From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsentimentalizesen‧ti‧ment‧al‧ize (also sentimentalise British English) /ˌsentəˈmentl-aɪz/ verb [intransitive, transitive] PERFECTto speak, write, or think about only the good or happy things about something, not the bad things novels that sentimentalize the past→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
sentimentalize• Does he, though, slightly sentimentalize the Andantino sections of the first movement?• These historical novels tended to sentimentalize the past.• In keeping with the general mood of the time, these novels tended to sentimentalize the past.• But the Marschallin does not misjudge, nor does she sentimentalize the situation. 