Forever . . . by Judy Blume

Pages: 192

Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books

Age Group: Young Adult (Mature Readers)

Challenges: N/A

Release Date: July 29, 1976

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. Although they haven't been together all that long, they know it's serious. A whole world opens up as young passion and sexuality bloom.

But it's senior year of high school, and there are big changes ahead. Michael and Katherine are destined for another big "first": a decision. Is this the love of a lifetime, or the very beginning of a lifetime of love?

Stars: 3/5

Cover: B

Plot:

Katherine and Michael meet through their friends at a New Year's party. They're instantly attracted to each other, and get along great. Soon enough, they're going out, and falling fast in love.

Forever . . . is the story about your first love, and how not everything, as good as it may seem at the beginning, will have a perfect ending.

To tell you the truth, at first, I didn't really like this book. It started out slow, and I didn't feel any connection the book whatsoever.

It did pick up, though not a ton to where I just couldn't put it down.

Luckily enough, it was a pretty fast read.

Characters:

I didn't really like the characters too much. They weren't really anything exciting, and didn't have any distinguishing qualities about them.

I actually found Katherine's best friend, Erica, to be irritating. She kind of came across as a know-it-all and a little bit arrogant.

Writing:

Judy Blume's writing is pretty simple. It felt a lot of times like she was just telling me the story, instead of showing it to me.

There weren't really any descriptions, so when I tried to imagine the characters in my head all I could really see were blurred silhouettes. I feel like the only character she actually described was Michael.

One thing that bugged me about her writing is how many ellipses she uses, when a period would be just fine. It got to be excessive, and made the story appear to drag on.

Ending:

I actually really liked the ending. It wasn't the perfect happy fairytale ending, like a lot of romance books these days.

Cover:

There are a lot of different covers for this book, since it's been out for over thirty years, but I'm only going to talk about the most recent cover (the one pictured above).

I like how simple it is, but it's still eye-catching. The pastel covers make it look really soft, and overall, it's a really pretty cover.

Lovely Line:

"I'll show you around the place," he said.

Since I'd already seen the living room and the kitchen, we started with the bathroom. "Notice the indoor plumbing." Michael demonstrated how to flush the toilet.

"Very interesting," I told him.

"And hot and cold running water." He turned on both faucets.

"Luxurious."

(Page 90)

I thought that part was funny. :)

The Final Verdict:

This book, though not the best book I've ever read (and certainly not the worst), is a good, fast read.

I think Forever . . . is a book that all teen girls should read. Judy Blume is great at writing books that capture what growing up is all about. I remember reading her book for pre-teens, Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret, when I was in fifth grade or something.

Her books are kind of like a tradition, because her mom read them when she was my age, and now I'm reading them.

Anyways, if your library has this book, check it out and spend the couple hours that it takes to read it.

FTC: I bought this book.