Flashback: 'Are You There God, It's Me Margaret'
Posted by alli on 03-03-2008
This week I re-read the iconic, Are You There God, It's Me Margaret. The groundbreaking young adult novel by Judy Blume was written in 1970, but I found it smart, realistic, and in spite of a few corny words here and there, quite relevant. Margaret's voice is sometimes shrill but remarkably mature–even for todays' tweens. She gracefully manages the pressures of a new town, new friends, and a new body with honesty and a believable sense of self.
Twelve year old girls haven't changed that much and tweens continue to look for characters that they can relate to — characters that describe similar experiences and feelings. It's possible that they have surpassed the shame and confusion of adolescent issues such as menstruating. It's possible that they don't blush with embarrassment when topics like growing breasts and buying bras come up. These rites-of-passage are commonplace now. They are the stuff movies, television, commercials and magazine articles are littered with. Sexuality is everywhere and most issues pertaining to our bodies are fair game for discussion. Shame and embarrassment are out, right? Maybe not. I'm not completely convinced that growing up is any easier for girls today than it was 30 years ago. Sure, books like Are You There God, It's Me Margaret paved the way to making adolescence an acceptable topic of discussion, but they didn't alleviate what it feels like to experience it.
Margaret is a character who is still capable of resonating with 12-year-old readers. She's caught up in the excitement and anxiety of all of these "firsts" and talks about them in a way that is still fresh. I think 'tweens still obsess about perspiration and their first kiss no matter how casual it becomes to us culturally. That is why Are You There God, It's Me Margaret is great and why it will always be a classic.
March 3rd, 2008 at 8:52 am
I actually read this book because Sawyer is seen reading it on Lost. Even though I'm an adult male and it was a little awkward, I did think it dealt maturely with growing up. It's a great book for that reason, and I also think Margaret's questions on faith are something many young teenagers face. I know I did when I was around her age. I'd grown up Catholic, but started to question why we did what we did when I was going through confirmation.
Anyway, Judy Blume recently updated the book, so it doesn't talk about "belts" anymore. Very timeless.