Why you can trust Sky NewsWhile many of her books were restricted in America after they were published, here in the UK, at our secondary school in Leicestershire at least, we had the thrill of reading her words during library sessions and rainy break times; the spines cracked and many pages dog-eared by those who had discovered the best bits before us.Abby Ryder Fortson stars in Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
While our sex education classes sternly taught us how not to get pregnant, Blume's stories helped us learn the realities of first sexual encounters and navigating those awkward formative years. She understood the worries and complexities of being a teenager, but treated us like grown-ups. When you look at the biggest issues in Margaret's life - menstruation, bra size and confusion about religion, all typical and really rather innocent preoccupations for preadolescent girls - it is quite hard to believe the censorship surrounding the book in America.
The film has been widely praised by reviewers, which is no mean feat for an adaptation of a much-loved text. And Blume herself is happy, telling Variety:"I may be the only book writer who has ever said that the movie is better than my book, and I mean it."As well as learning about sex, Are You There God?, as the title would suggest, also tackles the issue of faith; Margaret's mother is Christian and her father is Jewish, and she is raised without an affiliation to either.