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For my son Curtis and his friends, who make me excited about the future
But here she had no children, no husband, and her mother was dead, no one was far weaker or far stronger than she, she carried her rage unknown, hidden, unknowable yet, she moved, slowly, under the arches, literally singing.
—SHARON OLDS, FROM “VISITING MY MOTHER’S COLLEGE”
The word police can fuck off.
—MADONNA
Timeline
1938—Judith Sussman was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey
1945—World War II ended
1956—Graduated from Battin High School
1959—Married John Blume
1961—Graduated from New York University; gave birth to Randy Blume
1963—Gave birth to Lawrence Blume; The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan
1966—The National Organization for Women (NOW) formed
1967—Diary of a Mad Housewife by Sue Kaufman
1968—Richard Nixon was elected
1969—The One in the Middle Is the Green Kangaroo
1970—Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret; Sexual Politics by Kate Millett; Women’s Strike for Equality
1971—Freckle Juice and Then Again, Maybe I Won’t
1972—It’s Not the End of the World and Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
1973—Deenie; Roe v. Wade decision by the Supreme Court; Fear of Flying by Erica Jong
1974—Blubber; Nixon resigned due to the Watergate scandal
1975—Divorced John Blume; Forever; the Vietnam War ended
1976—Married Tom Kitchens in England
1977—Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself; It’s OK If You Don’t Love Me by Norma Klein
1978—Wifey
1979—Divorced Tom Kitchens
1980—Ronald Reagan was elected; Superfudge; met George Cooper
1981—Tiger Eyes
1983—Smart Women
1987—Married George Cooper; Just as Long as We’re Together
Preface
Judy Blume was my first.
She wasn’t the first author I fell in love with, but when I was nine years old, she pulled me across another major milestone—she wrote a book that I wanted to hide from my parents. Just as Long as We’re Together, about three middle school–aged best friends and their musical-chair friendship dynamics, started with a sentence so intoxicating it might as well have come with a chaser: Stephanie is into hunks. Was I into hunks? I wasn’t sure. But I knew that I couldn’t put the book down.
Stephanie’s parents were getting a divorce. My parents were divorced, too! Her body, like mine, was turning into something alien. Black fuzz was sprouting in not-altogether-welcome places, and I was transfixed as Stephanie described her own evolving figure, replete with belly rolls, jiggling “glutes,” and dark pubic hair.
My dad still read to me before bed at that age. But as soon as I got my hands on Just as Long as We’re Together, I asked him to stop. Stephanie’s world, filled with crushes, budding breasts, and pre-teen drama, wasn’t one I wanted to share with him. And so that night, I shuffled to his bedroom in pajamas and slippers and announced that I was going to read myself to sleep. I recognized his sadness as I kissed him good night, and I felt it, too. But it was worth it. Blume offered me something nobody else ever had before: a mirror of truth and a portal to some not-so-distant future, all wrapped in a humble paperback.
