This week I revisited one of my favorite authors, Judy Blume, in her novel Forever. And I got to know a new author, Alex Gino, in the novel George. Both novels I read have had a lot of discussion about their addressed topic issues.
Forever
Forever, is a teen romance novel that makes readers question true love. Is there a difference between first love and true love? This is the question that Judy Blume confronts head on in her novel.
Michael and Katherine share an intimate relationship with one another. This book has explicit sexual content in it, so i’m not exactly sure I would let younger adults read it, but definitely once they get into high school. Blume confronts the harsh reality that comes with having a sexual partner. Michael and Katherine promise each other forever, but what they fail to realize is the fact that they are so young. When they get separated for a summer their love begins to fade.
I enjoyed the novel for how straight-forward it is about the topic of sex. Often I feel like our society fails to educate young adults because it is a difficult thing to discuss. Leave it to Judy Blume to educate us all (it’s why I love her). I also found the characters to be interesting because they are all very different in their own way. And moreover, they all struggle internally with their own problem. I definitely recommend this book for older teens, especially girls headed off to college.
George
George is a young boy, who questions his identity. He refers to himself as “herself”. George takes up a hobby participating in theatre, where she wants to play girl roles. Theatre is the escape of real life, to be who she truly is.
I’m sure this book has also spiked a controversial discussion, at which some parents, teachers, and librarians ban the book. However, what people fail to recognize is that Alex Gino discusses the difficult topic of transgender identity, and the LGBTQ community. It’s important to have diversity in our reading and this novel does just that!
I really enjoyed reading about George. The struggles that she goes through are tough, but probably speak to a lot of young adults trying to find their own identity in themselves and in the world. I think everyone should give this book a try. It’s a learning experience! And you’ll really appreciate who George is!
Life With Books 
Look at you getting all controversial! I love it! I especially love how you brought up the topic of all the characters that are struggling in Forever. I think that Blume was touching on something really important, but it was slightly overshadowed by the whole sex thing. I think that it would’ve made the book more wholesome (and I might’ve liked it better) if she’d done that. I also think that the book George sounds really interesting. Even though I don’t want to get my beliefs involved, I think you’re definitely right. While I might not agree, that doesn’t matter – what matters is the students. And I think that by reading this book I could open up my eyes to being transgender, as well as relating to my students who are trans, better.
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Honestly Ali, I too was kind of intimidated to read George or any other book dealing with the LGBTQ community. However, I’m really glad that I did take that chance/opportunity to explore. It offers new perspectives that differ from what my conservative beliefs are. That being said, I learned a lot and I now understand their community (transgender) a little bit more than I did before!
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Do you feel like the young adults of today could still find value in Forever? How our society views sex has changed quite a bit in even the last 30-40 years since the book was written. I’m curious if the book would still have the same impact on someone today, as it did when it first came out.
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I do feel like it would still have an impact because of the emotional feelings invested into a partner, especially when sex is involved. I think this is what Judy Blume explores. No matter what generation we are looking at, there are always emotions.
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