Judy Blume... one of the best banned authors (and other thoughts on censorship)
Join us at the Pocono Liars club on Saturday; hear McKenna Graf read in NYC on Tuesday
I spent the last two weeks hanging out with my Little Dog friend, Sobaka (yes, the Russian word for dog) and she’s at the emergency vet right now. Her mom went to Ireland and Scotland and left Little Dog with us— and she experienced some recent seizure-like activity but is scheduled to come home today.
Here’s hoping our ten-year-old Maltese-Yorkshire Terrier friend is well.
I did some editing the other morning, and dealt with some email, and ran out of brain steam after three hours. With my superpowers fading, I did the dishes and folded the laundry. When I fold laundry, I like to watch TV. I’m between shows right now— still debating how I feel about the Netflix series Pulse, which seems like a rip-off of the HBO Max series The Pitt. The rhythm and focus (in my opinion) mimics The Pitt.
Reflections on Judy Blume & Netflix
I flipped through the hot new releases on Netflix and found Forever. When I finished the first episode, I read Judy Blume’s name in the credits. So I Googled Forever by Judy Blume and the resulting picture zipped me right back circa 1985 to the big living room we had in the farmhouse where I grew up (and used in Manipulations, the first volume of my Fashion and Fiends horror series). It was similar to the cover of Wifey. My mother had a copy of Wifey on the bookshelf, which at the time, I thought the presence was odd because I was reading Judy Blume.
Apparently, Forever was Judy Blume’s YA novel about initial sexual experiences and Wifey was her fiction novel for women exploring open marriages and other differences in sexuality that weren’t as common in late seventies and early eighties.
So, Forever resembles nothing like the original book— not that I have read it. But the plot has been modernized to use cell phones and internet scandal, and the main characters are Black. And Black people did not appear as protagonists in Judy Blume’s day. She made the mother and father of Are You There God? It’s me, Margaret a mixed religion marriage, mother being I believe Protestant and her father Jewish. That led to the excommunication of Margaret’s mother from her Christian family.
End Book Bans with Pocono Liars Club
Now we have more mixed marriages of various varieties, but Judy Blume’s willingness to write about the topics that seemed so scandalous then got her banned. Speaking of banned— We will be attending the Pocono Liars Club End Book Banning Expo on Saturday. We talked more about this event last time, click here.
Joe Swarctz and I will both have readings in the 11 a.m. hour, and I’m going to find something worthy of banning to read.
I plan on signing our table to discuss what topics in our books could be banned and why we feel it’s important to write about them. I know a lot of book banning happens because people fear for the safety of children. As a parent, I want my child to read books that don’t necessarily portray my view of the universe. It’s my job to have discussions about those topics. Common themes that often lead to bans include political criticism, religion, and sexuality.
An hour of music from 100 years ago
Don’t forget also on Saturday Angel Ackerman is hosting a radio broadcast honoring Steve’s Cafe. WDVR created a promo for the program, so if you want a preview:
On June 21, at WDVR 89.7 fm in the broadcast coverage area or WDVRfm.org online, Angel Ackerman hosts a special tribute to Steve’s Café, the working man’s tavern featured on the cover of Larry Sceurman’s novella, The Death of Big Butch. Maryann Ignatz curated the music to honor her father, Stephen Ignatz, and the 110th anniversary of Ignatz family ownership of the tavern. Maryann also contributed an essay to Not an Able-Bodied White Man with Money detailing her experience of the blue-collar history of Phillipsburg, N.J.
Nancy Scott surpasses 990
And our friend and colleague Nancy Scott had several publications either brought forth or announced this week. Her piece, Musical Chairs, appears in the Jubilee issue of Persimmon Tree. You can read the full issue here. Or check out the screenshot below.
Nancy also had a flash nonfiction piece about— of all things— cheerios accepted in Pulse, Voices from the Heart of Medicine. (Check out Nancy’s pieces in Pulse here.) And I had the pleasure of hearing a recording of one of Nancy’s poems recently accepted into Wordgathering, a disability-focused publication put together at the University of Syracuse. Read more about them and find their recent issue here. This brings Nan’s career byline count to more than 990!
May I ask a favor? Tell me your music.
I dislike heavily building playlists. But I need music to keep me motivated when I work. If you have a suitable Spotify playlist for editing, can you send it? Can you mention your favorite writing/working/editing music in the comments?
DID YOU KNOW…
For less than $2 an issue, you can support PARISIAN PHOENIX BOOKISH BABBLE as a paid subscriber. Benefits include: 1. Free chapters and excerpts of new books. 2. Curated lists and annotated reviews of podcasts, writing books, and bookstores. 3. Full, unlimited access to ALL of my slides from my writing workshops. PLUS unlimited access to the archives of all my posts.
Thanks. Keep reading, please share social media posts where you can, write reviews and be a part of the writer/reader community.
As always,
— Angel
UPCOMING EVENTS (MOST ARE FREE)
Dianna Sinovic will be discussing the uses of Canva for authors at the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group on June 28. Her free talk will be at 11 a.m. and her afternoon, hands-on workshop begins at 1:30 p.m. GLVWG meets at the Palmer branch of the Easton Area Public Library but is also available on Zoom. The workshop is free for members, $15 for non-members. Click here for more information.
On June 28, noon to 6 p.m., local historian and author of Phorgotten No More, Wayne Sherrer will be a part of “Authors Alley” at the Warren County Bicentennial Celebration at Warren County Community College, on New Jersey Route 57 in Washington Township. His book contains his original research into the African-American history of Phillipsburg, N.J.
July 4, the official release of Benjamin Goluboff’s and Mark Luebbers’ poetry chapbook, Group Portrait, a unique interpretation of a photographic portrait in the World War II era from Peggy Guggenheim’s art salon. We have seen the advance review copies and we are really excited about this little book!
At the Whitehall (Pa.) Library, 6 p.m., on July 9, Larry Sceurman will present a family story time.
July 12, E.H. Jacobs will be at The Bookery in Manchester, N.H., signing his debut novel, Splintered River, from 1 to 3 p.m. Jacobs has a sophomore novel on deck for 2026. For more information about The Bookery, click here. (This book is also available on Kindle Unlimited.)
July 14, the official release of Motorhome Gypsies, our RV Living book that is part memoir and part practical advice, by Rachel Thompson and Lisa Cross. We may have a cover reveal soon!
At 11 a.m. on July 16, Larry Sceurman will visit the Cops N Kids Reading Room on the southside of Bethlehem, Pa. For more information on Cops N Kids Lehigh Valley, click here.
Barnes and Noble in the Southmont Shopping Center in Bethlehem Township, Pa., will host a benefit for the children’s hospital on August 16. Larry Sceurman will present a children’s story time (and he hopes to have his second children’s book ready before that event). Details to come. See Larry’s books here.
Also August 16, I will be hosting a memoir workshop from 1 to 4 p.m. at Blank Space Community Center, 85 Makefield Road Unit 7, Yardley, Pa., 19067. Tickets will be $40 and will include print materials.
Also in August, the release of Any Landing You Walk Away from is a Good Landing, historical fiction about the airline industry in the throes of 1980’s deregulation. The author of that book is retired flight attendant Dawn O’Harra.