Judy Blume

Barbara J. Feldman

Judy Blume is an award-winning author of twenty-two books for children, young adults and grownups. Her books have sold over seventy-five million copies, and have been translated into more than twenty languages. Despite her huge appeal, her direct approach to difficult subjects such as puberty, divorce and religion has landed her on the Top Ten Challenged Authors list compiled by the American Library Association.

Cynthia Leitch Smith: Interview with Judy Blume

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Cynthis Leitch Smith is a children's and young adult author, and her Judy Blume interview was conducted via email in 2002, just before "Double Fudge" was published. Q: "What is your writing process like?" A: "I keep a notebook for months before I actually sit down to begin a new book. Before I start the notebook I have a vague idea of the characters and their story, usually something that's been brewing inside my head, sometimes for months, sometimes for years."

January Magazine: Judy Blume Interview

4 stars

Linda Richards, a mystery author and editor of the online literary magazine January, interviewed Ms. Blume about her career, her life, her family and censorship. "I don't know why people think that if only they can control what their children read they can control their children's minds. It doesn't work that way. It's as if, if it's in a book it gives you permission."

Judy Blume's Home Base

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At her Home Base, Ms. Blume answers questions, offers writing tips, takes on censorship, hosts a guestbook, and is an active blogger, If you are writing a school report, visit for her official bio, photo pages, annotated book list, and links to dozens of off-site interviews. All Judy Blume fans will enjoy the Favorite Questions page, and the her blog (look in From Judy to find the link.) Elementary-age fans should head over to the Kids Pages for Judy factoids. "Judy's best friend lived in a building in New York City with an elevator just like the one in 'Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing.'"

OnlineNewsHour: Author Judy Blume

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"Beginning in the early 1970s with works such as 'Are You There, God? It's Me Margaret,' in which an 11-year-old girl worries about puberty and religion; the 'Fudge' series, about a fourth grader and his baby brother; and books that address teen sexuality head-on, Blume has written about the real lives of young people." PBS Online NewsHour hosts this 2004 Judy Blume in three formats: video, audio and text, so you can choose one that best suits your mood and connection speed.

TeenReads: Author Profile: Judy Blume

4 stars

"Censorship is an issue close to Blume's heart. When she first began writing more than twenty years ago, she says, she 'had to write the most honest books I could. It never occurred to me, at the time, that what I was writing was controversial.'" This TeenReads author profile is a transcript from a chat interview, just before "Summer Sisters" was released in 1998. How long did it take her to write it? About three years and twenty-two drafts.