Judy Blume (1938 – )

Judy was born on February 12, 1938.  She always had a deep love of reading and fostered a wonderful imagination, but only began writing down her ideas when her children started attending preschool.  Her first book, The One in the Middle is the Green Kangaroo, was published in 1969. The following ten years saw her publish 13 books, including her most popular titles.

Many of her most well-known books deal with controversial topics as racism, menstruation, divorce, bullying, masturbation, and teen sex, in a realistic and down-to-earth way.  Many censors have denounced her topics as inappropriate for middle school audiences, but she has sold over 80 million copies of her books and has a strong fan base of people who grew reading about easy-to-understand characters dealing with the same issues in their own lives that they were facing.

As her books have been among the most-often challenged for young readers, Judy Blume has taken serious strides to preserve intellectual freedom in literature. Blume is a member of the National Coalition Against Censorship, founder of The Kids Fund, and a member of The Authors Guild, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and the Key West Literary Seminar.

Judy graduated from New York University in 1961 with a B.S. in education, and she was named a Distinguished Alumna in 1996.  She was also the recipient of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Achievement from the American Library Association, the Library of Congress Living Legends Award, the 2004 National Book Foundation’s Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, and in 2009 the University of Southern Mississippi Medallion for her lifelong contributions to the field of children’s literature.

"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." — Judy Blume

• Iggie’s House - 1970
• Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. - 1970
• Freckle Juice - 1971
• It’s Not the End of the World - 1972
• Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing - 1972
• Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great - 1972
• Deenie - 1973
• Blubber - 1974
• Forever - 1975
• Wifey - 1978
• Superfudge - 1980
• Tiger Eyes - 1981
• Fudge-a-mania - 1990
• Double Fudge - 2002

Click here to see the comprehensive bibliography of Judy Blume

Judy Blume official website