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Dear Friends,

I hope you made it through the summer and that reading good books helped you and your family. Between Covid news and the upcoming election it’s been hard to focus except when I’m in the middle of a good novel. I’ve been reading political books, too. Michael Cohen’s Disloyal is next on my list. George says it’s a must read. I reminded him that I’m the one who ordered it for us.

I’ve been trying to celebrate all the little things. A busy bird feeder seen on my morning walk, a Little Free Library made from a brightly painted filing cabinet, the pesky squirrels of Cambridge, MA. One of them ate a hole in my daughter’s trash can for easy access. I spend a lot of time watching them in the garden of the house we’re renting.

Judy recently tweeting about a Little Free Library she noticed on a morning walk.

And here’s something that caught me by surprise. This month is the 50th Anniversary of the publication of Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret. Fifty years! I’m having trouble getting my head around that but I’ve done the math so I know it’s true. 1970 sometimes feels like yesterday (but not when I squat to get something off the floor and try to get back up). I was living in suburban NJ then – married with two little kids. My first two books had been accepted for publication when I sat down at my college typewriter to start Margaret. I knew next to nothing about writing. But I knew a lot about being in sixth grade. Or thought I did. My memory for the details of life at 12 was so fresh. And I knew what I didn’t want to write. I didn’t want to follow the rules and regulations for writing a children’s book. I remember thinking I’m going to be honest. I’m going to tell the truth. Well, my truth anyway. The story isn’t autobiographical but the character of Margaret, both physically and emotionally is pretty close to the girl I was. The first draft came out quickly and spontaneously, in about six weeks. These days I can’t write a six page essay in 6 weeks. But then it was all so new, so exciting, so close to the surface. Margaret is the book that changed my life. It gave me my career. It brought me my first loyal readers. I would never have dreamed then that kids would still be reading it 50 years later. I remember being asked in an early interview by a snarky reporter – Do you think your books will still be around in 20 years? I laughed. What a crazy idea and who cared anyway?

Don’t blame me for the shocking pink leather commemorative edition. Publishers like to celebrate big anniversaries. I’m actually okay with it. As I said, I’ll celebrate just about anything these days. Lately I’m asked by grown fans to write about Margaret in menopause. But Margaret is never going to grow up. She’ll always be 12. Except for one thing — when I’m asked What would Margaret say? That’s a question I can answer. She would tell us to vote early in what might be the most important election of her lifetime. (And certainly of mine.)

The movie based on the book was supposed to be filmed over the summer. The writer-director was thrilled with the young actor she’d found to play Margaret. Now, like most productions, we hope it will be next spring or summer. Will our Margaret sprout up and out by then? Who can say?

Artwork courtesy of the American Library Association, www.ala.org

With Banned Books Week coming up I’m reminded that when Margaret was first published I was so proud I gave three signed copies to my children’s elementary school. Later, I found out the books never made it to the shelf. The male principal decided that the book was inappropriate because of the discussion of menstruation, never mind how many 5th and 6th graders already had their periods. My first experience with having a book banned. But not my last. Visit our display of Banned Books. You’ll be surprised by what you see. Celebrate the Freedom to Read!

I’m homesick for Key West, and missing the store and staff more than I can say. We won’t stay away much longer. I just want to get back to work, to petting the books, arranging displays, and greeting all of you.

Stay well.

Love,

The Literary Pantheon we dedicated last February celebrated the memory of forty-four deceased members of our community whose accomplishments had brought honor to Key West and helped establish it as one of the country’s noteworthy cultural landmarks. The sadness of the months since then has been compounded by the loss of four more extraordinary individuals whose names will be added to the frieze above our bookshelves.

Terrence McNally (1938-2020) has been described as “the bard of American theater” and “one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced.” McNally was a long-time seasonal resident and homeowner in Key West, and was recognized as “part of the theatrical fabric of this community.” Most recently, a new production of his play “Frankie and Johnny in the Clair De Lune” was scheduled to open at the Red Barn Theatre on the day of his death, but was cancelled, like him a victim of the novel corona virus.

J. Seward Johnson, Jr. (1930-2020) was a man of huge talent and creativity, known principally for his ultra-realistic bronze sculptures. He wintered for many years in Key West, and was a well-known and popular member of the artistic and literary community. Johnson left his mark in Key West with a number of installations, including the assemblage of figures over the tarmac-side entry to the airport that welcomes passengers to town. Perhaps his most photographed local installation is the figure of Marilyn Monroe in front of the Tropic Cinema.

Robert D. Richardson (1934-2020) was a distinguished historian and biographer, focusing on leading American thinkers of the 19th Century, including William James, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. He was winner of the Bancroft and Francis Parkman Prizes (the most prestigious in the field of history). If you wanted one word to describe Bob, it would be “gentlemen,” in both senses of the word. He was certainly a man — a distinguished leader — but he was a gentle friend to the many in town who knew him.

Alison Lurie (1926-2020) described by the New York Times as a “tart-voiced novelist of manners,” who “wrote about academics and intellectuals, straying spouses, snobs and artists, in novels of close observation and sharp prose.” She was the author of 11 works of domestic and black comedy, including the 1984 Pulitzer Prize winning novel FOREIGN AFFAIRS. Noted for her sly wit and generosity of spirit, she was a vivid member of the Key West literary scene for decades. Perhaps her last public appearance was a store event in February 2020, just before the pandemic closure, where she very charmingly discussed her final book WORDS AND WORLDS, essays on topics from autobiography to zippers.

A 47-page Guide to the Key West Literary Pantheon is available for purchase at the store.

~ George Cooper, store co-founder

Read the Feb. 2020 article about the Pantheon dedication.