I like that the story drifts from episode to episode, slowly exploring every facet of Stephanie’s life. I was surprised by how little plot there really is, but not at all surprised that a character-driven story about friendship would be the one I would choose as a favorite. From that silly first line, I was hooked on Stephanie’s voice all over again, and I found myself eagerly zipping through each chapter. I was a little nervous that this book wouldn’t hold up for me as an adult, but it turns out I had nothing to worry about. Stephanie herself faces issues surrounding her weight, her period, her parents’ troubled marriage, her brother’s nightmares about nuclear war, and of course, boys. As their seventh grade year unfolds, Stephanie and her friends endure the usual growing pains, including questions over whether someone can have more than one best friend. Rachel has been her best friend pretty much all her life, and Alison is new in town.
Just As Long As We’re Together is the story of Stephanie Hirsch, a seventh grader, who has two best friends. Throw in a supposed talking dog, an exercise video involving “gluts” and a ninth grader nicknamed Jeremy Dragon, and that is basically the complete picture of what I remember about this book from childhood. I’ve also never been able to forget that the “hunk” who hangs above Stephanie’s bed is a young Richard Gere, whom Stephanie has named Benjamin Moore after the paint brand. It’s a silly, comedic scene, but reading it to my daughter when I’d gotten such a kick out of it as a kid felt like passing down a quirky little tradition.I don’t remember many first lines of books that I’ve read, but somehow I’ve never been able to forget “Stephanie is into hunks,” which is the first sentence of Judy Blume’s 1986 middle grade novel Just As Long As We’re Together. You know the one: you pump your arms and stick out your chest, yelling, “We must! We must! We must increase our bust!” When I got to that scene, I started giggling before the exercise even started, and when I managed to get the words of the chant out, my daughter understood why I couldn’t keep a straight face. The funniest scene in the book is Margaret’s bust-increasing exercise. When the movie came out a couple of weeks ago, starring Abby Ryder Fortson as Margaret and Rachel McAdams as her mother Barbara, we knew we had to see it together. She peppered me with questions-about puberty, bras, periods, religion, that mystical long-ago time called the ’70s-and we laughed together at Margaret’s exploits. Not long ago, my ten-year-old daughter and I read Judy Blume’s Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret together.
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