Her Best Works
        Many of Judy Blume�s books focus around topics important to preteens and young adults.  Some are comical while others are more serious, but all are enjoyable to read.  She speaks to teenagers through her writing and her stories help many of them find themselves and learn to cope with the many changes and worries they encounter during this difficult stage of their lives.  Judy Blume candidly, but respectfully, touches subjects such as menstruation, erections, wet dreams,  masturbation, and intercourse in order to educate her young readers without making them feel embarrassed or nervous to learn more about these topics.  Other topics include alcoholism, scoliosis, siblings, obesity, dislike of appearance, loss of a loved one, divorce, friendship, and first love.  More recently (1999), she edited a book for young readers on the topic of censorship (�Places I Never Meant To Be�) as a way to make the public aware of the much needed support of books in danger of becoming banned.
          Following is a list of some of her books and the themes brought about in them.  They have been labeled with the topic touched in order to help young readers more easily find the topic they wish to read on. I chose these books with none other than teenagers in mind, as a way of helping them find books dealing with some of these difficult to ask about topics, or those topics which may be further complicating their already complex lives.  Half of these books have appeared on the American Library Association�s �100 Most Frequently Challenged Books� due to the topics they contain.  Several others have obtained many different types of awards.  I consider these books to be among my favorites, and many of them helped me find myself and made my preteen and teenage years infinitely easier to endure.  I will forever be grateful to Judy Blume for this.
All images courtesy of: http://www.amazon.com

(Siblings/Growing Up)
Blume, Judy. 1972. Tales of a fourth grade nothing. Dutton.





(Menstruation/Religion)
Blume, Judy. 1970. Are you there God? It�s me, Margaret. Bradbury
      Press, Paperback Dell.




(Scoliosis/Masturbation)
Blume, Judy. 1973. Deenie. Bradbury Press, Paperback Dell.




(Erections/Wet Dreams)
Blume, Judy. 1971. Then again, maybe I won�t. Bradbury Press,
      Paperback Dell.



(Divorce)
Blume, Judy. 1972. It�s not the end of the world. Bradbury Press,
      Paperback Dell.




(Intercourse/Lost Innocence)
Blume, Judy. 1975. Forever. Bradbury Press, Paperback Dell.




(Loss of a Loved One/Alcoholism)
Blume, Judy. 1981. Tiger eyes. Bradbury Press, Paperback Dell.
                                       



(Friendship)
Blume, Judy. 1987. Just as long as we�re together. Orchard Books,
      Paperback Dell.





(Obesity/Teasing)
Blume, Judy. 1974. Blubber. Bradbury Press, Paperback Dell.




(Book Censorship)
Blume, Judy. 1999. Places I never meant to be. Edited by Judy Blume.
      Simon & Shuster.
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