David Maybury | Blog

Something that follows on (very loosely) from the Pinkist debate from yesterday – Michael Ungar’s piece on books – when should readers be reading about sex, drugs, violence and rock and roll?

I remember that when I was ten, my father’s stash of pornography was a confusing source of information. Thankfully, it was a story by Judy Blume that helped me put the pieces together.

The best way I know to help kids avoid early sexual activity is to ensure they have what they need to satisfy their curiosity and understand the risks, and benefits, of sex.

Are there any favourites from growing up? Judy Blume? Melvin Burgess? JD Salinger? Jostein Gardner? My learning curves came by way of  Tom Lennon’s When Love Comes to Town.