The Book vs. The Movie – Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume

NB: I wrote this review originally as part of a program at my local library, comparing books to their screen adaptations (such a fun idea! Go to your local library, people!). The Margaret movie was new at the time and getting lots of praise from people whose opinion I respected, so I gave it a go and wasn’t disappointed as you’ll read below.

Recently my daughter Grace wrote her own review of Margaret (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6504194872) so we watched the film together, just like we read the book together so many years ago, snuggled up and enjoying each other’s company.

Margaret’s story has a timeless appeal – a kid uprooted from her comfortable, happy, home to a new place (New Jersey! Aggh!), just as she’s hitting middle school. My friends and I passed this book around when we were Margaret’s age, and the movie does a good job of introducing it to a new generation of readers.

Because the issues it raises are evergreen (puberty, crushes, mixed-religion families), the story feels fresh on screen without having to force many updates. I didn’t really picture the character of Sylvia Simon as Kathy Bates, but KB is a great actress and did Sylvia proud.

There’s a twist at the end of the movie that isn’t in the book in quite the same way, but it’s actually an improvement on the original (it adds a little more tension to an already emotional showdown).

The book, of course, gets at Margaret’s relationship with God and religion better than the movie. But even if you’re a super-fan of the book you won’t hate the film, and it would be the perfect gateway to introducing your own adolescent reader to the wonder that is the whole catalog of Judy Blume books.

Among many amazing insights, here are some things Grace had to say: “I kind of wish I could force my 11 year old self to recognize how much none of it matters now and how much I’d change as every new layer of me stacks on top of the older ones… rereading it makes it easier to be kind to the 11 year old version of me that still exists in my soul, and it makes it easier to be kind to the women in my life who are all just existing like me all of the time.

“Loved it, made me cry- obligatory 5 stars.”