{"id":86228,"date":"2025-05-09T02:48:11","date_gmt":"2025-05-09T02:48:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/86228\/"},"modified":"2025-05-09T02:48:11","modified_gmt":"2025-05-09T02:48:11","slug":"banned-judy-blume-teen-sex-book-forever-gets-netflix-adaptation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/86228\/","title":{"rendered":"Banned Judy Blume Teen Sex Book ‘Forever’ Gets Netflix Adaptation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Forever, one of beloved young adult author Judy Blume<\/a>\u2018s most iconic books, started with a simple request<\/a>: \u201cMy daughter Randy asked for a story about two nice kids who have sex without either of them having to die.\u201d <\/p>\n

Published in 1975, the book was revolutionary at the time for its frank, grounded depictions of teenage characters who were allowed to eagerly fumble their way through sex and relationships without swiftly being turned into moralistic cautionary tales. Yet while Forever is still a target of book bans\u2014last year, it was one of 13 books banned from every public school in Utah<\/a>\u2014teenage sex isn\u2019t remotely as taboo as it was when it first hit shelves. <\/p>\n

In an era where kids can look up pretty much anything they want online and shows like Sex Education<\/a> are water cooler hits, is it worth updating Forever for modern audiences? Mara Brock Akil\u2019s (Girlfriends, The Game) new Netflix adaptation of the same name proves that the answer to that question is yes\u2026 by wisely swapping a straightforward retread for a contemporary romance that nods back to its source text\u2019s ethos of teenage possibility.<\/p>\n

\"LovieLovie Simone as Keisha Clark and Michael Cooper Jr. as Justin Edwards Elizabeth Morris\/Elizabeth Morris\/Netflix <\/p>\n

Whereas Blume\u2019s book follows white high schoolers in suburban New Jersey, Brock Akil\u2019s series opens on a New Year\u2019s Eve reunion between Justin (Michael Cooper Jr.) and Keisha (Lovie Simone), two Black Los Angeles teens and former elementary school classmates. Any romance show lives or dies by the chemistry of its leads, and Forever\u2018s opening re-meet-cute\u2014directed with magical giddiness by Regina King\u2014quickly proves that Cooper and Simone are more than capable of delivering all the playful banter and endearingly awkward infatuation necessary to make us buy into these two kids in love.<\/p>\n

Of course, the reality of Justin and Keisha actually being together isn\u2019t nearly so simple, especially with graduation on the horizon. Justin\u2019s family lives in a stunning, poolside home in the Hollywood Hills, much of his days sandwiched between tutoring sessions and basketball practice as his parents game out the best possible path toward success. <\/p>\n

Does Justin actually want to play basketball in college? Meh. A shy nerd at heart, he\u2019s more into Naruto and making music in his bedroom, but it certainly helps his chances on college applications. Cooper imbues Justin with a sweet, introspective nature that\u2019s upended by flashes of flirty bravado or bristling against his protective mom Dawn\u2019s (Karen Pittman) orders.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Keisha lives in a rented apartment across town with her single mom Shelly (Xosha Roquemore), who works multiple jobs to put her through private school. Waking up at 4:30 a.m. to train with her grandfather (Barry Shabaka Henley), Keisha has her eyes on a full running scholarship to Howard University, and with it, the chance to cement her golden girl status in her mother\u2019s eyes\u2014even as the secret of a sex tape passed around by her basketball star ex-boyfriend looms between them. <\/p>\n

Simone, who first broke out in the 2020 film Selah and the Spades, is luminous as Forever\u2018s female romantic lead, giving Keisha infectious charm and confidence even as she grapples with the inherent messiness of coming-of-age love.<\/p>\n

\"AdriyanAdriyan Rae as Brittany and Paigion Walker as Tiffany Elizabeth Morris\/Elizabeth Morris\/Netflix <\/p>\n

Although Forever is technically a pre-pandemic period piece set in 2018, its keen observations of how a constant flow of Instagram Stories and FaceTime gossip can turn the already-fraught, hormonal minutiae of teenage relationships into crises within seconds still feel contemporary. <\/p>\n

There\u2019s an almost epistolary romance quality to Justin and Keisha\u2019s relationship, their innermost vulnerabilities communicated through Tyler the Creator Spotify links and voicemails rather than letters. The show\u2019s approach to sexuality, too, feels more aligned with the present day. There\u2019s still a good deal of horny fumbling to be had, but in a 21st century setting, Brock Akil is more interested in the circumstances surrounding her protagonists\u2019 first time than the mechanics of the sex itself.<\/p>\n

For all of Forever\u2018s strengths, it occasionally stumbles when it comes to sustaining the narrative tension of Justin and Keisha\u2019s relationship across eight hours of television. Yes, teen relationships are often messy, but particularly in the season\u2019s first half\u2014 which is largely made up of on-again, off-again interludes\u2014I found myself missing the heady rush of watching the two fall in love, which often comes in the form of montages or Instagram slideshows.<\/p>\n

Yet even when Justin and Keisha are at odds, the series never fails to make them feel like fully fleshed-out people, in large part because of the show\u2019s vivid worldbuilding. From study sessions at Keisha\u2019s cousins\u2019 braiding salon to beach hangouts at Oak Bluffs\u2014a popular Black summer vacation destination in Martha\u2019s Vineyard\u2014we always have a sense of who these characters are, because we know the places and people who shaped them.<\/p>\n

\"KarenKaren Pittman as Dawn and Rodney Hicks as Uncle Charlie Elizabeth Morris\/Elizabeth Morris\/Netflix <\/p>\n

Like the 2023 film adaptation of Are You There, God? It\u2019s Me, Margaret<\/a>, this Blume adaptation leans on its young characters\u2019 parents and other family members to enrich its world. Having thankfully escaped the clutches of And Just Like That\u2026<\/a>, it\u2019s Karen Pittman who anchors the adult side of Forever as Justin\u2019s high-powered, protective mom Dawn. <\/p>\n

Pittman brings a no-nonsense warmth to her matriarch, who\u2019s driven by her determination to safeguard her son\u2019s future as a young Black man in America (\u201cWe got cops out here shooting Black boys like it\u2019s open season, and I\u2019m tripping?\u201d she counters after objecting to Justin attending a party). Conversely, Roquemore\u2019s performance as a mom navigating how to support her daughter in a digital age that still unfairly punishes young women for exploring their sexuality makes for a natural, timely update.<\/p>\n

Like its source material, Forever isn\u2019t interested in defining the success of a teenage relationship by whether it lasts, well, forever. But in bringing that same shame-free curiosity into the equation, this version still manages to pay homage to Blume\u2019s vision, while telling a winning love story all its own.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Forever, one of beloved young adult author Judy Blume\u2018s most iconic books, started with a simple request: \u201cMy…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":86229,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3938],"tags":[6342,3444,77,451,1002,11727,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-86228","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-books","8":"tag-book","9":"tag-books","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-netflix","12":"tag-sex","13":"tag-television","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114475598209030150","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=86228"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86228\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=86228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=86228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=86228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}