Pick Up a Love Story During February

Editor's note: Once a month, staff at the Galaxie Library in Apple Valley will provide their book recommendations and reviews.

Let's face it: Regardless of your feelings on Valentine's Day, love is a universal theme woven into life, and into many books. Check out one or more of these recommended love stories on Valentine's Day, during February or throughout the year.

"A Venetian Affair" by Andrea di Robilant

"A Venetian Affair" is based on letters actually found by Robilant's father in the attic of their old palazzo. This “epistolary autobiography” is about the passionate romance between Andrea Memmo, a great 18th century Venetian statesman (as well as the author’s actual ancestor), and Giustiniana Wynne, a young woman of Venetian society whose father was English.

From the book: "Flying in the face of morality, the couple pursued their passion with reckless abandon, offending nearly everyone, and even getting some help along the way from the infamous Casanova."

This book offers a glimpse into not only a passionate affair, but into authentic Venetian life during the 1700s. 

-Reviewed by Marsha Redman

 "The Romantic" by Barbara Gowdy

Gowdy tells the story of a romantic tragedy of a young Canadian couple, Louisa Kirk and Abel Richter. Their relationship starts as a childhood friendship between neighbors and develops into an adult relationship that Louisa hopes will become permanent. The characters in this novel have unique voices and vivid personalities, and the novel flows seamlessly between Louisa as a child, as a teen and as an adult in the present. It's a beautiful examination of the complexities of love. 

-Reviewed by Annemarie Robertson

"Love Walked In" by Marisa De los Santos

Romantic old Hollywood movies define 30-something-year-old coffee shop manager Cornelia Brown’s notion of love in De los Santos' debut novel. And what could be more perfect than having Cary Grant lookalike Martin Grace walking into the door of her shop? Their relationship seems all too perfect until Cornelia meets Martin’s 11-year-old daughter, Claire, who is devastated by the disappearance of her mother. Cornelia and Claire’s stories are told in alternate chapters, and the intersection of their two lives helps them both figure out what they love and why. 

-Reviewed by Annemarie Robertson

Children's Book: "Love, Splat" by Rob Scotton

It's Valentine's Day, and Splat the Cat has a special valentine for a certain someone in his class. Splat has a crush on Kitten, a fluffy white cat with pea-green eyes. He likes her even more than fish sticks and ice cream. But Kitten doesn't seem to like him at all—she always ties his tail and pokes his belly when she sees him. And then there's Splat's rival, Spike, who also likes Kitten. Spike tells Splat that he likes her much more and has prepared a superior valentine to prove it. Will Splat win Kitten’s heart? Or will Spike’s better Valentine have Kitty choose him?     

-Reviewed by Debbie Monn