It's Not the End of the World

It's Not the End of the World

Hardcover - USA - 1st Edition.

Author Judy Blume Published 1972-??-?? Type Fiction Genre Drama Themes Childhood, Coming of age, Divorce, Family, Friendship, School, Teen Age Group Children

It's Not the End of the World is a children's novel by Judy Blume published in 1972.

In the book, sixth-grader Karen, who is already having problems at school and at home, discovers her parents are getting divorced. However, she is convinced she can make them reconcile like parents always do on TV.

Personal

Own?	No.
Read?	Audiobook read by Becca Battoe.
Finished	2025-04-08.

I stumbled upon this audiobook and, having loved every previous book by Judy Blume, I was eager to read it. It did not disappoint.

Review

Overall:

Good

• Throughout the book a lot of the questions children might have about the divorce process are raised and answered. Karen is frequently faced with fears regarding custody, money, living arrangements, and how this will affect her life with her family and friends.
• Having three children of different ages was a good decision for Blume because it allows her to address a variety of perspectives from different maturity levels.
• I like how Karen is proactive throughout the book. She doesn't just wait for things to happen to her, but she takes matters into her own hands.
• Val is very useful to the narrative because she's able to give Karen both her wisdom, and a new set of fears.
• Jeff creates some very serious tension which makes for a good climax.

Bad

• Nothing.

Ugly

• Nothing.

Media

Covers

• 

  Hardcover - USA - 1st edition.

• 

  Paperback - USA - 1977.

• 

  Paperback - USA - Unknown year.

• 

  Paperback - USA - 1980.

• 

  Mass Market - USA - 1982.

• 

  Paperback - USA - 1983

• 

  Paperback - USA - 1992.

• 

  Paperback - USA - 2002.

• 

  Paperback - USA - 2010.

• 

  Mass Market - USA - Unknown year.

• 

  Paperback - USA - 2011.

• 

  Paperback - USA - 2014.

• 

  Paperback - USA - 2014.

• 

  Paperback - UK - 1994.

• 

  Mass Market - Australia - 1998.

Representation

Strong female character?	Pass	Karen and her mother Ellie both grow stronger through the book.
Bechdel test?	Pass	Several women speak to each other about a variety of things.
Strong person of color character?	Fail	As far as I can tell, everyone in the book is white.
Queer character?	Fail	There are no queer characters.

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