Published by Knopf
Publication date: June 2nd 2015
As a young girl growing up in the 1970s there were few reading experiences more ubiquitous than discovering that author Judy Blume understood you. That she seemed, in fact, to be a teenage girl herself who was reaching off the page to make you feel less alone. I don’t know many women who did not read and relate to Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. Blume has gone on to a successful career writing both YA and adult fiction but I had not followed her work so was excited to see that she had a new novel coming out. Set in the 1950s and based on very real and unusual events, In the Unlikely Event is about three planes that crash in Elizabeth, New Jersey in less than two months and the effect of those crashes on the city.
In short order, Blume assembles a large and varied cast with a teenage girl named Miri at its center. She lives alone with her mother in Elizabeth. While we follow Miri throughout the novel Blume cycles through numerous other characters in In the Unlikely Event with mixed results. The passengers on the planes and the quick glimpses of their lives and their thoughts provide emotional immediacy but there the contact ends. Instead, a growing stream of ancillary characters appears and exits with very little definition. Blume excels at recapturing the details of the 1950s with the right products, the fear of Communism, aliens, and government conspiracies—the superficialities of society at that time—but the cast of characters grows at a pace that means few hold the stage for more than part of a chapter or two. With so many disparate stories In the Unlikely Event is left feeling like a news article—everything is recounted with no sense of emotion or connection.
As someone who related to Blume’s work so strongly, the dissonance between the novels I loved and In the Unlikely Event was difficult to understand until I realized that essentially, the novel is Miri’s story and it read that way, as if it were written for a young adult audience with very little interest or understanding of adult lives. This could have worked if the novel was written from Miri’s perspective but in the third person omniscient the impact was scattered and the grown-ups came off as confusing, cardboard characters. Sadly, the Judy Blume I loved as a young girl did not engage me as an adult. Instead, I was left disappointed.
Were you a Judy Blume fan when you were young? If so, what was your favorite book?
This had been on my list to read. I too was so excited to read another Judy Blume novel as an adult, but I’m sad to hear it wasn’t what you expected.
It wasn’t but it also felt rushed or as if it was written by a less seasoned author. Almost kind of sloppy- which is a horrible thing to say about Blume but that’s how it felt to me.
Finally…I’ve been waiting to see a review of this one on the blogs I read! I’m sorry this didn’t live up to your memories of Blume. I read the sample of this one and it didn’t really grab me, so I didn’t spring for the book…and I’ve been waiting for some reviews to see if I should change my mind. Sounds like I’m sticking with my decision for now!
I almost want you to read so you can disagree with me or let me know it’s not just me! It was odd, with such a sense of detachment. I felt completely disconnected throughout the book.
Sorry to hear this one was disappointing! I just read Are You There, God for the first time for #BlumeAlong, and I loved it, but I think I’ll give this one a miss.
I was wondering if this book was anything like her past YA books. I think my favorite was Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing but its been so long that I can barely remember.
It’s not YA at all but it reads that way which is why it was so disappointing. I’ve not read her other adult novels so maybe that’s her style but it was disconcerting.
I loved Blume’s books as an adolescent, and then when reading her kids’ books (Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing) to my son. I think I’ll pass her latest. Are You There God? meant a great deal to me as a girl and I’d hate to muddy my fond memory of her writing with something that falls flat.
Oh 🙁 I guess I’ll suspend judgment until I read this. I have a feeling Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret is waaaay up there as my gold standard for Blume.
Please check back after you read it. I so want to hear other opinions about it!
NO!! I want to love this as much as all Blume’s YA stuff. That being said, I don’t know if I’ve read any of her other adult stuff. Summer Sisters always looked a little light to me, especially since i was a literary snob when it first came out.
Either way, this is on my summer reading list and I’m looking forward to it as a nice, light read.
I’ll be so interested to see what you think. It’s so hard to say that an author with such resonance could feel so flat but this book was just that. I got nothing from it emotionally. It felt unfinished, almost sloppy.
Oooooooooh I was worried this one wouldn’t live up to the hype. Bummer.
Catherine, this is definitely what I’ve been afraid of; I think I’m going to have to pass on this one, for now, and thanks so much for such a candid review!
I actually didn’t read any Judy Blume when I was younger and I’m afraid I might be too old to start now. It seems like all her books might be harder to relate to as an adult.
I also thought this was disappointing. I think that Blume got stuck on the plane crashes, because nothing really happened in this book besides those unusual events. I kept wishing for a plot — which is strange for a 400 page book.
I’m listening to it for the second time. I am not particularly fond of the YA Blume books of the past, but I like this one. The story holds my interest, and I’m only a little bothered with keeping up with the various characters. After a few chapters, it’s easy. I was born in the early 50s in the Houston area, so I know something about the type of culture she describes. I’d love to know more about the characters in the novel and discover upon whom some were based…if anyone, in a few cases. I know what Blume has said about her experience in real life, but there is much she does not reveal in those publicity interviews. This novel reminds me in some ways of a Maeve Binchy work, but Blume delves a bit more deeply into the impetus behind her characters, and this novel reminds her readers of the fallibility of mankind’s inventions and the foibles of those who deal with it.
That’s great tha tyou found it relatable- it makes all the difference in a book. And yes to your point about the fallibility of mankind and our inventions. That feels more true now than ever.