44 pages • 1 hour read
Judy BlumeIt's Not the End of the World
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1972A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 9-16Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 9 Summary
Karen has one grandparent, her dad’s father, and she calls him “Garfa.” Only Debbie knows that Karen calls him that. Garfa started the furniture store that Bill runs. Since retirement, Garfa has lived in Las Vegas. Garfa comes to visit. He tells Ellie that there hasn’t been a divorce in the Newman family. He offers to pay for a vacation for her and Bill to work out their problems. Ellie shakes her head and runs upstairs.
While setting the table for dinner, Karen finds some old cocktail napkins with her parents’ names on them. She puts them out on the table since they “might as well use them up” (51). Ellie mashes them into a ball and throws them away.
Bill and Garfa take the kids out to a steakhouse. Garfa tries to convince Bill to take him up on the vacation offer, but Bill refuses. Garfa is disappointed about not getting Bill and Ellie back together. Karen asks if she should try, too. Garfa tells her that it wouldn’t hurt. Garfa asks her to keep him posted and claims that she reminds him of Grandmother Newman.
Chapter 10 Summary
Jeff’s friend Petey Mansfield comes over all the time. Karen wonders why he barely talks. Eileen Fenster, a girl in Karen’s class, thinks that Petey’s younger brother Brian has a crush on Karen. Once, Eileen called Gary Owens to ask what he thought of Karen, but he hung up. Karen holds that against Eileen.
Aunt Ruth comes over to help Ellie prepare for her first meeting with the lawyer. Aunt Ruth mentions Henry Farnum, a nice man whose wife died last year. She wants to set Ellie up with him. Karen doesn’t want her mom to go out with any man.
Karen goes ice skating with Debbie. Karen loves ice skating, and she and Debbie laugh when Debbie falls down. Karen decides that she should laugh at least once a day. Karen sees Debbie talking to Eileen Fenster. In the car, Debbie reveals that Eileen knows about Karen’s parents’ divorce. Eileen said that she hopes that Karen’s mom has a good lawyer and plenty of money. Karen worries about money for the rest of the day.
Chapter 11 Summary
Karen tries to talk to Jeff about what’s going on, but he won’t engage with her. Karen learns more about the legal complexity of divorce and how different states have different rules. Karen waits outside the bathroom to talk to Jeff. He tries to brush her off until she starts to cry. Karen asks if Ellie has money to take care of them. Jeff explains that Bill will have to pay child support. Karen cries again, thinking about how she might not see her dad that much. Jeff tells her to get used to it. Karen resolves to try and get her parents back together.
Chapter 12 Summary
At school, Karen learns that Gary Owens is moving to Houston. Debbie’s family saw Bill eating alone at a Chinese restaurant and invited him to join them. He seemed lonely and unhappy. Ellie comes back from a meeting with her lawyer looking happier. Karen wonders if Ellie is in love with her lawyer, Mr. Hague. Karen tries to ask again why Ellie and Bill are divorcing, but Ellie won’t give her a straight answer. She eventually tells Karen that she and Bill just don’t love each other anymore. She predicts that Karen will be happier in a house without constant fighting, but Karen isn’t sure.
Chapter 13 Summary
Karen goes to see her dad at his new apartment complex, which has two pools and modern furniture matching what he sells in the store. Jeff likes the apartment. Karen worries that Jeff will go to live with Bill. Later, Bill asks Karen how Ellie is doing. Karen tries to tell him that she looks great with her new haircut, but Bill cuts her off. Karen asks about money, and Bill explains that he will pay child support and alimony. Karen asks if Bill would come to see her if she was sick. Bill promises that he and Ellie will never let their personal feelings interfere with an emergency with the kids. Karen plans to get sick next Wednesday so her dad will have to come in the house.
Bill suggests that Karen should meet another girl her age in the apartment complex named Val Lewis. Karen wonders if Bill is going out with Val’s mother. Karen goes downstairs and introduces herself to Val. Val has a rug in her room shaped like a foot. Val tells Karen about how her mom dates a very rich man and wants to marry him. Val’s father lives in San Francisco and drinks too much. She hasn’t seen him since the divorce, and his checks are always late.
Val shows Karen a book called The Boys and Girls Book About Divorce. According to the book, Karen’s mom is not being honest with Karen when she says that Bill is a good person. Val read about it in the New York Times and ordered the book herself. Val offers to tell Karen about the facts of life, but Karen already knows.
Chapter 14 Summary
Karen begins to think that she has more in common with Val than with Debbie. Karen wishes that she had told Gary Owens that she liked him before he moved away. At school, they learn about Vikings, and they are making dioramas. Karen tries to listen in on her brother hanging out with Petey Mansfield, but they put a record on. Karen still doesn’t care for Petey.
Ellie is in a much better mood and visits Mr. Hague often. She announces that she’s going back to school so that she can get a better job. She explains that she dropped out of college when she got married and had kids. Jeff lashes out, accusing Ellie of regretting having kids. He storms out and says that he’ll go to live with Bill. Ellie insists that she is glad to have her kids. Karen isn’t sure.
In the morning, Ellie tries to discipline Jeff, but Jeff refuses to listen. Ellie nearly cries.
Chapter 15 Summary
Karen tries to get sick. She tries faking her temperature by holding the thermometer next to the lightbulb, but it burns her mouth. At dinner, Amy asks for a new doll, but Ellie tells her that she’ll have to wait for her birthday. Karen adds that Ellie doesn’t have extra money. Amy screams, claiming that Bill would get her the doll and blaming Ellie for the divorce. Ellie smacks Amy and sends her to her room. Karen notes that Ellie promised less fighting in the house. Ellie cries into her gravy. Karen feels sorry for Ellie but hates her, too. She hasn’t laughed today.
Chapter 16 Summary
Gary writes a letter to the class from Texas. Mrs. Singer has all the students write him a letter back as their English lesson. Karen writes a letter to Gary but wishes that she had figured out if he liked her.
Chapters 9-16 Analysis
In these chapters, Karen’s understanding of divorce deepens, but so does her denial about it. This incorporates conflict into Karen’s coming-of-age narrative. She resolves to get her parents back together, an ill-fated goal that she hopes will restore her family and give her back a semblance of control. While her attempts to get sick provide a dryly comedic episode about naïve childhood deviousness, they demonstrate her desperation to restore her family to its former state. However, Karen's emotional journey is marked by a growing awareness of the complexities of relationships and the difficulties of navigating her new reality. Her feelings of hatred and sympathy toward Ellie underscore her coming-of-age as the parent-child dynamics change.
Val Lewis gives Karen a new perspective on The Impact of Divorce on Children. Val's experiences and insights, gleaned both from her own experience and from The Boys and Girls Book About Divorce, provide Karen with new ways to understand divorce and accept its necessity. This book symbolizes the self-reliance that comes with a deeper understanding of the adult world. However, Karen is not quite ready to let go of her hope that her parents will get back together, but Val Lewis, who represents the transition to adulthood, knows better than to cling to that hope.
Meanwhile, Karen's relationships with her family members continue to evolve. Her interactions with Jeff, in particular, reveal the difficulties of navigating sibling relationships during times of stress. Jeff's reluctance to engage with Karen and his eventual outburst against Ellie demonstrate the emotional toll of the divorce on the entire family. Karen finally breaks down in front of Jeff and he steps into the shoes of a caring older brother for a moment to explain what he knows about the divorce. His character development therefore mirrors Karen’s and highlights the theme of Rebuilding Life After Trauma.
These chapters also introduce Bill’s support network: his father, Garfa. His presence suggests that adults as well as children need emotional support. Garfa represents the traditional views about the sanctity of marriage of an older generation. He holds onto the familial narrative that no Newman has ever gotten divorced and hopes to convince Ellie and Bill to uphold that family value. Bill runs the store that Garfa started, which positions Bill as a kind of inheritor of Garfa’s way of life, yet Garfa struggles to convince Bill to inherit his values in a changing world. As someone for whom change is frightening, Karen feels connected to Garfa, and Garfa gives her special love and attention that she doesn’t fully receive from her parents. Karen and Garfa both feel invested in trying to get Bill and Ellie back together.
Ellie's character undergoes significant development in these chapters, as she begins to assert her independence and plan for the future. Her decision to return to school and pursue a better job highlights her growth and allows Blume to explore the Relationship Between Gender Roles and Divorce, as Ellie appears liberated from patriarchal expectations. However, her struggles to discipline Jeff and manage the household reveal the challenges of single parenthood, particularly for a mother left to raise the children, and the lengthy time she has spent forfeiting the household decisions to Bill.
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By Judy Blume
