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Forever

3.64 of 5 stars 3.64 · rating details · 27,828 ratings · 2,072 reviews

There's a first for everything.

When you build up something in your mind � really imagine it, wish for it � sometimes, when it actually happens, it doesn't live up to your expectations.

True love is nothing like that.

Especially not for Katherine and Michael, who can't get enough of each other. Their relationship is unique: sincere, intense, and fun all at the same time. Alt

...more

Mass Market Paperback, 224 pages

Published April 24th 2007 by Simon Spotlight Entertainment (first published 1975)

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Nov 14, 2012 Nataliya rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Those who are tired of unrealistic attitudes about sex and love for young people

Shelves: for-my-future-hypothetical-daughter, 2012-reads

A word of warning: This review will be conducted from a soapbox¹ (which, if you think about it, is a completely baffling expression).

¹ As one would expect from a young feminist gynecologist, of course.

Let's cut to the chase: This book is about a realistically intense relationship between Kath and Michael, two teenagers in the 1970s. They meet, fall in love with a speed only teens are capable of, he wants to sleep with her, she is reluctant, eventually they do it, they are both into it, she (responsibly) gets birth control. And nothing tragic happens to them even though they have sex. And they are not 'destined for each other' or 'soulmates' or any of those crap excuses that books present now every time teens decide to have sex. And even more, their relationship does not survive a brief separation. And it's treated as something perfectly normal. And this is why I love it.

But let's have the author, Judy Blume of Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret fame speak for herself:

"This book was first published in 1975. My daughter Randy asked for a story about two nice kids who have sex without either of them having to die. She had read several novels about teenagers in love. If they had sex the girl was always punished—an unplanned pregnancy, a hasty trip to a relative in another state, a grisly abortion (illegal in the U.S. until the 1970's), sometimes even death. Lies. Secrets. At least one life ruined. Girls in these books had no sexual feelings and boys had no feelings other than sexual. Neither took responsibility for their actions. I wanted to present another kind of story—one in which two seniors in high school fall in love, decide together to have sex, and act responsibly."

And guess what - there are many conversations about sex with the blissful conviction of that time that sexual repression and double standards and the battles over birth control and abortion are finally over and common sense prevails. Now fast-forward to the 21st century to see what unnecessary and charged emotions are still flung about when these simple things are concerned - it's like we took quite a few gigantic steps backwards, and that makes me really sad. Because it's not the world I'd like to leave behind for my future hypothetical daughter.

"It's up to you to decide what's right and what's wrong ... I'm not going to tell you to go ahead but I'm not going to forbid it either. It's too late for any of that. I expect you to handle it with a sense of responsibility though ... either way."

The parents and grandparents discuss sex with the teens and make it clear that they'd rather have them do it under their roof than somewhere else in the unsafe fashion. Parents advise kids about sex but do not cross the boundaries in explicitly forbidding anything. Birth control is accessible and is viewed as a resposible choice, and Planned Parenthood helps Katherine make that choice (you know, the same clinics that cause politicians' rage-fueled speeches about them 'killin' babies' - and yet, from what I have seen in real world, supplying endless women with excellent prenatal care, helping bring healthy happy babies into this word. How 'bout that?).

A teenage girl decides to give birth not because abortion is viewed as a horrible thing to do but because that is her choice (yes, the real pro-choice stand, unlike what the conservative media paint it these days, trying to equate choice and murder in the eyes of the public). And no one is ashamed of having sex (which would undoubtedly lead to the dreaded slut-shaming) because sex is viewed as part of a normal life, like I firmly believe it should be.

"Just be careful ... that's my only advice."
"Of what?"
"Pregnancy."
"Grandma!"
"And venereal disease."
"Really ... "
"Does it embarrass you to talk about it?"
"No, but ... "
"It shouldn't."

We as a society keep putting sex on an unnecessary pedestal. We keep shaming girls for having sex. We have political leaders who are outraged at having society cover the cost of birth control as to them it means condoning women having sex and - God forbid! - enjoying it. There are so many people warring against birth control and abortion because there should be 'consequences' to daring to have sex! And, of course, in literature aimed at young people sex is only permitted if it's true love, nothing less.

Well, guess what? I happen to believe that sex needs to be two things: (1) consensual, and (2) enjoyable for everyone involved. As long as these criteria are fulfilled, I don't have a problem with it, and I hope society would eventually come to peace with not only it but the ability and the right of people involved to make informed and responsible choices about it. And that someday the materials that are deemed unacceptable to young people would be the one with graphic violence and not the ones with peaceful sex. And that teenage experimenting, if done responsibly, is okay - because why wouldn't it be?

"That's not a bad word ... hate and war are bad words but fuck isn't."

And that it's perfectly okay to not find your soulmate and the 'perfect one' in the 'Twilight'-like fashion, and it's nothing to frown upon. And it's okay to have sex when you are in love, and it's okay to not have that love last forever.

And therefore I gladly give this Judy Blume book 4 stars and I will make sure my future hypothetical daughter reads it at some point, close to adolescence, because I hope she absorbs the healthy attitudes towards life, and that includes realistic teenage relationships.

"I wanted to tell him that I will never be sorry for loving him. That in a way I still do--that maybe I always will. I'll never regret one single thing we did together because what we had was very special. Maybe if we were ten years older it would have worked out differently. Maybe. I think it's just that I'm not ready for forever."

(less)

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Dec 10, 2011 Aleeeeeza rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: won, 2011-read

Edit on 12/11/2011: To anyone who's got a problem with this review:

1) Yes, I know that this book was a big deal when it was released. That doesn't mean that when I read it in this day and age that I'm going to judge it by it's historical significance--I definitely appreciate it but it doesn't change the fact that I read it when I did and didn't like it and I don't want to have to constantly justify myself for that. (Let's ignore the fact that that's precisely what I'm doing with this edit. Right...more Edit on 12/11/2011: To anyone who's got a problem with this review:

1) Yes, I know that this book was a big deal when it was released. That doesn't mean that when I read it in this day and age that I'm going to judge it by it's historical significance--I definitely appreciate it but it doesn't change the fact that I read it when I did and didn't like it and I don't want to have to constantly justify myself for that. (Let's ignore the fact that that's precisely what I'm doing with this edit. Right.)

2) I know that this book's supposed to be an accurate portrayal of love at the age of seventeen and for that I should cut it some slack, but I just recently turned eighteen and I've got a good idea of what most teenagers think love to be, and what I think it's supposed to be, and with all that in mind I can't, for the life of me, abide the portrayal of love in this book. I did not enjoy reading it at all and it annoyed the bajeezus out of me, and nothing will change that.

3) Guys might go around naming their underparts but I'm always going to think that's disgusting.

4) I HATE ELLIPSES AND ANY BOOK THAT HAS FIFTEEN ELLIPSES PER PAGE WILL AUTOMATICALLY CARVE IT'S PLACE IN MY HATED-THIS-BOOK LIST.

*takes deep breath* Okay, yeah, that's it.

Okay, yeah, so maybe I should explain the 1 star—if you’ve been following my reviews, you’ll know that I rarely give books a 1 star rating…I’m not that hard to please as a reader, and I hate giving one of Judy Blume’s books 1 star (I used to love her MG books as kid, from what I can recall anyway). But the thing is, I don’t think there was a SINGLE redeeming factor in this book for me. Let me list a brief list of the reasons:

1) THE WRITINGGG. It was so…bland and unimaginative, and it was really hard to picture the scenes sometimes. And the dialogue could be VERY corny at times. But maybe what bothered me most was the CONSTANT use of ellipses… I mean, you know…ellipses have this really annoying effect…they make the reader keep taking pauses…and in this book there was one in practically EVERY FRIGGIN’ SENTENCE OMG. Argggggg.

2) The characters. I didn’t give a shizz about a single one of them, NOT ONE. Kath was boooooooring and Michael was the horniest male love interest of all time. I mean, yeah, teens are all lusty and hormonal and blah blah blah (Hi! 17-year-old speaking here!), but this man takes it to a whole new level. Which brings me to…

3) I wasn’t particularly impressed with love’s portrayal in this book. I mean, to me, there was zilch chemistry between the characters and even so, it felt to me like Kath was more into screwing Michael because he wanted it so bad rather than her own desire to do it. The sex in this book is also REALLY explicit. I’m no prude, but come on, all that describing takes away all the romance in the scene. Oh and, Michael calls his you-know-what RALPH. Dude. Seriously!

I get why this book is important for the time it was written in—that didn’t stop me from blitzing through it to finally get over with it. Thankfully, it’s super short and I won it in a contest, so I’m not that miffed. I’m not saying no one should read this book cause it’s aaaaawfulll—a lot of people seem to really like it—but it just wasn’t for me.(less)

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Jan 02, 2012 Lissa rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

How depressing.

Keeping in mind this book was published in the mid-70s, it's still incredibly relevant to today's society. In fact, apart from the absence of conspicuous technology like cell phones, this could have taken place in the 2000s. It's a timeless story, and the reason it's getting such a low rating from me is purely personal:

Michael reminded me of the ex boyfriend who broke my heart and whom I still have nightmares about years later. A pushy sex-obsessed hormonal teenage boy who pressur...more How depressing.

Keeping in mind this book was published in the mid-70s, it's still incredibly relevant to today's society. In fact, apart from the absence of conspicuous technology like cell phones, this could have taken place in the 2000s. It's a timeless story, and the reason it's getting such a low rating from me is purely personal:

Michael reminded me of the ex boyfriend who broke my heart and whom I still have nightmares about years later. A pushy sex-obsessed hormonal teenage boy who pressures Kath into giving up her virginity under the guise of 'forever'. She clearly didn't want to sleep with him even though she was into him and he just kept pushing and pushing until she gave in.

And look, I'm among the first to be critical of teenage forever love. I was burned there as well. I don't necessarily want to read a book that reminds me of the more painful emotional times in my life. I don't necessarily want to read a book that waits until marriage for the sexual relationship to begin. But I was very uncomfortable reading this when the focus was on sexual love and not the intimate emotional connection. And even when you think they're getting emotionally intimate,Kath changes her mind purely because she meets another guy while she's away at summer camp. Sure, she seems a lot like a typical teenager (and I don't mean to insult my teenage friends but you guys are hardly 'typical') and I guess that's the whole point of the book. This situation will have happened to a lot of young people and it will keep on happening to a lot of young people.

And yeah, I totally hate Kath's parents. What right do they have to tell her what to do once she reaches eighteen? They sabotage her relationship and for no reason other than it's her first. They weren't even dating for that long. There was nothing about Michael they didn't like except that maybe he and Kath were sexually active. Breaking up your child's relationship just because they're sexually active isn't going to return your little girl to the untouched virgin she was. She'll just find another guy.

Oh and look - Kath does.

Maybe it just wasn't for me because I'm in my mid-twenties, but by my judgement I think it'd be a wonderful novel for a young teenager beginning to explore relationships and sexuality. Judy Blume certainly never shied away from the important issues and if it weren't for these uber realistic young adult novels coming out in the 70s, I don't know where we'd be now.(less)

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Nov 05, 2007 JJ rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: yafiction

I read this book because I'm attempting to read (or reread) some classic YA books. Now, I'm a so-so fan of Judy Blume, I know she has a lot of die-hards out there. I recently read Everything I Need to Know About Being a Girl I learned from Judy Blume but I guess I was more of a Beverly Cleary kid.

This book is about first loves and first sexual experiences. The story itself was good, but I think Judy Blume left out a lot of details. The boyfriend, Michael, is basically a horn dog who would do any...more

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Jan 28, 2013 Nenia Campbell rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-baby-ya, ladybooks, fake-people-real-problems, x-1970s, i-burn-i-pine-i-perish, pedobear-seal-of-approval, reviewed, the-pokeflute-failed

You can read more reviews at my blog, The Armchair Librarian!

Don't be fooled by that Sarah Dessenesque cover, lovelies. There's no fluffy, innocent puppy love in this baby. Nope. This book is about

SEX. (Now that I have your attention...)

People get their panties in a twist over sex. Literally and figuratively. Ironically, the people whose panties are most twisted figuratively, probably aren't getting any of the literal variety. I know. Sad.

It's like adults think that some kind of sex fairy is goi...more

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Mar 09, 2009 Peachy rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: disturbing, over-rated, young-adult

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Judy Blume brings nothing but fond memories when I think back to reading Are You There God, Its Me Margaret, or Blubber. I know I’m not alone when I credit her for keeping reading interesting at nine years old. It turns out I missed another of her books that she wrote in the ‘seventies, that was targeted at an older audience. The main character is seventeen, so I can only assume that is was aimed at older teens … I hope so anyway. Of course the book I’m referring to is Forever, a story of first...more

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Oct 13, 2007 Sabrina rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone

Shelves: advisoryreading07-08

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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May 31, 2011 Stacia ~ Mistress of Mediocrity rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult

2 stars for my own personal enjoyment of the story. It was outdated, but Judy Blume is a great storyteller. I can't really blame her too much for writing a book 30 years ago and it not feeling up to date now.

5 stars for the author telling a realistic story about a girl's first time with both falling in love and having sex. I loved that the teen boy could not make it more than a few seconds without finishing. I was nodding when the girl was disappointed with her first time. These are real things...more

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Jun 19, 2007 RachelAnne rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: youngadult, novels

A rather lackluster narrative of a teen relationship, Forever is still noteworthy for a couple of reasons: 1. It's the first-written ya book I know of where the kids fall in love, make a responsible decision to have sex and neither is killed, maimed, impregnated or emotionally scarred for life. 2. Blume depicts two teens who fall in love with one another, have a fulfilling (if somewhat blah) relationship, and fall out of love. There's no patronizing insinuation that teens are too young to be in...more

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Sep 06, 2007 Briynne rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Nope. Didn't like this one either. Another YA Lit book read for class. I guess I didn't like it for two main reasons. First, the boyfriend is a completely flat character; from what the author shows/tells you of him (which is pretty much nothing save a bit of whining) you really can't figure out what all the fuss is about. I felt more toward Theo in the ten or so pages devoted to him than I did for whats-his-name (I literally can't remember even though I read it yesterday, so I guess that helps p...more

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Jun 07, 2007 Meredith rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Girls, ages 16+

Shelves: chick-lit, female-protagonist, realistic, teen

I picked up this book because there was an article I read a few weeks ago about how it's still controversial--even banned in some places. I wondered how a teen book written in 1975 could still be considered "taboo" by today's standards. I was actually very surprised at how sexually explicit it was. Everything (and I do mean everything) is described in very graphic detail. Parts of the book seemed more like a "how to" manual, and other sections bordered on pornography. As with all realistic ficti...more

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May 06, 2008 Liv. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

-from inside flap-

The bed is brass, covered with a patchwork quilt, and "nice and firm," Michael says, "in case you're interested." Katherine is interested.
From this night on their life is a love story. But Katherine is in love with love, and Michael is in love with Katherine.
Judy Blume has written a blithe and telling novel about young people in love-- not only Katherine and Michael, but their suburban friends.

As just for something to read, this book was okay. The characters were believable and...more

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Jun 11, 2009 Tatiana rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2009, ya

This book was recommended to me and therefore I was very surprised that it wasn't very good. I don't care about the explicit nature of it. In fact, sex scenes were the only ones that kept me remotely interested in the story. Book just wasn't written that well. Language was overly simplistic, there was no depth to the story. Even at 17 there is more to a teenager's emotions than: I like the guy, he is nice, I want to have sex with him, I love him, etc. Plus, the relationship described fell flat,...more

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Oct 21, 2010 karen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: and-so-this-is-grad-school

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 26, 2012 Mariana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is great. It is intended for a more mature audience. Forever is about a girl named Katherine, that lives in a suburban area of New Jersey. She is 17 years old and a senior in highschool. On New Years Eve she goes to a party. There she meets a boy named Michael.

Ever since the party Michael and Kath have been seeing eachother.After 19 dates Kath discovers her pationate love for Michael. Their love grows so strong, they make love.

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Jul 21, 2012 Kay rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012-reads, young-adult

When I heard this book was out in ebook format, I just had to pick it up again to see how I’d feel about it now as an adult. When I first read this book, it was in the early 90s. I was about 11 years old and at that time, this book was all the talk among my friends. How else were we suppose to get real information about sex? There was no internet, youtube or easily accessible PPV at that time. I remember that I really enjoyed the story itself but felt sad about the ending.

I must say that this bo...more

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Nov 04, 2012 Erin rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Ralph-lovers

Shelves: big-romance, disturbing-moments, love-geometry, reading-challenge

I'm sure this book was very important in its time and was the means by which many girls learned about sex. Unfortunately for Forever, I am not interested in PSA books; I prefer multidimensional characters, a plot, and emotions. Weird, huh?

The lack of the aforementioned qualities is what really drove this book into 1 star territory for me, but there were a few... special qualities that dug its grave even deeper.

1. Ellipses

There were so many ellipses... at the end of basically every sentence spok...more

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Oct 02, 2012 David Ireland rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: big-white-square

"No 'Forever' by Judy Blume!"

The county's mobile library came to my middle school and some kids were invited to choose books to supplement the stock at our own library. The English teacher, who had quite a froggy voice, stood at the door saying "No 'Forever' by Judy Blume!"

Looking back, why didn't she just find it for herself and hide it somewhere?

Gemma had her own copy and all the cool kids borrowed it. They said that it fell open at the sex scenes. I remember being told by one of the cool kids...more

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Dec 26, 2010 Tanya W rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

I hardly want to admit I read this book... kind of funny that a "censored" book like this managed to make it pretty far around my 5th or 6th grade in Utah (it seems all my friends at the time had read it, were reading it, or were planning to read it). I think I actually made it about half way through the book and just didn't feel like it was something I should be reading (having a strong religious background encouraging waiting until marriage to enjoy sex). It's funny to think back on what I do...more

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view all 8 comments

Katrina Passick Lumsden For your sake, and for your daughter's, I truly hope she chooses a safe path, even if it is not the path you would choose for her. Speaking as someone...more
Dec 18, 2011 05:45pm

Tanya W I can see that those kinds of experiences would be hard and very sobering... and it is scary as a parent to realize that kids can't be easily monitore...more
Dec 18, 2011 09:09pm

Mar 27, 2012 Kaylie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: american-humanities, finished-irp-books

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Title: Forever...
Author: Judy Blume
# of Pages: 192

The main characters in this story are Katherine (girlfriend), Michael (boyfriend), Erica, Artie and Theo. This story is told in first person, which is Katherine’s point of view. This story begins with first love between Katherine and Michael. Katherine and her friend Erica decide to go to a New Year’s party, and when they get there Katherine immediately notices Michael. Eventually Michael sits next to Katherine at the party and they begin talkin...more
Title: Forever...
Author: Judy Blume
# of Pages: 192

The main characters in this story are Katherine (girlfriend), Michael (boyfriend), Erica, Artie and Theo. This story is told in first person, which is Katherine’s point of view. This story begins with first love between Katherine and Michael. Katherine and her friend Erica decide to go to a New Year’s party, and when they get there Katherine immediately notices Michael. Eventually Michael sits next to Katherine at the party and they begin talking and they really start to like each other, just like how any teenagers would meet at a party. A couple days after the party they start to hangout with each other and they eventually build a bond that any teenager would wish for with her/his girlfriend or boyfriend. Michael bought a silver heart necklace for Katherine for her 18th birthday that has “Katherine” in-graved on the front, and “Forever...Michael” in-graved on the back. After he gave her the necklace at the local pizza shop, Michael and Katherine go to Katherine’s house and go into the living room next to the fire and lay down on the rug together and start to kiss. But then Michael starts to get too carried away, and tries to take Katherine’s shirt off, Katherine backed away from him and tells him she isn’t ready and she doesn’t want to do “it” now. Although Michael says he understands and respects her choice, in his mind he is furious because he loves her so much and he just wants to go far with her.
A couple days after that, Katherine goes to New York City to meet up with her grandparents to have breakfast with them at a cafe. After she finishes eating, she goes to a phone booth to call Planned Parenthood to make an appointment with someone to tell her information about getting birth control. She tells Michael that night, and he is very proud of her for doing that and telling him. While on the phone with Michael, he invites her to go on a ski trip with him and his sister and his sister’s husband which is the first time they had sex when his sister and her husband weren’t at the lodge. Katherine and Michael are now closer than ever since Katherine had her first time with Michael who is the love of her life.
When summer begins, Katherine is forced to go to her 12 year-old sister Jamie’s tennis camp to be a counselor. She dose not like being away from Michael for 6 weeks but she had no choice. Katherine and Michael write to each other every night. Katherine is noticing this guy named Theo who she starts to gain feelings for because he also has strong feelings for her. Katherine and Theo start to hangout together at the camp and have dinners with each other at the dinging hall there. Michael notices that Katherine’s letters have had less emotion in them and she barely writes to him anymore because she is so busy with Theo. One night, Katherine is so torn between Michael, her first ever true love who she promised to stay together forever with and this other guy, Theo, who she just met and is beginning to actually love. She starts to write a letter to Michael saying that she doesn’t know what to think about him anymore and she doesn’t know if she still has the same strong feelings for him anymore and that she is sorry she has to end something so special, but she starts crying and rips it up and throws it away. When she is doing that, Theo walks into her cabin and when Katherine sees him, she runs up to him and kisses him, like something forced her to do that even though she knows it’s wrong. So Katherine and Theo have a little “thing” going on with each other at the end of the book, but Michael has no clue about it until he surprises Katherine by visiting her at the tennis camp. She doesn’t know what to do or what she should say to Michael about her and Theo.
That night Michael takes Katherine to his hotel room and when they’re on the bed starting to kiss, Katherine backs away and gets up from the bed. She can’t hold back the guilt any longer. Michael has no idea what is going on, but when Katherine tell him everything...Michael is beyond furious. Katherine asks him to drive her home and on the way there, they both don’t say one word to each other. They used to be so close to each other where there wouldn’t be any moment where they wouldn’t be together or not talking to each other, but obviously everything is different now. When Katherine gets out of Michael’s car, she takes her necklace off that he gave her but he told her to keep it since he had no reason to keep it himself. They both couldn’t believe that something so special like what they had is now over.
I would most definitely recommend this book to anybody who likes to read about teenage romance, teenage drama which is The “Young Adult” genre. This book is mostly recommended for girls 14 years or older, “mature readers” because I think that if any younger girls read this book that they wouldn’t be able to handle or understand it because there are some very detailed and descriptive parts in this book that could be very inappropriate for younger girls. I would rate this book 10 out of 10 because it is my top favorite book ever written and it’s just a good book for HighSchool girls that like these sort of books to read.(less)

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Jun 02, 2010 kari rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, ya

Forever was considered quite the shocker in it's day and I'd say it's still fairly graphic for a YA book, but teenagers sex lives aren't quite the taboo subject that it was once upon a time.
Kath meets Michael and feels an almost immediate connection with him, leading within several weeks to their first time together which is more that a bit of a disappointment for her. The descrptions of their fumbling attempts are very believable. The thing that makes this less stars than it otherwise would is...more

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Jul 21, 2011 Julie S. rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: no one

Shelves: disliked

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. One day (around age 12) I read this because I was feeling nostalgic for Judy Blume (I loved Blume's books when I was a young girl). I thought that this book would give me a return to those "good old days." Wrong. This book was definitely not a child's book. There was way too much sexual content-not to mention the name Ralph is forever ruined for me.

I feel that Blume did a poor job on this book, and she lost my respect. I am officially getting rid of all my Blume books. You may say that I'm over...more

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Dec 14, 2008 Erin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: im-ya-and-thats-okay, chick-lit

Forever is about that first love. It was eerily reminiscent of my first real relationship when I was 16. Though it was set in the late seventies I felt as if someone had recorded all the mistakes I made with my first "true love", changed the names and a few minor details and kicked out an incredibly relate able and enjoyable (in that painful yearning sort of way) little novel. The short book represents a "hot and heavy" high school romance. It is funny to read about that intense curiosity you ex...more

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Jan 14, 2008 Amanda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What I learned: If you are going to have sex, use birth control. Your first love, no matter how passionate, probably isn't your true love.
I remember this one with fondness because there were about three copies going around when I was in 7th grade. We read it, passed in on to the next girl, who in turn passed it on. Every 12-13 year old girl in my class read it sometime that year and it was something we all had in common. I suppose, now that I think about it, the reason we shared the books is th...more

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Oct 24, 2012 Sydney Logan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I first read this book in high school. I was a wide-eyed innocent so, to me, this was racy and explicit. That was twenty years ago, and I was feeling nostalgic, so I re-read it. I still believe every teenage girl should read this book. It would be the perfect way to have the sometimes embarrassing sex talk and a wonderful way to demonstrate that "forever" sometimes really isn't.

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Mar 27, 2013 hannah rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-books

First read (8/6/2009): This book is EVERYTHING. A gigantic PSA announcement, a children's book, a YA novel...

At times even I felt uncomfortable with how detailed Blume got into everything. I never read this when I was young, and I thought nothing could be more graphic or detailed or informative than Deenie or Are You There G-d? It's Me, Margaret. I was clearly wrong.

BUT it was excellent, because aside from some things that just don't translate out of the 70s, this book was spot on about how you...more

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Sep 19, 2012 Tara Garcia rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Actually 3.5 a very quick read. I have to say that I had no idea Judy Blume went there! I mean totally went there!! So if I can get that part out of my mind then I might be able to wrap my head around this book hahaha !! Oh!!! Those feelings we get with our first love! New love! Very fun :)

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Jul 21, 2011 Rebecca rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: aussie-book-swap

After reading Forever, these were my thoughts on it:

The writing was nothing special.
The characters were ok.
But the reason, I gave this book 2 stars, was because how this book made me think and feel about the meaning of Forever.
Michael and Katherine, thought they had something special, something that would last forever.
But forever, is a long time and things sometimes don't work out.
Like relationships.
Or even marriage, which sometimes end in seperation and divorce.
To me, the writing and charact...more

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Jun 10, 2007 Elisabeth rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: teen

Ok, so for ages I had heard there was a Judy Blume book in which a boy has a penis called Ralph, but I didn't know the title. After never stumbling across it, I sorta forget and considered it an urban legend or something - until one glorious day. I picked up Forever at an op shop in Orewa, and was reading it on the bus home when I read "Katherine, I'd like you to meet someone. This is Ralph", or whatever the line is. I was so excited I gasped and tore the book in half (the spine was really britt...more

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Jun 15, 2011 Sandra rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: cry-me-a-river, teenage-love, young-adult

I read this book in my early teens. It taught me that young love is beautiful and all-encompassing but that forever at that age is a word that should be stricken from the vocabulary. While we may all dream of forever, at 15 forever can be over in a few months. And it usually is, but life moves on.

Judy Blume expertly crafted a YA novel about first love and first sexual encounters, that while considered explicit for the time in which it was written and published, does not delve into smut.

I loved...more

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Did This Book Suprise You At All?	10	42	May 08, 2013 06:37pm
So...Is it weird that the book is written by a children's author?	5	27	May 06, 2013 05:38pm
When did you first read this book & what did you think?	30	196	Feb 22, 2013 09:40am
intense love	1	51	Jan 18, 2012 04:55pm
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About Judy Blume

Judy Blume spent her childhood in Elizabeth, New Jersey, making up stories inside her head. She has spent her adult years in many places doing the same thing, only now she writes her stories down on paper. Adults as well as children will recognize such Blume titles as: Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret; Blubber; Just as Long as We're Together; and the five book series about the irrepressible Fu...more Judy Blume spent her childhood in Elizabeth, New Jersey, making up stories inside her head. She has spent her adult years in many places doing the same thing, only now she writes her stories down on paper. Adults as well as children will recognize such Blume titles as: Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret; Blubber; Just as Long as We're Together; and the five book series about the irrepressible Fudge. She has also written three novels for adults, Summer Sisters; Smart Women; and Wifey, all of them New York Times bestsellers. More than 80 million copies of her books have been sold, and her work has been translated into thirty-one languages. She receives thousands of letters a year from readers of all ages who share their feelings and concerns with her.
Judy received a B.S. in education from New York University in 1961, which named her a Distinguished Alumna in 1996, the same year the American Library Association honored her with the Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Achievement. Other recognitions include the Library of Congress Living Legends Award and the 2004 National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.
She is the founder and trustee of The Kids Fund, a charitable and educational foundation. She serves on the boards of the Author's Guild; the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators; the Key West Literary Seminar; and the National Coalition Against Censorship.
Judy is a longtime advocate of intellectual freedom. Finding herself at the center of an organized book banning campaign in the 1980's she began to reach out to other writers, as well as teachers and librarians, who were under fire. Since then, she has worked tirelessly with the National Coalition Against Censorship to protect the freedom to read. She is the editor of Places I Never Meant To Be, Original Stories by Censored Writers.
Judy has completed a series of four chapter books -- The Pain & the Great One -- illustrated by New Yorker cartoonist James Stevenson. She has co-written and produced a film adaptation of her book Tiger Eyes, and is currently writing a new novel.
Judy and her husband George Cooper live on islands up and down the east coast. They have three grown children and one grandchild.(less)

More about Judy Blume...

Books by Judy Blume

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing (Fudge, #1)

Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great (Fudge #2)

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Trivia About Forever

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Quotes from Forever

“Thats not a bad word, hate and war are bad words, fuck isnt.” — 195 people liked it

“Like my mother said, you can't go back to holding hands” — 83 people liked it

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