Children s and YA Books for Valentine s Day 2021 Compiled by Emma Kantor | Jan 25, 2021
The pandemic continues to put a wedge between family and friends through the necessity of social distancing, while bringing us closer together through shared hopes and fears. In honor of Valentine’s Day, we’ve gathered a list of new and forthcoming books for young readers that affirm the value of love in its many forms.
Picture Books & Board Books
Jane Porter, illus. by Maisie Paradise Shearring. Candlewick, $16.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-5362-1123-8. Ages 3–7.
Dimitri, who has dark hair and light tan skin, spends his first day at a new preschool telling everyone and everything “I love you.” But when no one returns his declarations, he feels dejected until his mother imparts a lesson: “When you tell people you love them,” she says, “even if they don’t say it back or show it, they feel it. That’s just the way love is.” A gentle, resonant narrative for ch