Product Description
"No preaching (Blume never does) but the message is clear; no hedging (Blume never does) but a candid account by Kathy gives intimate details of a first sexual relationship. The characters and dialogue are equally natural and vigorous, the language uncensored, the depiction of family relationships outstanding."--Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. ALA Best of the Best Books for Young Adults.

Sent to skylerdragon to fulfill a wish :-)

Released for One Word Release Challenge

Thank you! This is one of the most amazing and best YA novels I have ever read. It is probably my favorite. It deals with a pretty touchy subject, but it is so well written, and written by my favorite YA author, so I love rereading it.

Katherine, a high school senior meets Michael and falls in love. Its not a typical boy meets girl story because in the end, their relationship is not like it is in a typical boy meets girl story. It is however incredible. Katherine must decide if she likes Michael enough to give up her virginity. The decision weighs heavy on her, and her conversations with her sister, her best friend Erica, and her mother help the reader to experience the internal conflict Katherine faces. In the end, she is a strong, independent woman who takes responsibility for her decision and accepts her future proudly.

Other critical issues are discussed in this book and as pointed out in a forward written by Judy Blume, sexual responsibility has come to mean so much more. Blume handles these issues professionally, candidly, and in a context that resonates well with teens. This isn't just an entertaining read. It is a lesson on maturity, sexual responsibility, and moral integrity. Readers with a strong family system will benefit from discussion and exploration with loved ones of the topics addressed.

This is not the kind of book I can just leave in my classroom for students to find and read on their own. I love it though and am always willing to loan it with parent approval.

I passed this book along to one of my students this week. Her mom gave her the go-ahead to read it. I am sure she will enjoy it.

My teacher gave me this book to read. I will read it and give it back to him soon. Thank you Mr. M!

I recently wrote to Judy Blume, one of my favorite authors, via her website. She responded by thanking me for my "warm note." I did some further research on her site and found out why she wrote FOREVER. The book was first published in 1976 - her stepdaughter, I believe, wanted a frank story about two nice kids who have sex without one of them facing terrible consequences, meaning death, pregnancy, and alas, abortions.

Enter Katherine Danzinger and Michael Wagner, two high school seniors. I like the fact that Blume used two seventeen year-olds, rather than two fifteen year-olds. I'm not even saying fifteen is the wrong age to be having sex - there is no right age in my mind. It's the level of responsibility, really - Katherine proves she is just that: responsible. She uses protection, a condom and the pill. She's a good student, a daughter, a sister to younger sibling, Jaime, and a best friend to Erica Small, who feels the need to be more outspoken than Katherine because she wants to compenstate for her short stature. Michael, at first, is not a virgin, while Katherine is. He is her first boyfriend and as they grow closer and the relationship turns sexual, they come to know each other mentally and Katherine becomes "mentally ready," so she feels she can now lose her virginity to the boy she loves.

Besides sex, FOREVER also deals with loss - Katherine's grandfather, with whom she was very close, dies after struggling to live through his stroke. Katherine has a nice family relationship. She seems almost to be a younger version of her mother, while Jaime is a younger version of Katherine. She loves her parents dearly and is shocked to find they are sending her away to summer camp to work, completely against her will. They think she and Michael direly need some time apart and Katherine, unjustly so, has no say in the decision.

Katherine and Michael promised to be together forever. Now, at camp, Katherine contemplates what that really means. Camp is where she receives the devastating news about her grandfather. Michael isn't there but Theo, a sexy tennis instructor, is. Had her parents never sent her away, this may have never happened. If Katherine was older than 17-18 (she turns 18 in the book), maybe things would have been different. But since things are the way they are, she must deal with the situation at hand the best way she knows how.

Blume's story is frank, melancholy, and realistic. The ending may not seem ideal but it is as real and true as possible and that is what readers must understand. I first read this book when I was 13 and still have no difficulty understanding the reasons for its critical acclaims. If you want a story of love, truth, and hardships in a relationship, this is the book for you to read.

I put this on a table in the library.