LibraryAware February 2025

MRLS Newsletter — February 2025

Happy Valentine's Day!

Bad Kitty does not like Valentine's Day
by Nick Bruel

With the help of Puppy's paw-some surprise, Kitty realizes that Valentine's Day isn't so bad after all. 75,000 first printing. Illustrations.

Little Blue Truck's valentine
by Alice Schertle

Delivering Valentine's Day cards to his farm animal friends, a diligent Little Blue Truck wonders if he will receive any cards of his own, in a holiday entry in the best-selling series that incorporates foil accents and an oversized gatefold spread. 150,000 first printing. Simultaneous eBook. Illustrations.

Rocket's secret valentine
by Tad Hills

When someone starts leaving friendly notes for Rocket, he, Bella and Owl search for clues by following the notes in an effort to solve the mystery. Illustrations.

February Closings

Online Learning Resources

Niche Academy

Niche Academy is an online learning platform that offers video tutorials on:

Computer & Internet Basics
Library Resources (databases, ebooks, etc.)
Social Media (Facebook, Instagram, etc.)
Google Products (Gmail, Google Drive, etc.)
Microsoft Products (Word, Excel, etc.)

Universal Class

Universal Class offers online continuing education courses that you can take at your own pace! Subjects offered include:

Business
Computer training
General education
Health and medicine
Social work
Special education
Web development

Visit https://bit.ly/3WaR3Fb to access these and other educational and career resources.

Celebrate Black History Month

Little leaders : bold women in black history
by Vashti Harrison

A biographical reference by a debut author and illustrator is based on her popular Instagram posts and shares the stories of 40 African-American women who shaped history. 50,000 first printing. Simultaneous eBook.

A Black women's history of the United States
by Daina Ramey Berry

Centering around Black women's stories, two award-winning historians offer an examination and celebration of Black womanhood, beginning with the first African women who arrived in what became the US to African American women of today. Original.

Justice for ourselves : Black Virginians claim their freedom after slavery
by John G. Deal

"This book chronicles comprehensively the achievements of Black Virginians in the decades after the Civil War"

Timelines from Black history : leaders, legends, legacies
by Mireille Harper

"From Frederick Douglass to Oprah Winfrey, and the achievements of ancient African kingdoms to those of the US Civil Rights Movement, Timelines From Black History: Leaders, Legends, Legacies takes kids on an exceptional journey from prehistory to modern times"

HBCU made : a celebration of the black college experience
by Ayesha Rascoe

This collection of essays celebrating historically Black colleges and universities features contributions from famous alumni such as Oprah Winfrey, Stacey Abrams and Branford Marsalis who have been shaped by the HBCU experience. 40,000 first printing.

Monthly Events

New Book Highlights

Beautiful ugly
by Alice Feeney

A year after his wife Abby mysteriously disappeared, author Grady Green, still consumed by grief, retreats to a remote Scottish island only to encounter a woman who looks exactly like the wife he lost. 150,000 first printing.

The big empty
by Robert Crais

When Elvis Cole finds himself shadowed by a gang of vicious criminals, a missing-persons cold case becomes far more sinister, and soon he must call his ex-Marine friend Joe Pike for help.

The Crash
by Freida Mcfadden

Eight months pregnant and abandoned by her baby's father, Tegan embarks on a desperate journey to her brother's house during a storm, only to crash and find herself at the mercy of a remote couple with potentially sinister intentions.