Romantic ‘books of the courtier’ for our time

Romantic ‘books of the courtier’ for our time 
by Nicole Levy, 
Chronicle Contributor




The lyrical stylings of nationally acclaimed poet Valentinno of Glendale have romanced even British Queen Elizabeth II herself. The poem Valentinno composed for the queen in 2008, entitled “O’ Blessed Nightingale,” is today displayed as a personal keepsake of her majesty in Balmoral Castle. Reading the lyric, I imagined that Elizabeth had cast her regal person as that blessed nightingale for whom “the thunder…trembles, / When she beat her majestic wings in flight / Composing that choral symphony that softly serenades / The tranquil night, with that melodious theme.” 

When I interviewed Valentinno, he showed me the letter the queen’s lady-in-waiting had mailed him to express her gratitude, citing the envelope stamp as proof of its authenticity. Elizabeth is truly an admirer. This is not to say that Valentinno's poetry is for all. His last two books, published in 2006 and 2007, respectively, have enjoyed a predominately female following because the passionate sentimentality that characterizes his work is “what women want. They don’t really have romance in their relationships, and I think they’re living through romantic poetry. They want commitment and they want connection,” he said, the soft inflections of his sexy voice certainly the dulcet tones of the handsome bard. 

When I suggested that his poetry may be construed as a man’s guide to courting a woman with chivalry and affection, Valentinno agreed: “A lot of woman have said, ‘I wish my husband could think or write like that.’” One fan on MySpace asked Valentinno to pen a poem for his girlfriend: “I said, ‘it would be a pleasure … If you’re having a little trouble … but you have to memorize it when you say it to her,’” he told me with a grin. Valentinno, 37, berated those men of his generation who “need to learn to be more romantic, more gentle, more considerate, and stop being selfish.” ” He considerately sought my feminine affirmation. Valentinno's own personal philosophy is “that a man should explore a woman, besides even sex. He should want to know everything about her.

 Valentinno believes a good poet will compel his audience to “read [his] imagery and phrases more than once ... The first or second line has to be explosive, and the reader is going to say, ‘Thank you for that visual’ … Look at Byron’s first line: ‘When she walks in beauty like the night, of cloudless climes and starry night.’ That was gripping” Although Valentinno identifies with great Romantic poets like Byron, Shelley and Keats, he chooses to write in prose-poetry form because it permits the greatest flexibility. His notions of what constitutes good poetry is believed to come from biographies of the great poets, the history of romance, the Bible, and the works of Byron and Keats. 

He attended Parsons School of Design for cartoon animation at the insistence of his parents. “I started out as an artist, then a screenwriter, then I did some acting, I was a stuntman, and then I wanted to pursue other avenues,” he said, “and that was my poetry. That was my truest love.” As a stuntman, Valentinno did martial arts, lifts and car drags. Valentinno is fortunate that the works he published with an independent press are bestsellers in Europe, generating steady income. He’s been recognized with more than 60 awards in poetic and literary excellence, including the Dickinson Award, and his work has gained him entrance to the American Authors Association. He hopes to sell the rights to his third book to a major publishing company and to fund an anthology of poems by writers around the world for the benefit of African nations plagued by malaria. I certainly pay homage to this courtier.