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Chapter 16
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret., which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Puberty
Friendship, Fitting In, and Social Pressure
Religion
Family Conflict
Summary
Analysis
At the beginning of March, Nancy invites Margaret to join her and her family for a day in New York. Evan brings Moose. Margaret is thrilled to be in the car with Moose, though she unfortunately can’t look at him since he and Evan sit in the very back. They go to Radio City Music Hall, where the boys sit off by themselves. Then, they go to the Steak Place. After Nancy and Margaret order, they head to the restroom. As Margaret finishes, she hears Nancy moan and Nancy asks Margaret to get Mrs. Wheeler. Margaret asks what’s wrong, but Nancy cries and begs again for Margaret to get Mrs. Wheeler.
Margaret’s crush on Moose is getting more pronounced—but she still knows she has to act cool in front of Nancy, since Nancy dislikes Moose. It also seems imperative to her to look cool and mature in front of Moose. It’s unclear what’s happening to Nancy in the bathroom, but Nancy’s reaction suggests that it’s something pretty concerning.
Themes
Margaret races back to the table and fetches Mrs. Wheeler. Back in the bathroom, Nancy is sobbing that she’s afraid and needs help. Margaret has to crawl under the door to unlock the stall for Mrs. Wheeler, and then she stands by the sink. A few minutes later, Mrs. Wheeler hands Margaret some change to buy a pad from the dispenser; Nancy has her period. Margaret asks if Nancy always acts like this and Mrs. Wheeler explains that this is Nancy’s first time. Margaret is shocked—Nancy lied about getting her period.
Margaret purchases the pad and passes it to Mrs. Wheeler, who’s trying to console Nancy. Margaret almost wishes she hadn’t found out about Nancy’s lie. After a bit, Nancy and Mrs. Wheeler come out of the stall. Mrs. Wheeler tells Nancy to freshen up and heads back to the table. Margaret asks Nancy if she’s okay, and Nancy begs Margaret to not tell—she’d die if everyone else knew. She insists she thought she’d already had her period; she didn’t make it up. Margaret promises not to tell.
It's a mark of Margaret’s maturity that even though she’s upset with Nancy for lying, she still asks if Nancy is okay. She recognizes how emotionally difficult this was for Nancy. For Nancy, though, Margaret finding out she lied poses a major threat to her power in the friend group. Now, Margaret has information that could damage Nancy’s reputation.
Themes
The steaks are being served just as Margaret and Nancy get back to the table. Margaret ends up sitting next to Moose. He smells nice and they touch hands a few times, since he’s left-handed and Margaret is right-handed. Margaret knows he’s number one in her Boy Book, even if it’s a secret. Since Margaret can only finish half of her steak, the Wheelers take the rest home in a doggie bag (Margaret doesn’t tell the waitress they don’t have a dog). Then, at home, Margaret tells God that Nancy is a fake. Margaret isn’t going to be able to trust her again, and she’s going to let God tell her if she’s normal or not. She’ll wait for a sign—her only request is to not get her period at school, since she doesn’t want to have to tell Mr. Benedict.
Margaret starts to feel better about her crush on Moose as they have this positive experience sitting at the table together. It also helps that now, Margaret knows she doesn’t need to trust Nancy’s opinion on things—Nancy lies, after all. When Margaret turns to God and tells him about her evening, it shows again how fulfilling and meaningful her relationship with God is. It doesn’t seem to matter that she doesn’t attend a church; talking to God in this way gives Margaret a safe space to work through her hopes and fears.
Themes
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