Often when you stroll through a museum or gallery, or perhaps just flip though an art history book, some particular work will take your breath away. It might be an almost perfect interplay of light and shadow or a certain color combination that suddenly brings your senses to life. When this happens you might seek out other works by the same artist, hoping to find more of the same. This is how I feel about Adriana Trigiani's novels. Each one is different, yet they share a common sense of richness and color. Trigiani uses words as an artist uses his or her medium the express her unique view of the world. I think she will always be one of my favorites.
Very Valentine is the story of an Italian woman, the middle child and the "funny one", who left her career as a teacher to apprentice as a cobbler in the family business, the Angelini Shoe Company, creators of custom wedding shoes since 1903. Valentine's grandmother, Teodora, owns the building, on the banks of the Hudson River, that houses both the shoe company and the home that she shares with Valentine. Valentine is an observer, a philosopher, and a romantic. She provides the reader with rich and satisfying observations of the people in her life and the world around her, including the river, food, New York, and the Tuscan countryside. Don't make the mistake of thinking that this is just a romance, as the title and cover art suggest. It does include romance, though, as well as many fascinating insights into the custom shoe business, Italian custom and culture, and human relationships of all shapes and sizes. Valentine is endearing and inspiring, a heroine whose love of family and of her craft make her a memorable character and a joy to experience.
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