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4.0 out of 5 stars
True, it's not the end of the world, Jun 16 2004
Judy Blume's IT'S NOT THE END OF THE WORLD is told through the eyes of eleven year-old Karen Newman. She is a younger and older sister, a daughter to two quarreling parents, and a best friend to her pal Debbie. Karen journals each and every day of her life. Alas, it's been awhile since she had the ideal day, an A+ day. That A+ day, everyone was happy. No fighting or arguing between Mr. and Mrs. Newman took place. It was a snow day and even after Karen walked through the front door, drenched, Mrs. Newman wasn't at all angry.
The arguing between Mr. and Mrs. Newman started with the little things. And then it got worse. Dinners grew awkward and Karen feared the worst. Still, when Mr. Newman leaves home, she's sure he'll come back. Won't he? Not according to Karen's brother, Jeff. He says that their dad's gone for good. But Karen is still in denial, especially after her grandfather, her father's father, implies there's a chance of the two reconciling. This just does more to get Karen's hopes up. And when she sees her father's apartment and meets Valerie, a neighbor, she sees that maybe her father does have a new life. Maybe he is starting over. And it's going to be without her mother.
Valerie and Karen become fast friends. Valerie seems to know anything and everything regarding the topic of divorce. She too sides with Jeff, saying that there's no way her parents are getting back together. Still, despite the fact her gorgeous mother is dating a very rich man, Valerie seems unfazed by her parents' split. Hanging with Valerie is a nice change from hanging out with Debbie. World has traveled around the neighborhood about the Newman family split, and Debbie certainly isn't much help in the matter!
Blume's middle grader novel talks of divorce and how it affects a typical suburban family. Despite the fact that Karen is indeed the narrator, we also see how the divorce is hurting Jeff, who at one point, seemed unmoved. Like in all of other Blume books, the characters and situations are real and true-to-life. I especially liked Karen as a person and saw how she went through different stages throughout the book: the sadness of two quarreling and arguing parents, denial when the divorce was announced, and, at last, she begins to face the unfortunate reality she knows she must. This book is one of my fave by Blume and because my parents recently divorced, I took IT'S NOT THE... off my shelf and lent it to my sister, hoping it would maybe help her deal. The fact is, divorce is on the rise and this book is an ideal read for those children who must be forced to face it, like it or not. Just because divorce rates were lower in the 70s doesn't mean this book will have a different effect.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
It's Not the End of the World, Dec 19 2003
By A Customer
For most children, divorce is a hard thing. In Judy Blume's, It's Not the End of the World, Karen learns just how hard it is to have parents going through divorce. Even though her parents would fight, she never thought it would come down to divorce.
After hearing about the divorce, Karen doesn't understand how her parents could do this. She tries to think of a way to get her parents back together. When Karen thinks of her best plan yet, can she really pull it off?
It's Not the End of the World was WONDERFUL! I think that anyone would enjoy this book. Judy Blume put in a lot of ways that children might feel with parents going throught a divorce.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
You are not alone, Nov 17 2003
By A Customer
This book was purchased for me by my Godmother (Aunt) when I was in sixth grade and my parents were getting divorced. It really helped me get through that troubling time and if nothing else showed me that I was not alone and this had happened to many children my age. Although I truly did feel this was 'the end of the world' this book enlightened me, obviously by the title, that it was not. Well, now I have received word that my Goddaughter's (niece) parents are going to be splitting up, so I have taken on the responsiblity, like that of my Godmother, to purchase this great book for my niece. I am quite confident that it will help ease this terrible time for my beautiful niece. Thank you Judy Blume, and thanks again to my aunt for showing me one more way to be a great godparent.
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