Judy Blume

Judy Blume is a writer of children's, young adult, and adult fiction. She began to write in 1959 as an attempt to entertain herself in her role as a homemaker. She has since published 29 novels that have sold more than 90 million copies including her best-known works such as "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret," "Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing," "Deenie" and "Blubber."

In 2023, the long-awaited movie adaptation of "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" as well as the documentary "Judy Blume Forever" were released. Later that same year, she was recognized as one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of the Year and was named one of Forbes magazine's "50 Over 50."

Blume ranks as one of the most banned authors in the U.S., and she uses her platform to be a powerful voice against censorship. She has championed intellectual freedom by working with the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) to support teachers and librarians who fight to keep challenged books on their shelves.

In 2009, the NCAC honored and paid tribute to Blume’s longstanding defense of free speech and her courageous battles against all kinds of censorship. She was awarded the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters in 2004 and the Library of Congress’ Living Legends award in 2000. Blume is also the recipient of the 2017 E. B White Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters as well as the 2018 Carl Sandburg Literary Award from the Chicago Public Library Foundation. In 2020, Blume was honored by the Authors Guild Foundation for Distinguished Service to the Literary Community. In 2021, Yale University conferred a Doctor of Letters honorary degree to Blume and the National Coalition Against Censorship’s Free Speech Defender Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to her.

Blume serves on the board of the Key West Literary Seminar and is is an advisory member of the board for the Authors Guild. Along with her husband, she owns and works at their independent bookstore, Books & Books in Key West, Florida.