One of the books that I really remember reading as a kid was Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume.  It was an older, rather beat-up copy that my mom found at a garage sale, and the pages smelled funny, like books usually do when they spend whole days in the hot sun — but I devoured that book anyway.

I don’t think there’s anyone who doesn’t know about this book, as it has been challenged and/or banned a lot, and has therefore generated a lot of attention.  Just in case you don’t, though, it’s about a preteen girl who really wants to become a woman.  She and her friends do these silly exercises to get bigger boobs ("We must — we must — we must increase our busts") and compete to see who will get their period first.

I think it’s funny to compare this book to nowadays, when girls generally don’t want their periods.  Instead, with so many girls getting into school athletics, girls want to increase height.  In a modern version of this book, the girls would probably be doing grow taller exercises, instead of bust growing exercises.  And instead of "Are you there, God? It’s me, Margaret," the girl would be saying, "Please, God, tell me how to grow taller."

Good thing Judy Blume wrote this book when she did, because I just don’t think that subject would have quite the same impact as a bunch of girls experiencing the ups and downs of puberty!

Technorati Tags: Judy Blume, Are You There God It’s Me Margaret, preteen girl, challenged, banned, book, increase height, grow taller exercises, how to grow taller, puberty