
anxiety-fueled overprotectiveness has hit new
levels and now she may not even be allowed to go.

Victoria will need the help of her best friends if
she’s going to find a way to repair her relationship
with her mother. Told entirely in text messages,
emojis and notes, Greenwald makes full use of
this communications form, from the perfect
reaction emoji to misunderstanding the tone
behind a friend’s text.

“A Batch Made in Heaven”
by Suzanne Nelson
Mina is excited to get an internship at the local
bakery. She wants to hone her baking skills so that
she can win an upcoming cookie challenge and help
her family, but she’s instead captioning Instagram
photos because the owner’s son, Flynn, won’t let
her anywhere near the kitchen. Will she be able to
discover what Flynn is hiding and make her dreams
come true? This light, sweet romance also includes
recipes to help recreate Mina’s mouthwatering
cookie creations.

TEEN READERS
“Happily Ever Afters”
by Elise Bryant
Tessa loves writing romance stories, but when
she enrolls at a new school with a creative writing
program, she develops a huge case of writer’s block.

Her friend Caroline decides the thing Tessa needs
is some real-life romance to get the words flowing
again, and she’s picked out the perfect Prince
Charming. Tessa follows Caroline’s program but
finds she’s getting further away from her heart in
the process. Maybe Tessa’s Happily Ever After isn’t
the one she put down on the page, and she has a
new story to tell.

“Chocolate: Sweet Science
and Dark Secrets”
by Kay Frydenborg
Enjoy this wide-ranging exploration of the many
facets of chocolate. Frydenborg looks at how
chocolate was used in Mesoamerica and how
European conquest and colonization exported
it around the globe. From examining the science
behind why humans find it so delicious to the
use of slavery in its cultivation, this book offers a
fascinating and sweeping look at a favorite treat.

“Fools in Love:
Fresh Twists on Romance Tales”
edited by Ashley Herring Blake and
Rebecca Podos
Fifteen short stories from authors such as
Malinda Lo, Hannah Moskowitz and Sara Farizan
each tackle a romance trope such as fake dating,
secret royalty and being snowed-in together
with a fun and intriguing new spin. From sports
championships to Seder dinners, from boy bands
to fleeing monsters, this collection offers a fun
assortment of romance tales. n
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