doesn't pretend to have all the answers, but by the end, this awkward preteen has achieved her own state of grace. She learns that everyone has their insecurities, and that everyone, from the unpopular kid in class to a queen bee like Nancy, deserves to be treated with kindness. She learns that puberty can hit at any time, but real maturity often comes later. The movie honors that conviction: Margaret doesn't join a church or synagogue, but she experiences her own kind of epiphany.

She's the author of Blood and Salt, Heart of Ash, The Last Harvest (Bram Stoker Award Winner), The Unfortunates, and The Grace Year. The book (written by author Kim Liggett in 2019) opens with our protagonist Tierney James, a feisty, intelligent young lady on her 16th year. One of the most radical things about Blume's book was its suggestion that kids could come to their own conclusions about faith, that religion wasn't something that should be foisted on them. Kim Liggett, originally from the rural Midwest, moved to New York City to pursue a career in the arts. McAdams is simply luminous as a woman trying to strike a balance between sensible authority figure and boho free spirit. But Barbara's own personal struggles - she's an artist who gave up a rewarding teaching career in New York to be a stay-at-home suburban mom - are no less dramatic than her daughter's. For those of us who still remember and cherish McAdams' performance as the villainous Regina George in Mean Girls, there's something especially moving about seeing her here, playing the loving, protective mom to a young girl facing her own battle with peer pressure. Author Interviews At 80, Judy Blume Reflects On Feminism, #MeToo And Keeping Margaret 12īut the movie's most memorable character is Margaret's mother, Barbara.

The grace year author