THE GENIUS OF JUDY: HOW JUDY BLUME REWROTE CHILDHOOD FOR ALL OF US BY

An intimate and expansive look at Judy Blumes life, work, and cultural impact, focusing on her most iconicand controversialyoung adult novels, fromAre You There God? Its Me, MargarettoBlubber.

Everyone knows Judy Blume.

Her books have garnered her fans of all ages for decades and sold tens of millions of copies. But why were people so drawn to them? And why are we still talking about them now in the 21st century?

InThe Genius of Judy, her remarkable story is revealed as never before, beginning with her as a mother of two searching for purpose outside of her home in 1960s suburban New Jersey. The books she wrote starred regular children with genuine thoughts and problems. But behind those deceptively simple tales, Blume explored the pillars of the growing womens rights movement, in which girls and women were entitled to careers, bodily autonomy, fulfilling relationships, and even sexual pleasure. Blume wasnt trying to be a revolutionaryshe just wanted to tell honest storiesbut in doing so, she created a cohesive, culture-altering vision of modern adolescence.

Blumes bravery provoked backlash, making her the countrys most-banned author in the mid-1980s. Thankfully, her works withstood those culture wars and its no coincidence that Blume has resurfaced as a cultural touchstone now. Young girls are still cat-called, sex education curricula are getting dismissed as pornography, and entire shelves of libraries are being banned. As we face these challenges, its only natural we look to Blume, the grand dame of so-called dirty books. This is the story of how a housewife became a groundbreaking artist, and how generations of empowered fans are her legacy, today more than ever.

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