There are a lot of things people don't tell you, and for the other stuff, they might be lying.

An only child, Margaret Simon is about to turn twelve years old, and no one has told her how stressful the next year of her life is going to be. It might not have started off so badly if her parents hadn't up and moved to New Jersey, away from her friends, school, and grandmother. Luckily, she meets Nancy Wheeler and two other girls, and they quickly form the PTS's --- Pre-Teen Sensations. Together, they talk about all things female, including boys, bras, periods, pimples, and boobs. In their Boy Books they keep track of which boy they most want to date. Their hilarious chant of "We must, we must increase our bust" is just one of the ways Margaret and friends deal with the pressure of growing up.

Through all the tough times, Margaret keeps up her conversations with God. She gets confused at times because she's able to feel God when she's alone but not when she's with other people. It doesn't matter what church she goes into --- Catholic, Presbyterian, Christian --- she can't feel him in that building. And it bothers her. The reason she's visiting so many different churches is that she feels the pressure to find God in religion and is trying to figure out what religion she's going to be.

Her honest conversations with God, combined with her various fears of growing up and not being normal, her close relationship with her grandmother, and the unique project their new teacher Miles J. Benedict assigns, make this a memorable read. For as often as people have tried to ban this book and others by this author, Judy Blume's ARE YOU THERE, GOD? IT'S ME, MARGARET. feels as timely today as it was when it was written in 1970.