Valentines for All: Esther Howland Captures America's Heart

A Valentine’s Day gift to ambitious youngsters.

This sunny historical biography traces the tradition of exchanging valentines in the U.S. back to the 19th century, and the kind heart of papercraft pioneer Esther Howland (1828-1904), who made the cards long before it was fashionable. Inspired by a lace-trimmed card that her father brought from England, she brought the custom into vogue stateside when she was just 19, persuading her father and skeptical brothers to sell her valentines through the family's Massachusetts paper company, and engaging an assembly line of friends to help meet demand. Simplistic poems ("Roses are red. Petunias are pink. Cutting and gluing helps me think") accompany Chumin's reportorial storytelling, while Wis´niewska's period-garb-clad characters, portrayed with various skin tones, give the figures a doll-like feel. An invitation to write valentine poems concludes. Ages 4-8. (Nov.)

PreS-Gr 3--A delightful picture book based on the real entrepreneur, Esther Howland, who created a successful greeting card business in the 1800s. Howland received a present from her father, a card for Valentine's Day, when he returned from a trip to England. Even though valentines were not common in the United States in 1847, Howland was thrilled and felt loved by the gesture. This inspired her to approach her family with the idea to make valentines. Luckily, the family's business was a paper company, S.A. Howland & Sons. Her brothers solicited business, and Howland found people were indeed interested in expressing their feelings through valentines. Soon Howland's business became a great success. As her business grew, she hired other women to help make the Valentine's Day cards, along with holiday and birthday cards. Bright red and pink illustrations compliment the Valentine's Day theme. An author's note includes additional information about Esther Howland, and further back matter shares ideas for making valentines cards. VERDICT A welcome addition to elementary school libraries that would be a great story time read-aloud for Valentine's Day.--Nancy Hawkins