 She has won a number of awards for her writing, including ALA's Margaret A. Edwards Award for her contributions to young adult literature.She was recognized as a Library of Congress Living Legend and she was awarded the 2004 National Book Foundation medal for distinguished contribution to American letters.Blume was born on February 12, 1938, and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey, the daughter of homemaker Esther (née Rosenfeld) and dentist Rudolph Sussman.