First Valentine

by Kallie George, Joelle Murray (Illustrator)

A charming, relatable rhyming read-aloud just-right for Valentine's Day, about first experiences! Little friend. First valentine. A heart will be the best design… Little friend is so excited to make his first valentine―in the shape of a heat! But learning how to cut shapes is a lot harder than you think, and no matter how much he tries, little friend can’t make the heart just-right. Will little friend be able to make the perfect valentine? A sweet and silly rhyming story about first experiences, full of gentle Valentine’s Day fun!

Genres: Picture Books, Storytime, Childrens, Holiday

24 pages, Paperback

Published December 6, 2022

About the author

I’m an author, editor, and speaker living in Vancouver, BC, near the sea. When I’m not writing or editing, I’m teaching creative writing workshops.

I have my Masters of Children's Literature from the University of British Columbia.

I love picture books, fairy tales, beautiful art and music, and baking cookies.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, humorous and relatable. Sometimes the art we envision creating isn't what we are able to actually make... so frustrating! But if you keep trying, and keep an open mind, a little serendipity and a little imagination can make something even better than you'd planned. As for the illustrations, the little dog friend is adorable and the valentine craft designs are fun way for little ones to learn shapes. Also, note that the story never specifies the gender of the child, just says "little friend" The GR blurb specifies "he"yet I've seen some reviews that say "she." I feel the book itself is open-ended so it could be a little girl or a could be a little boy who likes pink. (If you notice the family pictures in the background, the child is wearing a blue shirt in those.)

[Syntha Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adorable

[Lynne Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and sweet - perfect for young readers.

[DiAnne Warfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

Holt-Delhi library Preschool story time 02-14-2023

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet with super cute art.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every year I try out new valentine-themed books for storytime and every year they're not quite right, but this was absolutely perfect. Nothing says successful storytime like a roomful of toddlers screaming shapes at you.