I have never read a Judy Blume book. I have always been a big reader, but in my 29 years, Blume’s books somehow never made their way to me, despite the reading of them being classically recognized as a rite of passage for girls navigating youth and young adulthood.

What I can recall about reading Judy Blume’s seminal 1975 novel for the first time is that — even as a millennial girl growing up in the early aughts — it made me feel less alone with my questions and desires.