VERY VALENTINE

TITLE: VERY VALENTINE
AUTHOR: ADRIANA TRIGIANI
Pages: 367
Date: 28/06/2009
Grade: 5
Library

Adriana Trigiani writes amazing books. Time and again she manages to capture me, draw me into her story and keep me hooked until the very last word and beyond.
While I was reading this book I was living with Valentine, feeling her emotions and willing her on and forward. And now that I've finished the book, Valentine is still real for me and I have to remind myself that I won't ever be meeting her.
For me the strength in Trigiani's books lies in the fact that she writes about real women, with real lives. Women who do good and make mistakes. Strong women who have their weak moments. These women have real emotions that I recognize and problems I can relate to. I would love to be able to call Trigiani's women my friends.
This is the story of Valentine, who together with her grandmother, Teodora, runs Angelini Shoes where they make and sell handmade wedding shoes.
But Teodora is 80 years old and the shop is on the brink of financial disaster. Valentine desperately wants to safe the shop and enters an exclusive design competition. At the same time there are health problems and conflicts in her family, a new love to negotiate and business plans to come to grips with. It takes a trip to Italy and Capri to bring life into perspective for Valentine, and show her the way forward.
Quote from page 322:
"True love is without whim. It's hardware. Durable. Everlasting. This world is where Constanzo and Rosa's love happened, but eternity is where it lives. Love stays as long as someone remembers."