Let’s talk about origin stories. One of my favorite ways to make geography and history relevant is to explore the origin stories of holidays and their traditions.
Here are four living books about the origins of the Roman priest, Valentine. All of the links below will bring you to a free copy of the book on archive.org.
Illustrated in beautiful mosaics to resemble Ancient Rome. This book tells the story of the healing of the blind girl and Valentine’s martyrdom.
Ann Tompert gives even more detail about what little is known of Saint Valentine’s life, complete with author’s historical note at the end.
This is a beautiful story set during the Civil Rights movement in the US. The main character, Marcus, is able to overcome a difficult classroom situation with the wisdom of his grandmother and example of Saint Valentine. It touches upon the history of Saint Valentine.
I bought this board book when my kids were small for a simple biography of the life of Saint Valentine and the modern-day celebrations resulting from his life.