Whatever Valentine’s Day means to you, visit the library for great new ideas, good role models, bad role models (think “Wuthering Heights” or “Fatal Attraction”), or additional perspectives on the idea of love. No matter how happy, or cynical, you are, the library is filled with resources to inspire you to new heights of creativity. From affordable valentine ideas, romantic recipes, perky tips on the joys of being single, escapist fiction, to tales of gleeful or wicked revenge, you’ll find it at the library.
If the bloom of romance brightens your smile, look for tips on make-it-yourself treats and gifts in books and magazines. If the current issues are busy, ask the librarian how to find back issues of decorating and cooking magazines. While love might not always be eternal, valentine ideas usually are.
Babies and toddlers will love valentine board books, rhymes and songs. For kids in elementary school, check the catalog for make-it-yourself projects, simple recipes, party ideas, and illustrated stories. Teens and grown-ups can try their hand at reading or writing poetry, or indulging in a full range of fiction: sweet for those in relationships, and bittersweet for those who wish they were.
If cynicism and irony make you laugh at the idea of true love, try works like the “Anti-Valentine’s Handbook”, “Happily Ever After Divorce: Notes of a Joyful Journey”, or watch “Shirley Valentine” (for grown-ups only), or that great classic “The Princess Bride.” If you enjoy the film, try the book: “The Princess Bride”, or “S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure”, the good parts version, abridged, by William Goldman. Laughs are guaranteed.
If intellectual introspection and analysis are more your style, browse the “See Also” listings for related topics.
Some of those include, attachment behavior, courtly love, friendship, God worship and love, Christianity, Judaism, Islam, obsession, parental love, married love, platonic love, summer love and unrequited love.
If romance and all the other flavors of love exhaust you, try for compassion and loving kindness: see “His Holiness, the XIV Dalai Lama of Tibet”. There’s even a DVD: “The Dalai Lama: soul of Tibet.” To practice loving kindness and compassion, learn more about Haiti and disaster relief.
Whether you wish to enjoy the day, amuse the kids, or transform your life, great ideas begin at the library.
Marsha Iverson is a public relations specialist with the King County Library System
