Are You There God' It's Me, Margaret
Judy Blume's Are You There God' It's Me, Margaret has become a classicnovel for preteen girls. Published in 1970, the book addresses thediscomforts and confusions surrounding puberty and early adolescence. Thecentral character of the novel, Margaret, has moved to a Farbrook, NewJersey from New York City. Her encounters with new girlfriends and herquest to fit in comprise the major plot structure of the novel. The younggirls contend with pubescent physical and emotional changes, includingbudding breasts, first periods, and a new interest in cute boys. Moreover,religion plays a role in the story as a means of social groupidentification. Margaret has an innate, spontaneous, and personalrelationship with God, with whom she communicates in times of need orstress. Her prayers, because they are unorthodox, stand in direct contrastto the organized religious structures in her new community as well as in
The protagonist'sconversations with God range from mini-prayers to humorous pleas for biggerbreasts. Because the book is written in first person from Margaret'sperspective, readers can easily relate to the protagonist. Margaret's new girlfriends in Farbrook have already begun to grow breasts,while she lags behind, wishing that her body could catch up to theirs. Thismajor source of insecurity for Margaret is an issue felt keenly by everyteenage girl when they and their peers reach puberty. The book often appeals toyoung girls who have yet to develop breasts or see their first periodbecause it prepares them mentally for puberty and it also stimulates thegiggles for them to read about these matters. One of the underlying themes of the novel centers on the socialinsecurities and anxieties that attend adolescent development. The book iswritten as if it is a diary; Blume carries the reader directly into themind of the preteen girl, bringing her thoughts, emotions, fears, and hopesto life. Any young girl will be able to identifyclosely with these uncomfortable experiences that challenge them toquestion and formulate a personal identity and ego. Bloom's approach is asrealistic as it is humorous: The young girls practice kissing on theirpillows and they chant "We must, we must, we must increase our bust!"Moreover, the frank discussions of immature sexuality: first periods,attraction to boys, desires to attain the cultural stereotypes of femalebeauty, mark this novel as a classic coming-of-age story. These emotional andsocial attendants of the physical changes that accompany puberty aredifficult to address, but Blume does so with aplomb. As a character-driven novel, Are You There, God' It's Me, Margaretexplores Margaret's rich inner dialogue extensively. In a fewyears I'm going to look like one of those girls in Playboy," (6). Margaret's emotional and physical development is well-chronicled,paced so that the changes happen gradually and yet shockingly as they do inreal life.
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