Hello everyone, I'm Gilbert Cruz and this is the Book Review Podcast.

Today on the show, I'll be speaking with two members of the Book Review staff, Liz

Egan and Miguel Salazar.

Miguel is going to be on later to talk about his recent entry in our Essentials series,

this one focused on the work of Gabrielle Garcia-Marquez.

But first, Liz is here to talk about the great Judy Bloom.

A film adaptation of one of Bloom's most famous books,

Are You There, God, It's Me, Margaret, is out at the end of the month.

And so the author is very much in the public eye again, not that she ever really leaves.

I certainly see her name at least once a month when I drive to my parents' house and I'm

going down the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey and I go past the Judy Bloom's service area,

which was so named about a year ago.

Liz, you're from Jersey. Have you ever been to the Judy Bloom service area?

Absolutely. I wrote an Essentials guide to Judy Bloom in the summer of 2022 and it was partially

inspired by a drive past that very rest area where I thought if Judy Bloom has arrived at the

pinnacle of Jersey natively, she deserves an Essentials guide in the New York Times.

Tell me about your relationship to Judy Bloom. I have to admit this is terrible to admit,

but I just I want to be honest with you. I want to be honest with our listeners.

I was not a young reader who dipped much into Judy Bloom. Is that something I should be

feel bad about, feel ashamed about?

You should feel a little bit ashamed.

Okay, okay. It's okay. It's not too late.

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