Did everyone read Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
by Judy Blume as an 11 year old? I know I read it in 4th or 5th grade, but my memory of it is completely different from the actual book. After reading a discussion of the topic of God in the book online, I thought maybe I ought to reread it, since despite the obvious title, the book of my memory had nothing to do with God. In my memory, the entire book was about waiting to grow boobs. How many of us actually tried the "I Must, I must, I must increase my bust" exercise? Raise your hand. Yeah, me too.In reality, Are You There God? has been banned or censored many times for both religious reasons and for addressing matters like menstruation and puberty. It falls at number 60 on this list of banned books. I know I'm a little bit late to the Banned Books party, but I wanted to go ahead and post this anyway. There didn't seem to be anything in the book that would make me hesitate to hand it off to my pre-teen daughter and I'm not sure at all why someone would object to it.
My experience in 6th grade was fairly similar to Margaret's. I had one friend who would compare notes with me about getting our periods, and the rest of us whispered about everyone else, trying to analyze their bathroom visits to determine if they had gotten their period. When Margaret's friend Nancy lies about having gotten hers to feel more mature, I could easily imagine that having happened among my 6th grade cohorts. I remember getting my first bra, and being embarrassed that boys could maybe see the straps (or the very hint of them) through my shirt. I remember taking it off after gym and stuffing it into my backpack and then worrying the rest of the day that it might fall out and be seen.
Rereading Are You There God? as an adult was a good experience for me. In general I tend to sneer at people who insist that the books that they read as a teen are so much better than the books being published now. I loved Judy Blume then but assumed that the book would feel dated and wouldn't work today. I was wrong, of course. I have to change my (mental) stance to include both the classics and the contemporary now.
Did you read this one as a kid? Did you remember Margaret's struggle to find her place with religion? Did you relate to her desire to want her breasts to grow so she'd be "normal"? Would you feel comfortable letting your 11 year old read it? How do you feel about the decision to replace the description of sanitary napkins with belts to those with adhesive strips? Should books be changed to fit modern times? Are there any topics that you feel ok banning from books?
For more information on Banned books, visit the ALA at this link. You can read more about Banned Books Week here, or here on Facebook.
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
by Judy Blume (website -warning, has sound!)
Yearling Books (Random Hous)
1970
149 pages
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