<p>Emily Bazelon talks with journalist Mark Oppenheimer about his new book</p><p><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/734817/judy-blume-by-mark-oppenheimer/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Judy Blume: A Life</em></a>. Oppenheimer, who spent years with Blume’s papers at</p><p>Yale and conducted extensive interviews with the author herself, traces</p><p>how a restless housewife in New Jersey became one of the most</p><p>beloved—and most banned—writers in American history.</p><br><p>They discuss what made Blume’s frank, funny voice so revolutionary for</p><p>young readers in the 1970s, the surprisingly progressive household that</p><p>shaped her, and the genius of <em>Forever</em>, her landmark novel in which</p><p>teenage sex is depicted as pleasurable rather than catastrophic. They</p><p>also dig into the scandalous adult novel <em>Wifey</em>, Blume’s dogged</p><p>persistence through rejection, and her tireless championing of other</p><p>writers’ right to be read.</p><br><p>Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected].</p><p>(Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates</p><p>otherwise.)</p><br><p>Podcast production by Nina Porzucki.</p><br><p><br></p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>