The Librarians are Coming! ALA Conference Kicks off Thursday

By Lara Levitan

I love the library. Always have. I love rows and rows of books and the silence, pierced by the occasional beep of a scanned barcode. When Chicago library hours were reduced, I was really, really sad, and still am. Perhaps irrationally, I worry for the future of libraries. That's why it's heartening to know that the American Library Association will bring its annual conference and exhibition to McCormick Place this Thursday, June 27 through Tuesday, July 2.

But let's face it, if you're not already registered, you're probably not going to pop $150 for a one-day pass. It's still pretty awesome to recognize that this conference signals a thriving library industry. This week the Tribune's Christopher Borrelli wrote a nice article on the flourishing reference desk at the Mount Prospect Public Library.

It's also pretty cool to note that Alice Walker (read Donna Seaman's interview), Oliver Stone, Temple Grandin, Giada De Laurentiis and a whole lot more will be in town for the Auditorium Speaker Series-- but even cooler to know that local authors like Chris L. Terry (who I previously interviewed here) and Samantha Irby will be present at "Meet the Author" events.

For more details visit the ALA Conference website at www.ala.org/annual.