Reading is typically a solitary activity, but when it comes to the annual National Book Festival, it takes the form of a major social gathering that attracts thousands of attendees.

The one-day event has come a long way since Laura Bush co-founded it in 2001. In 2019, the last time it took place fully in-person, the festival saw 200,000 visitors, according to festival organizers. It’s returning to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on Saturday, Sept. 3 and will feature more than 120 authors, poets, celebrities, and audiobook performers. (Last year’s event took place over 10 days with a mix of virtual and in-person discussions, and 2020’s was fully virtual.)

Sponsored by the Library of Congress, all of the National Book Festival’s readings and talks are free and open to the public, with doors opening at 8:30 a.m. and the last session closing at 8 p.m. Advanced tickets are not required, though events are first-come-first-served. A full schedule is available online.

Sessions on the festival’s main stage, as well as those on separate society & culture and young adult stages, will be livestreamed on the Library of Congress website. Some online-only events, such as a talk with author Rachel Aviv, will be streaming ahead of time in collaboration with PBS Books.

It’s an all-ages festival, with some talks geared towards children as young as 3, and others meant for fans of the most in-depth investigative nonfiction. That’s according to Clay Smith, the Library of Congress’s new literary director, who oversees the programming and brings with him nearly a decade of experience as director of the San Antonio Book Festival.

“I have tried to think about all the readers who may not go for literary fiction or investigative, reported nonfiction,” Smith says. “I’m trying to make sure that every different kind of reader feels like there’s something among these 120 writers that they would be interested in.”

The festival’s main draw is a list of headliners that includes singer and actor Janelle Monáe, model and deaf activist Nyle DiMarco, Will & Grace alum Leslie Jordan, and Parks & Recreation star Nick Offerman, who will be interviewed by a National Park Service ranger about his latest bestseller, Where the Deer and the Antelope Play.

Of course, there will be book signings, including signings with all the aforementioned celebs.

But there will also be more theatrical performances and live readings than in previous years. For example, New York-based nonprofit Literature to Life will present acted-out adaptations of James Baldwin’s If Beale Street Could Talk and Richard Wright’s Black Boy. Smith says a “teaching artist” will go around asking the audience for responses to the performance, engaging in a dialogue with attendees.

The Library of Congress’ National Library Service, which helped create the first talking book for those who are blind or visually impaired, will host live audiobook readings. But this is no ordinary reading — voice actors Michael Kramer, Kimberly Schraf and Dawn Ursula will narrate the same book passage in three different narrative styles. For example, one might read it as a mystery novel, and another might read it as a romance novel, Smith says.

“There are different ways that audiobook narrators act and use their voices,” Smith says. “And that’s a really interesting discussion as we’ve seen audiobook listenership just hugely grow.”

The Library of Congress also features a publishing wing, and recently republished a 1932 mystery novel, Rudolph Fisher’s The Conjure-Man Dies, the first to feature a Black detective and all-Black character list. During the festival, actors will perform a scene from the novel’s original stage adaptation.

The theme this year is “Books Bring Us Together.” That said, coming together during a pandemic presents risks, and Smith says the festival organizers are monitoring COVID-19 conditions in D.C., along with federal guidance. The organizers are encouraging festivalgoers to review the list of safety tips and prohibited items to save time when waiting in line at the convention center.

National Book Festival will be held Sept. 3 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. It is free and open to the public.