Just as Long as We're Together [Unabridged] [Paperback]

The popular author returns to the junior-high age with an episodic story about a three-way friendship during a seventh-grade year. Tall, super-bright Rachel and narrator Stephanie have been best friends forever. When diminutive Alison - a Vietnamese adoptee whose mother is a well-known TV star - moves to their neighborhood, she easily joins their circle; Alison's unassuming charm makes her everyone's favorite, and her family is pleasantly ordinary. Meanwhile, Stephanie is beset by various pressures: Rachel neglects to tell her that she's been transferred to an accelerated math class; more important, Dad is "away on business" for months. When it turns out at Thanksgiving that her parents are trying a separation, it is a total surprise to Stephanie, partly because of her self-absorption, partly because her parents have dropped astonishingly few hints. Stephanie's angry response includes a food binge; the resulting fat complicates possible friendships with boys, who are just starting to be more interesting. Come spring, Stephanie begins to accept her parents' wish to live apart; a quarrel with Rachel, the inevitable consequence of the year's tensions and jealousies, is sorted out; and she loses weight. Blume still excels at assembling the minutiae and concerns of today's young with a humorous style and enough insight to win her readers. Devotees will set themselves a valuable precedent by reading a book of this length. Light; sure to please. (Kirkus Reviews) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Stephanie and Rachel have been best friends for years, in spite of their differences. Alison is new in town, and immediately becomes an integral part of their group. But is it possible to have two best friends? And how can you call anyone a friend if you can't tell them your most painful secrets?

Stephanie and Rachel have been best friends for years, in spite of their differences. Alison is new in town, and immediately becomes an integral part of their group. But is it possible to have two best friends? And how can you call anyone a friend if you can’t tell them your most painful secrets? --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Judy Blume was born in the New Jersey suburbs often the setting of her books. When her two children started going to school, she took a course in creative writing at her old university, and an international publishing phenomenon followed. In addition to multi-million sales of her book and numerous awards, Judy is the recipient of an honorary 2004 National Book Award for her contribution to American Literature.