Judy Blume
Judy Blume spent her childhood in Elizabeth, New Jersey, making up stories inside her head. She has spent her adult years in many places doing the same thing, only now she writes her stories down on paper. Adults as well as children will recognize such Blume titles as: Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret; Blubber; Just as Long as We're Together; and the five book series about the irrepressible Fudge. She has also written three novels for adults, Summer Sisters; Smart Women; and Wifey, all of them New York Times bestsellers. More than 80 million copies of her books have been sold, and her work has been translated into thirty-one languages. She receives thousands of letters a year from readers of all ages who share their feelings and concerns with her.
Judy received a B.S. in education from New York University in 1961, which named her a Distinguished Alumna in 1996, the same year the American Library Association honored her with the Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Achievement. Other recognitions include the Library of Congress Living Legends Award and the 2004 National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.
She is the founder and trustee of The Kids Fund, a charitable and educational foundation. She serves on the boards of the Author's Guild; the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators; the Key West Literary Seminar; and the National Coalition Against Censorship.
Judy is a longtime advocate of intellectual freedom. Finding herself at the center of an organized book banning campaign in the 1980's she began to reach out to other writers, as well as teachers and librarians, who were under fire. Since then, she has worked tirelessly with the National Coalition Against Censorship to protect the freedom to read. She is the editor of Places I Never Meant To Be, Original Stories by Censored Writers.
Judy has completed a series of four chapter books -- The Pain & the Great One -- illustrated by New Yorker cartoonist James Stevenson. She has co-written and produced a film adaptation of her book Tiger Eyes, and is currently writing a new novel.
Judy and her husband George Cooper live on islands up and down the east coast. They have three grown children and one grandchild.
“If I should ever have children I will tell them what religion they are so they can start learning about it at an early age. Twelve is very late to learn.Sincerely, Margaret Ann Simon”
“You better get used to it. You're going to be on the ground a lot today, but cheer up... tomorrow you'll be an expert.”
“I am not scared of you, I am scare of these feelings.”
“Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret. I just told my mother I want a bra. Please help me grow God. You know where.”
“My only advice is to stay aware, listen carefully, and yell for help if you need it.”
“I made promises to you that I'm not sure I can keep. None of it has anything to do with you. It's just that I don't know what to do now. You must be thinking what a rotten person I am. Well, believe me, I'm thinking the same thing. I don't know how this happened or why. Maybe I can get over it. Do you think you can wait—because I don't want you to stop loving me. I keep remembering us and how it was. I don't want to hurt you … not ever …”
“I still get angry when older people assume that everyone in my generation, screws around. They're probably the same ones who think all kids use dope. It's true that we are more open than our parents but that just means we accept sex and talk about it. It doesn't mean we are all jumping into bed together.”
“It's true that we are more open than our parents but that just means we accept sex and talk about it. It doesn't mean we are all jumping in bed together.”
“It's strange, but when it comes right down to it I never do fall apart--even when I'm sure I will.”
“I like one hair, tuna fish, the smell of rain and things that are pink. I hate pimples, baked potatoes, when my mother's mad, and religious holidays.”
“We are friends for life. When we’re together the years fall away. Isn’t that what matters? To have someone who can remember with you? To have someone who remembers how far you’ve come?”
“Censors never go after books unless kids already like them. I don’t even think they know to go after books until they know that children are interested in reading this book, therefore there must be something in it that’s wrong.”
“What's the point of thinking about how it's going to end when it's just the beginning?”
“You think everything can be magically cured with vitamins?” “Everything but us.”
“It's not so much that I like him as a person God, but as a boy he's very handsome.”
“Keep busy, Sandy ... when you're busy you don't have time to brood ...""Life should be more than keeping busy.""Maybe it should be, but for most of us, it's not.”
“Something will be offensive to someone in every book, so you've got to fight it.”
“Things change…things happen…things you can’t even imagine when you’re young and full of hope.”
“some changes happen deep down inside of you. And the truth is, only you know about them. Maybe that's the way it's supposed to be.”
“I can't let safety and security become the focus of my life.”
“Little kids are amazing. They seem able to adjust to anything.”
“Each of us must confront our own fears, must come face to face with them. How we handle our fears will determine where we go with the rest of our lives. To experience adventure or to be limited by the fear of it.”
“She wondered if all the firsts in her life would go by so quickly, and be forgotten just as quickly.”
“Caitlyn isn't someone to get over. She's someone to come to terms with, the way you have to come to terms with your parents, your siblings. You can't deny they ever happened. You can't deny you ever loved them, love them still, even if loving them causes you pain.”
“As a kid, Vix had had some warped idea that grownup meant having a job and living on your own. It meant no one could tell you what to eat, or what to wear, or how to behave. It meant that it was okay to have sex with guys. What a joke!”
“Fear is often disguised as moral outrage.”
“I want you to know it was no big deal...those movies showing women screaming in labor are plain bullshit....there's nothing to it...you just push and push and finally the baby pops out...to tell you the truth I don't even rember that much about it except there was a very nice guy standing over me and every time a strong contraction started he gave me a whiff of gas...”
“Suddenly question number four popped into my mind. Have you thought about how this relationship will end?”
“Like my mother said, you can't go back to holding hands”
“Our finger prints don't fade from the lives we touch.”
“That's not a bad word...hate and war are bad words, but fuck isn't.”
“We must, we must, we must increase our bust.”
“Why are we acting as if we're angry. Are we angry?”
“Not everything has to have a point. Some things just are. ”
“Suppose there aren't any more A + days once you get to be twelve? Wouldn't that be something! To spend the rest of your life looking for an A + day and not finding it.”
“you can't deny they ever happened. You can't deny you ever loved them, love them still, even if loving them causes you pain”
“Eat it or wear it”
“hi I hope u want to be my friends”
“Believe in yourself and you can achieve greatness in your life.”
“You've never been in love," she said. "You don't understand.""If being in love means giving up your freedom, not to mention your opportunities," Caitlin said, "Then I haven't missed anything.”
“Precious Child... nothing matters but the moment. There might be no tomorrow and even if there is, nobody gives a damn.”
“I love you, Michael Wagner.” “Forever?” he asked. “Forever,” I said.”
“Without peanut butter, I might starve.”
“The best books come from someplace deep inside.... Become emotionally involved. If you don't care about your characters, your readers won't either.”
“Snoring keeps the monsters away.”
“Let children read whatever they want and then talk about it with them. If parents and kids can talk together, we won't have as much censorship because we won't have as much fear.”
“The truth will make you odd.”
“[I]t's not just the books under fire now that worry me. It is the books that will never be written. The books that will never be read. And all due to the fear of censorship. As always, young readers will be the real losers.”