Meg Wolitzer and Judy Blume discuss election anxiety and book banning on the eve of a pivotal vote.
This bonus episode of Selected Shorts features author Meg Wolitzer in conversation with her longtime friend, the iconic writer Judy Blume. They connect just before the November 2024 election to discuss a shared professional battleground. The central topic is the modern landscape of book banning, where Blume has been both a target and an advocate for decades.
Blume expresses high anxiety about the election but welcomes the conversation as a distraction. She identifies a key surprise in the current banning surge: the direct involvement of state legislatures and government. Blume, a resident of Key West, Florida, contextualizes the issue locally under her state's governance. She describes a rapid succession of restrictive actions in Florida. In response, the free expression organization PEN America has established a dedicated office in Miami. Wolitzer asks about the effectiveness of this PEN America Florida office.
Blume finds it notable that the censorship now originates from official government bodies rather than community groups. Her personal experience in Florida illustrates the direct impact of state-level policies on literary culture. The establishment of a permanent PEN America outpost signals the scale and persistence of the challenge in one region. The conversation implicitly links the political climate of the 2024 election to cultural battles over literature.
The tone is intimate and conversational, stemming from a deep, personal friendship between the two writers. The style is reflective and concerned, blending personal anecdote with broader cultural observation. Listeners interested in literary culture, free speech issues, and the personal perspectives of major authors would appreciate this episode. Those seeking a lighthearted or purely narrative story might find the politically-adjacent, discussion-based format less engaging.
