A Wrinkle in Time

by alleycat13
  • October 22, 2007
  • Article / Essay
  • Review

I haven't seen a review for this book, which I found strange, so I made one. It seems fitting. Madeleine L'Engle, the author, recently passed away on September 6th at the age of 88.

Here's the intro for the book's article on Wikipedia. It kinda gives you an idea of its achievements. (Don't the best books always get rejected in the beginning? Man, I feel sorry for those publishers... :wink: )

A Wrinkle in Time is a science fantasy[1] novel by Madeleine L'Engle, written between 1959 and 1960[2] and published in 1962 after at least 26 rejections by publishers[3] because it was, in L'Engle's words, "too different". The book went on to win a Newbery Medal, Sequoyah Book Award, and Lewis Carroll Shelf Award, and was runner-up for the Hans Christian Andersen Award.[4] It is the first in L'Engle's series of books about the Murry and O'Keefe families.


This story follows the adventure of Meg, her younger brother Charles Wallace, and a friend named Calvin O'Keefe. Meg's father was a scientist for the American government. Several years ago he was sent on a secret mission and never returned. This disappearance wounds Meg so that she is prone to outburst and rebellion, and Charles Wallace talks to no one outside the family.

One day, after meeting Calvin, Charles Wallace leads them to an abandoned shack where Mrs Whatsit, Mrs who, and Mrs Which reside. These three ladies are in fact immortal beings who take the three children on a quest to rescue their father and save a planet from the growing Darkness known as IT.

Of course, I can't ruin the story. I'll just say that the characters are real and touchable, the reader feels with and for them. The places, 2d planets and paraidises, are unforgettable. And, this story is in no way generic. It is original, engaging, and, if you read it, it will travel with you forever.

There are religious overtones in A Wrinkle in Time. Here, another Wikipedia quote.

L'Engle's liberal Christianity is unsettling to some. This novel is on the American Library Association list of the 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990–2000 at number 22.[6] Reasons given include the book's references to witches and crystal balls[7] (although the characters are not in fact witches, and the crystal ball is a science fictional one), the claim that it "challenges religious beliefs"[8], and the listing of Jesus "with the names of great artists, philosophers, scientists, and religious leaders.


Along with the spiritual perspective, the book contains several interesting scientific aspects.

1. Computers. They were not invented at the time of the novel's publication, but in the book, while confronting IT, the children see rows and rows of machines, computing numbers and calculations. Computers.

2. Tesseract. This refers to the theory of traveling almost instantaneously to another place in the universe. The dimension of time is bunched together, and, instead of traveling the entire line, the traveler has only to go from end to end. By creating "a wrinkle in time", the children are transported to other planets. This is a conceivable idea of physics, but, is currently only in fiction.

Finally, I love this book. It comforts me and when I read it, it says that hope and love can defeat evil. So, go read it!

Comments & reviews · 18
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Dreamwriter
Comment
Dreamwriter commented · Fri Mar 14, 2008 11:26 pm

It was cool. I liked it. I read it a few years ago and I remember thinking "I love this author's imagination."

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canislupis
Comment
canislupis commented · Sun Feb 17, 2008 2:32 am

I found it a bit dry in some parts, and hard to get through. Still, she is an amazing writer, and the idea was really unique. I highly recommend this book and the other ones in the series.

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alleycat13
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alleycat13 commented · Fri Nov 16, 2007 11:23 pm

MadHatter wrote:I like that book. It's much better than the other ones.


I haven't read the "other ones". Why didn't you like them?

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MadHatter
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MadHatter commented · Fri Nov 16, 2007 2:33 am

I like that book. It's much better than the other ones.

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alleycat13
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alleycat13 commented · Sun Nov 11, 2007 5:03 pm

Sumi H. Inkblot wrote:[s]Eragon is the only exception to that.[/s] :P

Lol, agreed.

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Sumi H. Inkblot
Review
Sumi H. Inkblot wrote a review · Sat Nov 10, 2007 8:52 pm

alleycat13 wrote:
OnCeUpOnAtIm3Xo wrote:I don't know, that was a while ago, i should read it again.


Everyone, and every book, deserves a second chance. :wink:

[s]Eragon is the only exception to that.[/s] :P

"A Wrinkle in Time" is lovely. And that's all I can say -- everyone else has beat me to it. :P

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alleycat13
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alleycat13 commented · Sat Nov 10, 2007 8:45 pm

I was rather freaked out by it
It is different, twit, but that's what makes it so good.

Like I told OnCeUpOnAtIm3Xo, give it another try. I'm 99.9% sure you'll like it. 8)

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Twit
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Twit commented · Sat Nov 10, 2007 8:03 pm

I read it ages ago, and to be frank, I was rather freaked out by it. Maybe I should try reading it again, though.

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Audy
Review
Audy wrote a review · Sat Nov 10, 2007 6:34 pm

I remember reading it when I was little and then stopping about half-way and never finishing it, no matter how much I went back to it. I don't know what it was about it that I didn't like, but when I finally finished it I was just so astounded by it, it was so beautifully written. I admire Madeleine L'Engle.

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Leja
Review
Leja wrote a review · Sat Nov 10, 2007 6:08 pm

I adore this book. I read it first when I was little, and it took me a while to figure out what the wrinkle in time referred to, lol. Like all my favorite books, it's something I can come back to again and again, and always find something new.

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alleycat13
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alleycat13 commented · Tue Nov 06, 2007 1:07 am

OnCeUpOnAtIm3Xo wrote:I don't know, that was a while ago, i should read it again.


Everyone, and every book, deserves a second chance. :wink:

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onceuponatim3xo
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onceuponatim3xo commented · Mon Nov 05, 2007 9:32 pm

I thought that it was.... different. I really liked it though, it was written beautifully, but if it weren't, I'd probably think it was a little too strange for my taste. I don't know, that was a while ago, i should read it again.

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lyrical_sunshine
Review
lyrical_sunshine wrote a review · Sun Oct 28, 2007 4:22 am

alleycat13 wrote:
they actually strengthened my faith, they didn't really challenge it.


Oh, I certainly agree with you. This story doesn't challenge Christianity as much as it does Orthodox rules-->putting other philosophers on level with Jesus, using "magic" and "witches" (which, they definitely were not)ect.

Some people are very narrow-minded. I love Madeleine's views though.


absolutely. they're allegorical. they're not encouraging kids to go call up demons and dead people. *rolls eyes*

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thewonderworldofnight
Review
thewonderworldofnight wrote a review · Sun Oct 28, 2007 1:56 am

Hmmm...I tried reading it a few years back, but maybe I just wasn't ready for it...maybe I'll try it again ;-)

Isn't it sad when such good writers die in present time? I mean, Madeline L'Engel and Robert Jordan in one year...and I might be forgetting others...

~Deoris

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alleycat13
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alleycat13 commented · Thu Oct 25, 2007 1:25 am

they actually strengthened my faith, they didn't really challenge it.


Oh, I certainly agree with you. This story doesn't challenge Christianity as much as it does Orthodox rules-->putting other philosophers on level with Jesus, using "magic" and "witches" (which, they definitely were not)ect.

Some people are very narrow-minded. I love Madeleine's views though.

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lyrical_sunshine
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lyrical_sunshine commented · Wed Oct 24, 2007 5:33 pm

i LOVE A Wrinkle in Time. and I am a Christian who LOVES a Wrinkle in Time. I thought they were wonderful books. they actually strengthened my faith, they didn't really challenge it. *shrug*

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Cade
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Cade commented · Tue Oct 23, 2007 1:43 am

I am a fan. *huggles A Wrinkle In Time*



"Do not try to be pretty. You weren't meant to be pretty; you were meant to burn down the earth and graffiti the sky. Don't let anyone ever simplify you to just 'pretty'"
— Suzanne Rivard