After two years of virtual conferences during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Texas Library Association Annual Conference returns as an in-person event next week at the Fort Worth Convention Center in Fort Worth, reports Andrew Albanese, Publishers Weekly senior writer.

“TLA organizers say they are energized by the prospect of Texas librarians coming together again, under a conference theme of ‘Recover, Rebalance, Reconnect,’” he tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally.

“Although we are talking about a state library conference, this show is a big deal,” he adds. “The TLA conference is the nation’s largest state library association meeting by a Texas mile, and it’s very much like a national show. Before the pandemic, the conference regularly drew more than 7,000 librarians, publishers, and vendors and 500 exhibiting companies each year.”