Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret (Mass Market Paperback)

by Judy Blume (Author) "We moved on the Tuesday before Labor Day..." (more)
Key Phrases: Philip Leroy, Laura Danker, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
If anyone tried to determine the most common rite of passage for preteen girls in North America, a girl's first reading of Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret would rank near the top of the list. Judy Blume and her character Margaret Simon were the first to say out loud (and in a book even) that it is normal for girls to wonder when they are ever going to fill out their training bras. Puberty is a curious and annoying time. Girls' bodies begin to do freakish things--or, as in Margaret's case, they don't do freakish things nearly as fast as girls wish they would. Adolescents are often so relieved to discover that someone understands their body-angst that they miss one of the book's deeper explorations: a young person's relationship with God. Margaret has a very private relationship with God, and it's only after she moves to New Jersey and hangs out with a new friend that she discovers that it might be weird to talk to God without a priest or a rabbi to mediate. Margaret just wants to fit in! Who is God, and where is He when she needs Him? She begins to look into the cups of her training bra for answers ... --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From Publishers Weekly
Judy Blume's body of work returns to her original editor, Richard Jackson, with the rerelease of four classics in hardcover. An African-American family moves to all-white Grove Street in Iggie's House, to be released in April. The author's breakthrough title, Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret, about 11-year old Margaret Simon's struggles with puberty and religion, is now available in hardcover as well as in a Spanish-language edition, Estas ahi Dios? Soy yo, Margaret. Two additional titles came out last season: Blubber takes on preteen teasing; and It's Not the End of the World explores the effects of divorce.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Laurel Leaf; Book Club (BCE/BOMC) edition (October 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440904196
• ISBN-13: 978-0440904199
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (355 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #139,890 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An honest story about growing up, but outstandingly humorous, May 11, 1999

By A Customer

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume may just be one of my all-time favorite novels. It's a hilarious story about Margaret Simon, a twelve-year-old girl, growing up in the New York area. She has to move to a new town in Farbrook, New Jersey with her parents, away from her grandmother and is trying very hard to adjust with the problems of becoming a teenager. She is faced with many typical pre-teen issues such as school, cute boys, religion, puberty and other growing up factors. She learns how to deal with boys and other "girl" problems through the process of experiment from the help of her mother, grandmother and friends. Most writers would not dare talk about puberty or issues relating to a girl's physical growth, but Judy Blume talks about these issues with a little humorous spice to it. Even though I'm not a girl and can not relate to Margaret's life, I enjoy reading this book because it talks about realistic issues and problems that made me laugh out loud. Moments like setting up a girl group to talk about cute boys, measuring their breast size, talking about their bra size and if they had their periods yet were just several mirthful moments in the book that made me laughing with tears. Not to reveal too much of the book's detail, but her mother choosing a bra for her at a nearby department store shows an aspect of her growing up, but is also comical to even read about it. This is a great book that talks about learning lessons in life and teaches anyone, especially young teens in how to handle hard choices with a funny style to it. I definitely recommend this book, especially for those young teens out there seeking a companion to relate to.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fave Since Age 9!, June 11, 2004

By	QUEEN_OF_EVERYTHING (Outside Philly) - See all my reviews

Judy Blume's writings were often deemed controversial. Oddly enough, Margaret's concerns placed this book, in the year 1970, under that label. Whether it be because of sex talk, periods, or Playboy references, this is a book that all preteens ought to read. Why? Margaret is a regular girl dealing with normal adolescent troubles. She's moved to New Jersey, she suspects, because her parents wanted to distance herself from her grandmother, who paid for Margaret's private school tuition, knit her cute little sweaters, and doted on her in a big way. Now, Maragret will go to public school. You can already see the transition to a new neighborhood won't be all too rough - she and Nancy Wheeler become fast friends and find they will be in the same sixth grade class. She, along with Nancy, Gretchen Potter and Janie Loomis, start the Four Preteen Sensations.

Blume frankly addresses puberty, as well as religion. I like the fact that Margaret feels she can talk to God without actually belonging to any particular organized religion. She is technically half Catholic and half Jewish and a pivotal part of the book is her search to find which religion is right for her. She visits a synogague and a church, yet does not feel God in either place. This exploration of faith is actually something I have seen quite a few younger kids go through today in society - it really is no different from 1970!

Margaret constantly wants her period. Why? I don't know. It will make her feel more grown-up, more womanly, I guess. Yes, I know, I know, I just answered my own question! :) Margaret also wants the body of a woman. She and her friends gossip about Laura Danker, a buxom sixth grader with a bad reputation, seemingly only because of her figure. Margaret wants breasts and goes bra shopping, only because the Four PTS girls are required to wear one as club rules - she doesn't even fill a double A. As some of the girls begin getting their periods, Margaret wonders when her time will come and we wonder if it will come during the 149 pages of the book.

Blume captures the essence of the preteen age in this long acclaimed novel. Believable characters and a believable plot, as with other books of hers, will make this one enjoyable. Margaret asks herself questions that we ask ourselves everyday. She worries about the same things we worried about at her age - maybe even now. She has similar thoughts, concerns, and feelings and does not seem at all contrived or mechanical. This way, many will be able to relate with Margaret and her story.

29 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorite books from my pre-teen years!!, May 16, 2001

By	Diane Moore - See all my reviews

This review is from: Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret (Paperback)

I was reading back in one of my old diaries today--and i came across a sentence that read: you are most like the character--and there was a blank. I had written Margaret. I knew exactly where it came from. I think I read it in 4th or 5th grade and I just remember it made me feel like the author understood what we were going through--and how could she have remembered all that? i swallowed up the details and I laughed and felt bad for the character. I thought it was funny about what a big deal the periods for the girls were---and how she was struggling with religion and what she should believe. I have recommended this to some parents for their daughters but I worry that the "religion choosing" thing might bother them. I loved this book and i think every young girl should read this book. It was written 20 or 30 years ago and she still understood what i was going through!!