64 Books like The Princess of Valentine Valley

Another classic, Angelina Ballerina, follows the story of Angelina, a mouse who loves ballet.

As a child, I too wanted to be a ballerina just like Angelina and found myself dancing along, twirling with this imaginative mouse in her adorable pink bow! The illustrations are so detailed and truly draw you into the world of Angelina.

When Angelina received her own ballet dress and slippers, I felt such a whimsical joy and would dress up along with her. This is a wonderful choice for children who have a dream and dancing feet that just won’t stop!

Such a charming book, I could recite almost all of Madeline with its fun, memorable rhyming.

I wanted to be Madeline and live in her world of Paris, have her dog Genevieve, and (to my mother’s dismay) walk along the top edge of a bridge, balancing like an acrobat!

Returning to this book as an adult, I didn’t realize that the author was actually the illustrator as well, and I found that the unique illustrations brought the story to life. Madeline helps children see the world in a different way, with imagination, whimsy, and creativity.

I also had a Madeline sticker book, and returned to her fun story again and again (not to mention watching the TV show regularly). 

Jillian Jiggs is a fun girl whom I could relate to so much as a child. She dresses up, makes her own stories, and sometimes makes a mess!

My friends and I loved to play similar activities as Jillian, making crafts and using everything in my house and dress-up trunk to create stories where we were princesses, witches, fairies, and more.

The rhyming in the book drew me into the story and meant that returning to the book became more memorable as the rhymes stuck in my mind.

Books like these are more important than ever in an age of technology, for playtime and make-believe are so important for children to express themselves as they grow up.

Barbie books were also a favourite of mine, and the story of the twelve dancing princesses is a fun adventure with twelve sisters (I would have loved twelve sisters!) who love to dance.

When they venture to a magical world, I can imagine dancing in a gorgeous dress along with them! One thing I love about Barbie books is that they are empowering for girls, showing Barbie (or her fairytale counterpart) taking the lead and making a difference in the world.

Although the Barbie rendition is not quite like the classic tale, it is a great way for kids to be introduced to old fairy tales.

Valentine is the first in a three-book urban fantasy series, and I’ll be honest: Pearl, the heroine, annoyed me at times. That doesn’t make her a bad character. Quite the opposite. Author Jodi McAlister gives her heroine room to grow over the course of the trilogy and I really enjoyed watching Pearl’s character develop and mature. She has a lot to cope with when the Unseelie comes looking for the fairy changeling that was swapped for a human at birth. Is it Pearl? Or one of the three others in her group that share the same birthday? I loved the way Pearl’s teenage suburban life contrasts with the terrifying and unpredictable Unseelie. It makes the menacing evil within the book all too real. I read it with one eye on my garden in case of invading evil faeries!

This book has so much quiet, creative sweetness in it, and I just love the theme of using what you find to make something special. Cornelia Augusta discovers that it’s raining hearts one day, so she gathers them up. As she examines each heart, she sees how unique they are—and she decides to make Valentines with them to send to her animal friends. This book is also a perfect way to jump-start craft time for making Valentine’s Day cards. 

Anybody I’ve ever talked mysteries with has heard me struggle to impart just how much I admire this book: the clarity and precision of Rendell’s narration, the brisk confidence in every characterization, and the way she challenges the conventional structure of the mystery novel from the first line: “Eunice Parchman killed the Coverdale family because she could not read or write.”

With that first line, I know the crime, the victims, the killer, even the motive—and yet I am utterly compelled to read on. I’ve read it four times, maybe more. I’m in awe of her confidence driving this book, and I love to be her passenger.

Okay, I admit it, I may have picked this one up because I was curious, as a romance author, to read a romance about a romance author. Fern Fraser totally delivers and although we have some tried-and-tested tropes here (instalove, young heroine who wants to get her v-card punched, secret billionaire who hides his wealth, then has to come clean), Fern assembles all the ingredients into such a delicious, feel-good pie that it feels fresh. There’s a whole series if you find you like them, but each one stands on its own as a fun, steamy read.

A little mouse is trying to hide its red-foil-wrapped chocolate heart, but every hiding place she finds is not safe enough for her standards. Eventually, she puts it in her mouth and eats it. Now it’s safe! This delightful picture book for preschoolers makes me smile each time I read it. The illustrations are simplistic and beautiful. They fit perfectly to the text. 

The story inspires sadness, hope, and happiness. At first, you’ll feel sorry for Mr. Hatch. You’ll care about him and wonder why he is the way he is. You’ll watch him receive a gift that has a lasting effect on him. Then, with a turn of events, you’ll feel sorry for him again. But by the end, you’ll be rooting for him.