Judy Blume Books in Order
Browse every Judy Blume book in order, with quick summaries, series overviews, and friendly reading order tips to help kids, teens, and adults know exactly where to start.
Last updated: December 19, 2025
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Publication Order
34 books
The Pain and the Great One: Go Places!
by Judy Blume
2015
This bind-up gathers two books about Jake and Abigail on the move, from snow days and family visits to beach trips and fairs. Short, funny chapters make it easy for young readers to dip into the siblings' latest squabbles and adventures.
In the Unlikely Event
by Judy Blume
2015
In the early 1950s, three planes crash near Elizabeth, New Jersey, leaving a community stunned. Fifteen-year-old Miri Ammerman, her family, and their friends navigate fear, gossip, romance, and grief as they try to understand how life can keep going after such shocks.
Going, Going, Gone! with the Pain and the Great One
by Judy Blume
2008
Jake and Abigail are on the move—from a county fair to the mall, the beach, and even the emergency room. Each adventure turns into a new argument, a new joke, and a fresh chance for these stubborn siblings to figure out how to stick together.
Friend or Fiend? with the Pain and the Great One
by Judy Blume
2008
When Jake freezes during reading circle and Abigail suspects a best friend has betrayed her, both start wondering who counts as a friend and who feels like a fiend. Snow days, big cousins, and their cat Fluzzy help them sort out hurt feelings.
Cool Zone with the Pain and the Great One
by Judy Blume
2008
Set mostly at school, these short chapters follow Jake and Abigail through lost teeth, Bring Your Pet to School Day, and a run-in with a playground bully who calls kids 'burnt toast'. Even when they argue, the two discover they are braver together.
Soupy Saturdays with the Pain and the Great One
by Judy Blume
2007
In seven linked stories, third-grader Abigail (the Great One) and first-grader Jake (the Pain) take turns describing haircuts, soccer games, sleepovers, and learning to ride a bike. Their bickering voices reveal both the aggravation and the comfort of having a sibling.
Double Fudge
by Judy Blume
2002
When five-year-old Fudge becomes obsessed with money, he starts printing his own 'Fudge Bucks' and planning to buy the world. A trip to Washington, D.C., unexpected cousins from Hawaii, and a second Farley Drexel Hatcher push Peter's patience and his sense of humor to the limit.
It's Heaven To Be Seven
by Judy Blume
2000
Designed for seven-year-olds, this anthology collects short pieces by favorite children's authors, among them Judy Blume. The stories celebrate school, friends, and small adventures at an age when kids are old enough to explore but still firmly in childhood.
It's Fine To Be Nine
by Judy Blume
2000
This anthology for eight- to eleven-year-olds brings together chapters and stories from well-known children's books, including work by Judy Blume. Each selection captures the worries and small victories of being nine and figuring out who you are becoming.
Places I Never Meant To Be
by Judy Blume
1999
This collection, edited by Judy Blume, gathers original short stories from writers whose books have been challenged or banned. The pieces follow teens who stumble into tough situations, highlighting why honest stories, and the freedom to read them, matter.
Summer Sisters
by Judy Blume
1998
From their first summer on Martha's Vineyard, shy Vix Leonard is swept into dazzling Caitlin Somers's wealthy, chaotic world. Over decades of summers, their fierce friendship weaves together love, betrayal, ambition, and the hard truth that growing up can pull people apart.
Here's to You, Rachel Robinson
by Judy Blume
1993
Overachieving Rachel Robinson seems to have everything under control—until her disruptive older brother moves back home and draws everyone's attention. Trying to manage school, music, crushes, and shifting friendships, she learns that perfection is not the same as being okay.
Fudge-a-Mania
by Judy Blume
1990
Peter is horrified when his family's Maine vacation means sharing a house with Sheila Tubman, his long-time nemesis. Fudge, however, is busy planning to marry Sheila. A summer of baseball, boating, and surprise family news makes everyone rethink what 'forever' family really means.
The Judy Blume Memory Book
by Judy Blume
1988
Part scrapbook, part journal, this fill-in book encourages kids to record friends, favorites, big events, and everyday moments. Short quotes from Judy Blume's stories and open-ended prompts turn it into a keepsake about who you are right now.
Letters to Judy
by Judy Blume
1986
Drawn from thousands of letters children and teens wrote to her, this nonfiction book shares real voices talking about friendship, family trouble, puberty, abuse, and everyday worries. Blume adds brief commentary, giving adults a window into what kids often keep silent.
Just as Long as We're Together
by Judy Blume
1986
Thirteen-year-old Stephanie Hirsch is juggling a new house, a new school, body changes, and her parents' secret separation. When she befriends shy newcomer Alison, her lifelong bond with best friend Rachel shifts, testing how three very different girls can stay close.
Smart Women
by Judy Blume
1983
In Boulder, Colorado, architect Margo Sampson and her friend B.B. are rebuilding their lives after divorce—until B.B.'s ex-husband moves in next door. As loyalties tangle and teenage daughters watch closely, everyone must rethink what it means to be 'smart' about love.
Tiger Eyes
by Judy Blume
1981
After her father is killed in a robbery, fifteen-year-old Davey Wexler is sent to relatives in New Mexico to recover. Hiking in the canyons, volunteering at a hospital, and befriending a mysterious boy called Wolf help her face grief and begin to heal.
The Judy Blume Diary
by Judy Blume
1981
This guided diary invites young writers to fill a year with their own thoughts, memories, and goals. With quotes from Judy Blume's novels and space for lists, calendars, and reflections, it gently nudges readers to notice their lives and put words on the page.
Superfudge
by Judy Blume
1980
Peter Hatcher thinks handling Fudge is hard enough, and then his parents announce a new baby and a move to Princeton. While Fudge stages tantrums and wild stunts, Peter navigates new friends, a new school, and what it means to grow up in a changing family.
Wifey
by Judy Blume
1978
Suburban New Jersey housewife Sandy Pressman seems to have the perfect life, yet feels restless and unseen. An impulsive affair jolts her into confronting desire, marriage, and the narrow expectations placed on 'good' wives in the 1970s.
Freckle Juice
by Judy Blume
1978
Second grader Andrew Marcus is convinced freckles would solve all his problems, especially envy of classmate Nicky's spotted face. When he buys a secret freckle recipe from a classmate, the disgusting mixture teaches him more about embarrassment and self-acceptance than he bargained for.
Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself
by Judy Blume
1977
In 1947, imaginative ten-year-old Sally moves with her family from New Jersey to Miami Beach for her brother's health. Between new friends, movie-star daydreams, and worries about the Holocaust, she turns everyday life into a story she can survive.
Forever...
by Judy Blume
1975
Katherine and Michael are high-school seniors who fall deeply in love and decide to have sex, planning a future that feels permanent. The story follows their relationship with unusual honesty, from birth-control appointments to heartbreak, as Katherine learns that not everything lasts forever.
The Pain and the Great One
by Judy Blume
1974
In this picture-book story, eight-year-old Abigail and her six-year-old brother Jake each take a turn insisting their parents love the other child best. Their funny, exaggerated complaints show how sibling rivalry can hide a fierce, if grudging, affection.
Blubber
by Judy Blume
1974
In Jill Brenner's fifth-grade class, everyone joins in teasing Linda, the quiet girl nicknamed Blubber. When the jokes turn cruel, and the bullying finally swings back at Jill, she has to decide what kind of friend, and what kind of person, she wants to be.
Deenie
by Judy Blume
1973
Thirteen-year-old Deenie has always been told she is the 'beautiful one' destined to model, until a scoliosis diagnosis means wearing a back brace for years. Caught between her mother's dreams and her own, she must rebuild her sense of self from the inside.
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
by Judy Blume
1972
Fourth grader Peter Hatcher just wants a normal life in New York, but his toddler brother Fudge eats, breaks, or ruins almost everything in sight. Through one wild episode after another, Peter learns what it means to be the older kid in the family.
Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great
by Judy Blume
1972
Sheila Tubman acts confident and bossy, but she secretly fears dogs, spiders, the dark, and even the swimming pool. A summer in Tarrytown, complete with camp, a dog in the rental house, and a new best friend, forces her to face her fears.
It’s Not the End of the World
by Judy Blume
1972
Sixth grader Karen Newman is sure her parents' separation means disaster, so she hatches schemes to keep them together. As the divorce moves forward anyway, she slowly discovers that families can change shape and still find a new kind of normal.
Then Again, Maybe I Won't
by Judy Blume
1971
After his family suddenly gets rich and moves to Long Island, twelve-year-old Tony Miglione is overwhelmed by fancy neighbors, a daring new friend, and confusing feelings about a girl next door. Panic attacks push him to face who he wants to be.
Iggie's House
by Judy Blume
1970
With her best friend gone, Winnie is thrilled when a new family moves into Iggie's house—until neighbors object because the Garbers are Black. Trying to be helpful, she stumbles and learns what it really means to be a friend.
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret
by Judy Blume
1970
Eleven-year-old Margaret Simon has just moved to New Jersey and wants two things: to grow up and to figure out what she believes. As she navigates bras, periods, crushes, and clashing grandparents, she pours her questions into private conversations with God.
The One in the Middle Is the Green Kangaroo
by Judy Blume
1969
Middle child Freddy Dissel feels invisible between his older brother and little sister until a school play casts him as a green kangaroo. On stage, he finally gets the chance to stand out and see his family differently.
Where should I start?
If you're new to Judy Blume and want a classic coming-of-age: Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret → Blubber → Deenie
For realistic middle-school friendship drama: Just as Long as We're Together → Here's to You, Rachel Robinson → It's Not the End of the World
If you like funny family stories for younger readers (~7–10): Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing → Superfudge → Fudge-a-Mania → Double Fudge
For deeper teen stories about grief and first love: Tiger Eyes → Then Again, Maybe I Won't → Forever...
If you're an adult reader starting with her novels: Wifey → Smart Women → Summer Sisters → In the Unlikely Event
Author bio
Judy Blume was born in 1938 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, in a close-knit Jewish family where books and stories were part of everyday life. As a kid she loved reading, daydreaming, and making up long, private adventures in her head.
She grew up during an anxious time. A series of airplane crashes near her hometown, illnesses in the family, and regular childhood worries all left strong impressions. Years later those memories would resurface in her adult novel In the Unlikely Event and in the way she writes about fear, loss, and resilience.
Blume attended the all-girls Battin High School, then went on to college, eventually graduating from New York University with a degree in education. She married young, had two children, and spent several years as a stay-at-home mother. When her kids started preschool, she began taking writing classes and drafting stories during nap time and late at night.
Her first published book, The One in the Middle Is the Green Kangaroo, came out in 1969, quickly followed by Iggie's House and Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. Those early novels introduced what would become her trademark approach: tell the truth about what it feels like to be a kid or teen, even when adults are uncomfortable with the topics.
Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s she wrote a long run of middle-grade and young adult books, including Then Again, Maybe I Won’t, It’s Not the End of the World, Deenie, Blubber, Tiger Eyes, Just as Long as We’re Together, and Here’s to You, Rachel Robinson. These stories tackle puberty, divorce, disability, bullying, grief, and friendship in plain language, usually through a first-person voice that sounds like a real kid thinking out loud.
At the same time, Blume was writing for younger readers. The Fudge books—starting with Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing and continuing through Superfudge, Fudge-a-Mania, and Double Fudge—follow Peter Hatcher and his impossible little brother through everyday disasters in family life. The picture book The Pain and the Great One and the later chapter books about Jake and Abigail grew out of her own children’s teasing nicknames for each other.
Blume has also written fiction for adults. Wifey and Smart Women look at marriage, desire, and reinvention from the viewpoints of suburban women in midlife. Summer Sisters traces a complicated friendship over two decades of summers on Martha’s Vineyard, while In the Unlikely Event returns to 1950s New Jersey to imagine how three real plane crashes ripple through the lives of one town.
As her books found huge audiences, many of them were also challenged or banned for their frank treatment of sex, religion, and family conflict. Rather than backing away, Blume became a public advocate for readers’ rights and free expression. She created the nonprofit Kids Fund, collected young people’s letters in Letters to Judy, and edited the anthology Places I Never Meant to Be, which raises money for organizations that fight censorship.
Over the decades her work has sold tens of millions of copies and earned major lifetime-achievement honors, yet she still talks about herself first as a reader who got lucky enough to write. Blume now shares her time with her husband, writer George Cooper, between Key West, New York City, and summers on the island that inspired Summer Sisters, staying involved with readers, bookstores, and ongoing conversations about stories that tell the truth.
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