Judy Blume Are You There God

How to Actually Get and Read Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret

The book has been in print continuously since 1970. You don't need to hunt for it. That said, there are enough versions out there that if you're not careful you'll end up with something that's missing the original cover art or the afterword Blume wrote later. I've bought this book at least a dozen times over the years for different people. Here's the breakdown on what to look for and where to find it without getting scammed.

Judy Blume Are You There God

The full title is Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. That question mark and comma matter when you're searching. If you just type "Are You There God" into Amazon or Google Books, you'll get results mixed in with prayer books and religious education materials. Add "Margaret" and "Judy Blume" to your search string and the right thing shows up first every time. The original edition was published by Alfred A. Knopf. That's the version most people want. It has the distinctive cover with the girl holding a notebook. Later paperback editions from Farrar Straus Giroux look similar but the paper quality is thinner and the typeset is slightly different. Neither is wrong. The text is identical.

Where to download or buy it

There is no legal free PDF of this book. Any site offering one is distributing a pirated copy. I'm not going to link to those. The book is cheap enough that there's no reason to go that route. A used hardcover in decent condition runs about eight to fifteen dollars on AbeBooks or ThriftBooks. A new paperback from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Bookshop.org will set you back eleven to fourteen dollars depending on which seller. The audiobook narrated by Julia Whelan is available through Audible and costs around twenty dollars or one credit if you have a subscription. It's excellent. Whelan does the voice work for the entire book and it sounds like a twelve-year-old actually talking, not a professional actor reading lines.

What makes this edition worth the trouble

The 1970 text is the one you want. Some later printings included a brief author's note that Blume added in the nineties. It's useful context but it doesn't change the story. I once had a reader complain that the book felt "different" because their copy had a newer introduction about the controversy that surrounded the original publication. The controversy was real and significant. The book was banned in several school districts for its frank discussion of menstruation, religion, and budding sexuality. That doesn't affect the narrative. It just means some libraries had it hidden behind the counter for a while. Here's something people miss: the book is written in first person with dated entries. Blume chose that structure deliberately. Margaret is keeping a private journal. The line breaks between entries create natural scene transitions without any narration telling you time has passed. When you're teaching this book or analyzing it, pay attention to how Blume uses those gaps. She doesn't explain what happens between entries. She trusts the reader to fill it in. That's why the book works for middle graders who are old enough to understand that life doesn't happen in neat chapters.

The religious subplot nobody talks about enough

Most readers remember the menstruation scene. They forget that the book is equally about a child trying to decide what she believes. Margaret's parents are secular. Her grandparents are Jewish. She visits both families and is quietly asked whether she's been confirmed or bar mitzvahed. She hasn't. She's eleven. She doesn't know yet. The phone call to God at the end is one of the most honest scenes in children's literature. Margaret decides she'll talk to God directly instead of going through any organized religion. She's not being rebellious. She's being practical. She's also being twelve. The line "God, this is Margaret. If you are there, please pick up the phone" is understated in a way that hits hard on the second read. I've had college students tell me they cried reading that passage. It's meant for kids but it isn't only for kids.

Common mistakes when recommending or teaching this book

Don't assign it to kids under ten without talking to parents first. The content warnings are legitimate. Menstruation is discussed matter-of-factly. A boy and girl kiss. There's a scene where Margaret wonders if she's fat. These aren't controversial for the reasons some parents think. They're honest. But some families genuinely don't want that conversation happening through a book at that age. That's their call. The book isn't inappropriate. It's just honest about growing up and that makes some people uncomfortable. Another mistake is treating the religious questions as secondary. They aren't. The book sits at equal weight on two tracks: bodily changes and spiritual searching. Blume never resolves either one. Margaret doesn't get her period by the end. She doesn't convert to Judaism or Christianity or anything else. She stays in the middle, which is where most twelve-year-olds actually are. That ambiguity is the point. A book that gave Margaret a neat answer would be lying.

Quick facts

Published: 1970 by Alfred A. Knopf
Pages: around 160 depending on edition
Target age: 8 to 12
Awards: Listed on the ALA's most challenged books multiple times, which is its own kind of award in America
Sequel: Superfudge, which features Margaret as a secondary character but is told from her brother's perspective If you want the text, buy a physical copy or the audiobook. The Kindle edition exists and works fine but the pagination throws off classroom discussions where everyone needs to be on the same page. That's a minor inconvenience. The book itself is worth the five dollars it costs to get the right version.