Difference between revisions of "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret."

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[[Image:Are You There God It's Me, Margaret - Hardcover - USA.jpg|thumb|256x256px|First edition hard cover.]]
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{{Book
 +
| Title            = Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
 +
| Image           = Are You There God It's Me, Margaret - Hardcover - USA.jpg
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| ImageDescription = Hardcover - USA - 1st Edition.
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| Author          = {{BookAuthor|Judy Blume}}
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| PublishedYear    = 1970
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| PublishedMonth  = ??
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| PublishedDay    = ??
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| Type            = {{BookType|Fiction}}
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| Genre            = {{BookGenre|Drama}}
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| Themes          = {{MediaTheme|Childhood}}, {{MediaTheme|Coming of age}}, {{MediaTheme|Friendship}}, {{MediaTheme|Puberty}}, {{MediaTheme|Religion}}, {{MediaTheme|Teen}}
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| AgeGroup        = Teen
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}}
  
'''''Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.''''' is a young adult book written by [[Judy Blume]] and first published in 1970. The book is a fictional story inspired by Blume's own struggle with not developing physically as fast as her friends, and, the titular character, prays in hopes of not being the last girl in her group of friends to menstruate. Margaret, along with her friends, form a club to talk about their changing bodies and the boys they like. Margaret also explores the complexity of religion having already been given a head start with a Jewish father and Christian mother.
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'''''Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.''''' is a young adult book written by [[Judy Blume]] and first published in 1970.
  
==Status==
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The book is a fictional story inspired by Blume's own struggle with not developing physically as fast as her friends. The titular character, prays in hope that she won't be the last girl in her group of friends to menstruate. Margaret, along with her friends, form a club to talk about their changing bodies and the boys they like. Margaret also explores the complexity of religion having already been given a head start with a Jewish father and Christian mother.
I own a paperback copy of this book and have read it.
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==Personal==
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{{BookStatus
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| Own      = Paperback, 1975.
 +
| Read    = Paperback, 1975.
 +
| Finished = 2010s.
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}}
 +
 
 +
When my friend Jackie asked me if I wanted any of the books from a pile she no longer wanted, I saw this in the pile. I knew it was very influential, not just because it questioned religion, but also because it talked about female puberty, so I took it. After reading it, I think it's an important book for any child to read.
  
 
==Review==
 
==Review==
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{{BookRating|8}}
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{{Spoilers}}
 
{{Spoilers}}
  
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* I like how Blume doesn't pull any punches, both with what young ladies talk about when it comes to puberty and sex.
 
* I like how Blume doesn't pull any punches, both with what young ladies talk about when it comes to puberty and sex.
 
* I like how Margaret has doubts about religion and tries to understand it by learning more about it.
 
* I like how Margaret has doubts about religion and tries to understand it by learning more about it.
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* Later editions of the book update the description of women's hygiene products to keep it useful for girls. Ordinarily, I'm against the idea of modernizing a book, but, since the story also doubles as preparation for puberty, especially menstruation, I think it's beneficial.
  
 
===Bad===
 
===Bad===
* I don't like how Margaret sees her menstruation, which would have happened no matter what, as a sign that a god exists.
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* Nothing.
  
 
===Ugly===
 
===Ugly===
* Nothing.
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* I don't like how Margaret sees her menstruation, which would have happened no matter what, as a sign that a god exists. Granted, children can rarely distinguish between correlation and causation, but the goal should be to educate them on how to tell the difference, not reinforce ignorance.
 +
 
 +
==Representation==
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{{Representation
 +
| Media                      = Books
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| StrongFemaleCharacterStatus = Pass
 +
| StrongFemaleCharacterNotes  =
 +
| BechdelTestStatus          = Pass
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| BechdelTestNotes            =
 +
| StrongPOCCharacterStatus    = Unknown
 +
| StrongPOCCharacterNotes    =
 +
| QueerCharacterStatus        = Fail
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| QueerCharacterNotes        =
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}}
  
 
==Links==
 
==Links==
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[[Category: Books]]
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[[Category: Needs representation]]
[[Category: Fiction]]
 
[[Category: Young Adult Books]]
 
[[Category: Religion]]
 
[[Category: Puberty]]
 
[[Category: Strong Female Character]]
 
[[Category: Books I've Read]]
 

Latest revision as of 11:29, 3 August 2023

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.

Are You There God It's Me, Margaret - Hardcover - USA.jpg

Hardcover - USA - 1st Edition.

Author Judy Blume
Published 1970-??-??
Type Fiction
Genre Drama
Themes Childhood, Coming of age, Friendship, Puberty, Religion, Teen
Age Group Teen

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. is a young adult book written by Judy Blume and first published in 1970.

The book is a fictional story inspired by Blume's own struggle with not developing physically as fast as her friends. The titular character, prays in hope that she won't be the last girl in her group of friends to menstruate. Margaret, along with her friends, form a club to talk about their changing bodies and the boys they like. Margaret also explores the complexity of religion having already been given a head start with a Jewish father and Christian mother.

Personal

Own?Paperback, 1975.
Read?Paperback, 1975.
Finished2010s.

When my friend Jackie asked me if I wanted any of the books from a pile she no longer wanted, I saw this in the pile. I knew it was very influential, not just because it questioned religion, but also because it talked about female puberty, so I took it. After reading it, I think it's an important book for any child to read.

Review

Overall:

Rating-8.svg

— This section contains spoilers! —

Good

  • The story is interesting and the book is well-written.
  • I like how Blume doesn't pull any punches, both with what young ladies talk about when it comes to puberty and sex.
  • I like how Margaret has doubts about religion and tries to understand it by learning more about it.
  • Later editions of the book update the description of women's hygiene products to keep it useful for girls. Ordinarily, I'm against the idea of modernizing a book, but, since the story also doubles as preparation for puberty, especially menstruation, I think it's beneficial.

Bad

  • Nothing.

Ugly

  • I don't like how Margaret sees her menstruation, which would have happened no matter what, as a sign that a god exists. Granted, children can rarely distinguish between correlation and causation, but the goal should be to educate them on how to tell the difference, not reinforce ignorance.

Representation

Strong female character?Pass
Bechdel test?Pass
Strong person of color character?Unknown
Queer character?Fail

Links

Link-Wikipedia.png  Link-GoodReads.png  Link-TVTropes.png