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On Judy Blume’s 80th birthday, we attended the Judy Blumesday event for kids at Symphony Space. The event featured a reading by Colby Minifie (Jessica Jones) and a panel discussion about the revered children’s author, kid’s literature, and the experience of childhood with Blume book illustrator Debbie Ridpath Ohi and contemporary authors Soman Chainani (The School for Good and Evil series), Rachel Vail (Well, That Was Awkward), and Jacqueline Woodson (Brown Girl Dreaming). Last but not least, there was a rare appearance by the incomparable Judy Blume herself, who charmed the audience with her exuberant, kind, and funny responses during the Q&A. We were also impressed by the young literary fans in the audience, whose eager and intelligent questions already showed a deep appreciation for the author and her work, and for literature in general.
It was a wonderful tribute to the writer who has inspired generations of young readers and made them feel a little less alone during the bittersweet and often challenging experience of growing up. Thank you to Thalia Kids’ Book Club, Symphony Space, and Bank Street Books for giving us the chance to meet a childhood literary hero and remember what it was like to be a child discovering the magic of Judy Blume for the first time. Happy Birthday, Judy Blume!
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_code _builder_version=”3.0.72″]<iframe src=”https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fachildgrowsinbrooklyn%2Fposts%2F10155808042270239&width=500″ width=”500″ height=”740″ style=”border:none;overflow:hidden” scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″ allowTransparency=”true”></iframe>[/et_pb_code][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_code _builder_version=”3.0.72″]<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” data-lang=”en”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Loved seeing <a href=”https://twitter.com/judyblume?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@judyblume</a> and the new generation of young fans at the fantastic <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/Blumesday?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#Blumesday</a> event yesterday. Thank you <a href=”https://twitter.com/SymphonySpace?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@SymphonySpace</a> <a href=”https://twitter.com/BankStreetBooks?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@BankStreetBooks</a> and all participants for giving us the opportunity to pay tribute to our childhood literary hero! <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/BLUMESDAY?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#BLUMESDAY</a> <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/JudyBlume?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#JudyBlume</a> <a href=”https://t.co/r6k6HGtfNm”>pic.twitter.com/r6k6HGtfNm</a></p>— A Child Grows (@achildgrows) <a href=”https://twitter.com/achildgrows/status/960540248185942016?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>February 5, 2018</a></blockquote><!– [et_pb_line_break_holder] –><script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script><!– [et_pb_line_break_holder] –>[/et_pb_code][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]