Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret
by Judy Blume
Description (from Goodreads):
Margaret Simon, almost twelve, likes long hair, tuna fish, the smell of rain, and things that are pink. She’s just moved from New York City to Farbrook, New Jersey, and is anxious to fit in with her new friends—Nancy, Gretchen, and Janie. When they form a secret club to talk about private subjects like boys, bras, and getting their first periods, Margaret is happy to belong.
YCRT! review:
I hope this short book remains as popular with pre-teen girls as everyone says it is. I’m coming at it as an adult reader concerned about censorship who enjoys reading the banned classics to see why the torch and pitchfork mob ever wanted them taken off library shelves in the first place, in this case one with an outsized reputation seemingly everyone but me has read,
Are You There God? deserves its reputation. I read it straight through in one sitting, then did a bit of online research into efforts to ban it. I should say past efforts, because of late there have been none, or at least none that I can find. The book came out in 1970 and was immediately controversial, showing up on the American Library Association’s lists of most banned books in the 70s and 80s, but it seems to have become less controversial over time.
Margaret, the daughter of a Christian mother and a Jewish father, is neither; the central theme of her first-person narrative is her decision to explore religions and eventually pick one. She prays to God (when she’s not mad at Him) for guidance; she feels no particular affinity for any of the churches or temples she visits; she asks friends of various Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish faiths for their opinions; she makes her religious quest the subject of her sixth grade project. This is what most people objected to when the book came out, apparently afraid it would turn their own children away from the family faith.
But Margaret also prays for help with breasts, menstruation, and boys, and along with her circle of friends has a growing interest in sexuality, all frankly discussed. This too was controversial, though it seems pretty tame today.
Several years ago I read and reviewed Judy Blume’s Forever, a significantly more grown-up book for young adults, and even though I’m far from Ms. Blume’s target audience (old, wrong gender), sensed her gift for talking and relating to young girls. Her popularity with readers of all ages is well earned.
p.s. An excellent movie adaptation of Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret (2023) is currently streaming on Netflix (also available to rent on Amazon Prime).