Black History Month was begun by Carter G. Woodson.

He was a scholar whose dedication to celebrating the historic contributions of Black people led to the establishment of Black History Month, marked every February since 1976.

During this month, the library has a display of biographies, fiction and nonfiction books for you to borrow. Did you know about Mary Seacole? She was a famous Black nurse who worked in the Crimea at the same time as Florence Nightingale.

Come into the library and borrow a book about other famous Black figures throughout history. Let’s celebrate their lives.

National Library Month is a celebration of everything libraries have to offer. You might be amazed to see some of the activities going on in your library - from making earrings to reading stories to young children; from using our new, superfast computers to reading an old favorite book; from free access to craft materials to hooking up to our Wi-Fi to work on your own laptop; from working on your stitch craft to reading the newspaper with a cup of coffee.

Our aim is for the whole community to feel comfortable coming to the library and exploring everything we have to offer.

Women’s Day magazine offers these other celebrations for February: pizza day, Valentine’s Day, love your pet day, Presidents Day and, my favorite, public sleeping day.

So, whatever you’re celebrating - or have already celebrated - in February 2023, we wish you happiness.

To quote the Dalai Lama, “Happiness is the highest form of health.”

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NEW BOOKS

Fiction: “Little Paula,” V.C. Andrews; “Storm Watch,” C.J. Box; “A Calder at Heart,” Janet Dailey; “Exiles,” Jane Harper; “Heart Bones,” Colleen Hoover; “Never Never,” Colleen Hoover; “More Than Meets the Eye,” Iris Johansen and Roy Johansen; “Unnatural History,” Jonathan Kellerman; “The House at the End of the World,” Dean Koontz; “Just the Nicest Couple,” Mary Kubica; “Someone Else’s Shoes,” Jojo Moyes; “Countdown,” James Patterson and Brenan Dubois; “3 Days to Live,” James Patterson; “Encore in Death,” J.D. Robb

Nonfiction: “Love, Pamela,” Pamela Anderson; “I Am the Storm: Inspiring Stories of People Who Fight Against Overwhelming Odds,” Janice Dean; “Call Me Anne,” Anne Heche; “Young Forever: The Secrets to Living Your Longest, Healthiest Life,” Mark Hyman, M.D.; “Walk the Blue Line,” James Patterson with Matt Eversmann; “Myth America: Historians Take On the Biggest Legends and Lies About Our Past,” Kevin M. Kruse and Julian E. Zelizer; “Chasing Catastrophe: My 35 Years Covering Wars, Hurricanes, Terror Attacks and Other Breaking News,” Rick Leventhal; “Straight Shooter: A Memoir of Second Chances and First Takes,” Stephen A. Smith; “The Fight of His Life: Inside Joe Biden’s White House,” Chris Whipple

Juvenile: “To Bee, or Not to Bee! (Minecraft),” Nick Eliopulos; “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves: The Junior Novelization,” David Lewman; “Mary Anne’s Bad Luck Mystery (The Baby-Sitters Club 13),” Ann Martin; “Rhinos at Recess (Magic Tree House),” Mary Osborne Pope; “What Is the Story of Nancy Drew?” Dana Meachen Rau

Young adult: “One Girl in the World (Buffy: The Next Generation, Book 2),” Kendare Blake; “Nine Liars,” Maureen Johnson; “Live Your Best Lie,” Jessie Weaver

Children’s picture books: “When PB Met J,” Katelyn Aronson; “The Library Fish Learns to Read,” Alyssa Satin Capucilli; “Sleepy Sheepy,” Lucy Ruth Cummins; “Grumpy Monkey the Egg-Sitter,” Suzanne Lang; “National Geographic Kids 5-Minute Baby Animal Stories,” National Geographic Kids; “LEGO City 5-Minute Stories,” Random House; “Good Night, Sister,” Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt