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A Wrinkle in Time (Time #1)

4.04 of 5 stars 4.04 · rating details · 315,185 ratings · 10,640 reviews

Fifty years ago, Madeleine L’Engle introduced the world to A Wrinkle in Time and the wonderful and unforgettable characters Meg and Charles Wallace Murry, and their friend Calvin O’Keefe. When the children learn that Mr. Murry has been captured by the Dark Thing, they time travel to Camazotz, where they must face the leader IT in the ultimate battle between good and evil—a

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Mass Market Paperback, 190 pages

Published October 31st 1988 by Bantam Books (first published March 1st 1976)

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May 27, 2007 Sara rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

the book that first inspired me to tentatively pick up my pencil and my marbled black-and-white composition notebook (remember those?) and write (in 4th grade). the influence l'engle herself and her work have had on my life cannot be understated. i met her many many years later, during college, when she was well into her 80s, but she was exactly as i pictured her-- spirited, engaging, challenging. when i (very nervously and shyly) told her that she gave me my first inspiration to write, she look...more

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May 27, 2010 RandomAnthony rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So 41 of my goodreads friends have read A Wrinkle in Time, but I never picked up the book until these past few weeks. I’m not sure how this novel and I slipped past each other in my youth. I’m guessing that since the main character was a girl I wasn’t that interested in middle school and when I grew older the science fiction elements didn’t appear strong enough to snag my interest. Oh well. Last weekend I bought A Wrinkle in Time at a Borders near the Seattle airport. I wanted the novel to get m...more So 41 of my goodreads friends have read A Wrinkle in Time, but I never picked up the book until these past few weeks. I’m not sure how this novel and I slipped past each other in my youth. I’m guessing that since the main character was a girl I wasn’t that interested in middle school and when I grew older the science fiction elements didn’t appear strong enough to snag my interest. Oh well. Last weekend I bought A Wrinkle in Time at a Borders near the Seattle airport. I wanted the novel to get me through the grueling twelve hour journey (whoo, flight delays and pre-dawn connecting flights!) home, and I thank Ms. L’Engle for the perfect story for early hour near-hallucinatory reading in the middle of the Minneapolis International promenade.

What makes this book so good? First off, A Wrinkle in Time works under the assumption that kids are smart enough either to grasp the nuances of some fairly deep physics or, if they don’t get every detail, they’ll flow with the storyline anyway. One woman I know said, “I didn’t understand all the science when I was a kid but I still loved it.” That makes sense to me. Hell, I didn’t understand all the science now, and I’m (supposedly) a grown-up. L’Engle doesn’t just say, “And then they traveled time.” She tries to explain how time travel might work. I wonder if so many kids, especially girls, liked this novel because they felt L’Engle respected them as intelligent readers.

Second, A Wrinkle in Time frames Meg’s personality as multi-faceted and more complex than just about any I’ve encountered in YA literature. In fact, reading this novel I couldn’t help but consider her a template on which some more modern coming-of-age characters (think Harry Potter) were modeled. She’s brave but doubts her own strength in an tangible, authentic manner. And her relationship with Calvin is sweet without getting all High School Musical.

Third, the evil in this novel is damn scary and the darkness pure and substantial. We’re talking elemental, unadulterated evil that manifests itself in the fear and conformity of those who break down in its presence. And the characters’ encounters with this evil feel real. The climatic scenes are perhaps slightly too swift but the nuances of the battle fit well with a remarkably philosophical (and Christian, but in a positive way) resolution of good and evil’s conflict.

If my friends’ reviews are any indication a lot of smart girls who turned into strong, intelligent women grew up under the spell of A Wrinkle in Time. I feel like I know them a little better after reading this novel, and I can see them all, around age ten, turning the book’s pages in their rooms, feeling their own strength and potential. And that’s damn cool, really, don’t you think, a whole generation of girls reading A Wrinkle in Time? Maybe little girls across America are googling “tesseract” as we speak…

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May 29, 2007 Michael rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens-lit, sf-fantasy-horror, classics, bullshit

[Later note: Had discussion with author about this book and why it means so much to so many people—specifically women. Also read excellent NYTimes piece about the fiftieth anniversary.

Some books are powerful for their readers because of their context; in this case, the utter lack in popular kid's literature of 1962 of characters like Meg—real girls, who cared about atypical subjects like math, who were unashamed to be other than pink-wearing cheerleaders. To find a powerful role model in a nove...more

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Aug 16, 2007 Savannah Nicole rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Children, teens, YA, readers

Shelves: majorinfluences

Madeleine L'Engle is a Christian writer, more so even than C. S. Lewis in my opinion. However, while the influence of Christian Theology (and in later books, biblical history) is woven throughly through out all the books in this series, it is not offensive to non-Christian readers. I am one of those.

To be completely honest, when my mother first read me this when I was about 7 years old, I was totally oblivious to the influence L'Engle's faith has on her writing. It wasn't until I was twelve or...more

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Apr 10, 2012 Jim rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone with an open mind

Recommended to Jim by: Catie

Shelves: kids-miscellaneous, science-fiction, classics, kindle-books, favorites

4/10/12 Okay, this is the longer review. The added bit follows the dashed line ---

I learned about this outstanding book and its brilliant author from
Catie’s wonderful review and blog post. Yes, I should have known about it many years ago, but this was a gap in my experience. To make up for lost time, I now have the boxed-set series of 5 books for my family.

This is a wonderful adventure story for children - one that speaks to them as adults, and conveys a bundle of important life-concepts witho...more

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May 29, 2007 Jessica rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2007

"It was a dark and stormy night."

After reading on a friend’s blog that she had recently read this book, I was tempted to do a re-read myself. I was sure I had read it at some point in my childhood, and remember finding it magical and engrossing. So when I came across the book in the thrift store for 99 cents, I couldn’t resist.

Once I started reading it, though, it became clear to me that I had probably never read this book before in my life. Not one thing about it seemed familiar to me, except...more "It was a dark and stormy night."

After reading on a friend’s blog that she had recently read this book, I was tempted to do a re-read myself. I was sure I had read it at some point in my childhood, and remember finding it magical and engrossing. So when I came across the book in the thrift store for 99 cents, I couldn’t resist.

Once I started reading it, though, it became clear to me that I had probably never read this book before in my life. Not one thing about it seemed familiar to me, except maybe for the centaur-like creatures (but that could be because the book cover features this image). Even though I would have read this more than a decade ago, I still think I would have remembered something about it (for example, I remember aspects of Maniac Magee quite clearly, and I read that ages ago). So I’m not quite sure where I got the idea that this book was fantastical and wonderful, but those were my expectations going in.

I’ll admit I was a little let down. I did keep in mind while reading that it’s a children’s book first and foremost, but I couldn’t help but feel that it was a little disheveled in places. I loved that the protagonist is female, and quite ordinary (braces, mousy brown hair, glasses), even if she was slightly annoying at times (I imagine all 14-year-olds can be annoying). Time travel is always cool, and the unfamiliar planets (especially Ixchel with its sightless, faceless creatures) were incredibly fun to imagine. The crazy Mrs Ws were very interesting, and if their stories are continued in further books in the quartet, I’d be all over that.

The story itself is great – the classic battle of good versus evil in a sci-fi / fantasy setting. The manifestation of evil as a dark cloud reminded me of The Nothing from The NeverEnding Story (loosely). The themes of individuality, love, and acceptance carried strongly throughout; even though they were almost shoved in the reader’s face, I’m ok with that since it is a children’s story.

What I didn’t like, primarily, was the character of Charles Wallace. For some reason, he really creeped me out. I understand he is supposed to be “gifted,” but his words and actions seemed far too adult for a 5-year-old. I also wasn’t a huge fan of the religious references made in several places in the story. Too many mentions of “God” turn me off. However, I am willing to admit that it was quite daring of L’Engle to mix religion with some pretty heavy pagan aspects, like witches and crystal balls.

Overall, I did enjoy the story and definitely appreciate the themes and values, I was just turned off a little as an adult reader. I also spotted the aforementioned Maniac Magee in said thrift store, but I’m hesitant to re-read that book because I’m worried it might not be the same to me now as it was when I was young.(less)

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Nov 22, 2007 Keith Mukai rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: children, middle schoolers, adults

This is a short, easy read that rates a 4.4 on the Flesch-Kincaid reading index (meaning that it requires a 4th-5th grade reading level). But that's based strictly on the sentence structure, vocabulary, paragraph size, etc.

What the stats don't cover is the depth of feeling and the profound scope and meaning in this book. Madeleine L'Engle's sentences may be rather simple but her notions of good, evil, love, and devotion are taken to a cosmic level (literally). This isn't mere sci-fi or fantasy;...more

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Jun 08, 2007 stephanie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: good-more-than-once, young-adult, would-rec, absolutely-must-read, childhood-favorites

"it was a dark and stormy night . . ."

and so begins one of the best stories ever with one of the most improbably wonderful first lines. i read this first in fourth grade, at the pressure of my mother, who insisted i would love it despite the fact i was in a phase of "anything not based on history or about living in the woods/island/frozen tundra alone sucks!!" so it took me a while to pick it up. then i simply couldn't put it down. i have probably read this book upwards of fifty times, and it ne...more

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Dec 06, 2009 Elizabeth rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: girls who like math

Shelves: tam-lin, vamps-and-other-mythical-beasts, 2009, in-by-of-the-americas, reviewed, fantasy-sci-fi, overshare

I have a brother. I have three, actually. Two are older and pretty well adjusted (well, we'll say that for the sake of argument here) so they won't get a lot of time in this story, and I have a younger one. He's special. We could tell from a early age that he was smart - really smart - and creative and not as into sports as the other boys. We lived in a nice suburban town where my mother seemed to be the only one without a father in the house, and that made us different. She wasn't into the same...more I have a brother. I have three, actually. Two are older and pretty well adjusted (well, we'll say that for the sake of argument here) so they won't get a lot of time in this story, and I have a younger one. He's special. We could tell from a early age that he was smart - really smart - and creative and not as into sports as the other boys. We lived in a nice suburban town where my mother seemed to be the only one without a father in the house, and that made us different. She wasn't into the same things as the other mothers either, and that set us apart too.

When I was little, I used to get picked on at school. Just because. Kids are like that. Whether it was that my family was strange or I was strange (yup, nerd who liked math), or whatever. It was a difficult time. I read a lot and sulked in my room and made things difficult for my family and hoped my father would come home and make everything right and I hung out with my little brother and loved him because he was my brother. He also drove me a little crazy, because, well, he was so much smarter than everyone else, and frustrated by it.

He couldn't read minds though. And while I did write a series of short stories that are safely in a landfill somewhere failing to decompose because the landfill is too packed and is contributing to global warming and - oops, did I add some completely irrelevant aside into my story? Where was I? While I did write a series of short stories about a girl who seems to be alone for no apparent reason and has to wander through the woods and overcome hurdles in this quest to find/save her father, where the story strangely ended, I never, ever sent her little brother with her.

I'm not *quite* comparing my childhood scrawling to A Wrinkle in Time, but... This is a strange book. Strange in the way the family that is different from all the others in the subdivision is strange. It breaks all sorts of rules that I have always believed should better followed in young adult literature (actually all literature) such as not starting the book with "it was a dark and stormy night." Also to be avoided: (1) quests for missing parents; (2) rest stops with strange old wise people who live in remote locations; (3) adults who appear terribly competent and have special powers but for some reason only the child (or children) with nothing but her brains and love can save the day in the end; and (4) nerdy girl meets cool older boy who falls in love with her within seconds of meeting.

Somehow, this strange book succeeds where all the other books that have broken those rules fails. I may write a wish-fulfillment story with all those elements, but it doesn't turn out like this. It fulfills all those desires for love and understanding and acceptance that sulky young girls have. Like the day you go over to the house of that strange family and you discover that they are cool and interesting and you are accepted there in a way you hadn't been elsewhere.

I'm not sure why it works. Possibly, because so many little girls that read think of themselves as nerdy and strange and into math and sulky and different, so to see themselves in a book. I felt exactly like Meg. I knew her instantly. This makes the book impossible not to love if you read it at the right age. Reading it now, it doesn't work nearly as well. Now I see rules being broken and wondering if the little brother is truly realistic (he's supposed to be five but he speaks like he's at least, well, thirty). It's wish-fulfillment in the best way because I could see myself in it. L'Engle takes me on a journey that I could imagine myself. It wasn't too difficult. It was possible and so cool to see a smart girl be successful. And, most importantly, it shows me how parents don't always make everything right. They have BIG, EPIC failures just when you need them, and it isn't the end of the world (although in this case it was pretty close).

For all that, this wasn't and isn't my favorite L'Engle story. I remember reading this book as a girl. I was 11. I had all those similarities with Meg. I liked it. It's fine. My favorites were A Ring of Endless Light and Camilla. Camilla is about a teenager and she lives in New York city and she's so cool and her parents are a complete mess, and she has no younger brother. I hate to say it but if you had given my younger self the option to hang with Meg or Camilla. I would have picked Camilla every time. As great as it is to find yourself, or someone very like yourself, in a book, and how cool the strange family down the street turns out to be; it doesn't make you give up the longing to be one of the cool kids, after all.(less)

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Oct 18, 2011 Sita Sargeant rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone

Recommended to Sita by: My Dad

Shelves: classic, favourites, own, reviewed

I really don't know how to review this book. I read it a while a go and it was and still is one of my dads favourites. Basic Thoughts: An intriguing story with a unique plot. This is my dad's favourites and I recently read it again, it's a really good read. I recommend it to anyone who knows how to read and even if you don't (have someone read it to you), this is one of those classics you must read before you die.

It is one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read and it is well wor...more

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Mar 21, 2008 Bryon rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I started reading "A Wrinkle In Time" when I was 8 or 10. I say started because I never finished it. I can't remember exactly why, but I think it kind of scared the crap out of me. Now, 15 or 17 years later, I've read it again (this time the whole thing) and there's really nothing scary at all about it. It's possible that, as a kid, I was somehow relating this book to the terribly scary Disney movie "Something Wicked This Way Comes". Again, I don't know why.

Whatever the reason for my fears, the...more I started reading "A Wrinkle In Time" when I was 8 or 10. I say started because I never finished it. I can't remember exactly why, but I think it kind of scared the crap out of me. Now, 15 or 17 years later, I've read it again (this time the whole thing) and there's really nothing scary at all about it. It's possible that, as a kid, I was somehow relating this book to the terribly scary Disney movie "Something Wicked This Way Comes". Again, I don't know why.

Whatever the reason for my fears, the book is not spectacular. Maybe I can't see it now being older and not reading through the eyes of a child, but I can't understand how it won the John Newberry Medal. The witches were plastic and seemed to serve little purpose; the bad guy, a concept embodied in a shadow, had no motivation (if you want to read about true darkness for the sake of darkness/nothing for the sake of nothing, pick up Michael Ende's "The Neverending Story"); and the father, who seems to have no backbone and no sense of decency when it comes to saving his son. It has been said that the father character is an excellent tool in showing children that parents do not always have the answers, that they are, in fact, fallible and (God forbid) imperfect. But it's so much more than that. He comes across as weak, helpless, foolish, and even heartless at times. If you want to write a story where a child finds out that his/her parents aren't perfect, you don't have to make the parental figure a cold, bumbling idiot. Unless that's what you're going for. And I certainly don't think that L'Engle was. But all that aside, why would you even want to tell that story? Part of the beauty of being a child is you get to hold onto the illusion that mom and dad are Superman. Why ruin that? Granted, some kids live in terrible families, but there are better ways to write about those scenarios. This is not it.

I wanted to give this book 2 stars but decided that, because of my jaded, critical age I cannot judge too harshly. Plus, I did like the savant character of Charles Wallace. He was cute. As was the love that Meg and him shared. Calvin, on the other hand, was a complete throwaway character.

If I had kids, would I push this book on them? No. If they picked it off my bookshelf and started reading it, I wouldn't stop them. But I'm not about to recommend it to anyone young or old. Unless it's too ask that person to help me understand what the big deal is.(less)

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Mar 10, 2010 Eh?Eh! rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: tandy, dear-diary-what-book, goodreader-gave-to-me, babble-added

Like many others, I read this in grade school and loved it. I think I read it several times. By now I'd forgotten every name, every place, every plot point. Every single detail except the radiant warmth I'd felt for this book, such that if it was mentioned I would immediately pipe up that I loved it.

I began reading this the night I received it (thank you, book fairy!, hugs to youuuuuuu!), spine curled into a C in my beloved reading chair, inviting the back hump so common in Korean women of older...more

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Nov 21, 2008 Ron rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, science-fiction, young, christian-fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I loved it! It was so awful, I loved it.

"It was a dark and stormy night." Honest to goodness, that's the opening line.

Written almost fifty years ago, Wrinkle is a cliche within a cliche, but it's not entirely L'Engle's fault because (despite that century-old opening line) much of what she wrote was old and fresh.

As fantasy, it's great. As a children's book , it won the John Newbury Medal (what can I say?). But as science fiction, it stinks. That should not keep anyone from reading and enjoying...more I loved it! It was so awful, I loved it.

"It was a dark and stormy night." Honest to goodness, that's the opening line.

Written almost fifty years ago, Wrinkle is a cliche within a cliche, but it's not entirely L'Engle's fault because (despite that century-old opening line) much of what she wrote was old and fresh.

As fantasy, it's great. As a children's book , it won the John Newbury Medal (what can I say?). But as science fiction, it stinks. That should not keep anyone from reading and enjoying it, but know what you're getting into. This is like C. S. Lewis's space series.

L'Engle obviously slept through high school science. Her physics is all fantasy, though her explanation of "tessering" works better for me than flying through worm holes and other faster-than-light scenarios. Her chemistry and biology are so wrong they add to the humor. The chapters on the Ixchel's sightless natives illustrate the point.

"Aunt Beast" acknowledges their sun has "rays" which cause plants to grow, but persists in thinking seeing is quaint and unnecessary. Then Meg realizes that everything is dull and gray because it doesn't need to be colorful, since the natives can't see it. I'm not making this up. (A quibble: Aunt Beast uses the word "see" for understanding, but later comments what a curious concept seeing is. If you don't understand it literally, how do you understand it a a metaphor?)

L'Engle didn't seem to understand that color, like taste and smell, is inherent in objects, whether someone sees, or tastes or smells the object. If a tree falls in the forest, sound is generated whether anyone hears it or not. (Yes, yes, flowers and fruit are specialized to aid their propagation, which supports my contention because some of the "color" of flowers is in wavelengths invisible to the human eye, but easily seen by the target insects.) I suspect that any carbon-based plant processing photons from a main-sequence yellow sun to make sugar will do so with chlorophyll, therefore will be green--whether anyone is around to recognize it or not. Iron oxide will be red. (Hence our neighboring "red" planet.) White light impacting falling water droplets produces a rainbow. Certainly different creatures may not see the colors we see, but (philosophically speaking) we don't know that we "see" the same colors each other sees.

Despite all those groaners, an absolutely smashing story, with iconic (if now stereotypical) characters. It's like watching original "Star Trek" episodes from about that same time. They're cliched, but it's not all their fault. Some of it--less in the case of Star Trek--wasn't a cliche...yet.

And the anguish Meg feels is honest and real. And the solution rings true.

By all means read and enjoy.(less)

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Oct 30, 2007 Sarah Null rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: american-as-apple-pie, childrens, newbery-medal, magic-and-sci-fi, owned

I read this when I was in fifth or sixth grade and I loved it. Re-reading it as an adult, I realized there was no way my eleven-or-twelve-year-old brain could have fully appreciated this masterpiece. After all, I am no Charles Wallace. Sure, the book has fantasy elements like travel through time and space, magical beings, and other worlds, but this is so much more than a children's hero tale. This is a beautiful book about love, good over evil, being different, and what happens when we realize o...more

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Mar 19, 2008 Ryan Ford rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Wow! I forgot what a great book this is. I read the four Madeline L'Engle books when I was a kid, but it was C. S. Lewis that I read over and over again. "A Winkle in Time" is really a classic piece of children's literature though, and deserves much attention.

To all of the normal readers out there, that's all I have to say. Read it again! It will only take you about two hours or so, and it is well worth it.

To the Lost Book Club peoples:

There are a few things in this novel that might reflect on...more

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Jun 22, 2007 Khalid rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: already-read

A Wrinkle in Time is a children's fantasy novel with a significant element of science fiction; its thoughtful ideas, intriguing plot and amusing conversation style make it enjoyable to read; yet, it often borders on being overdone.

The novel tells us about Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin, and there travel in the universe in order to rescue Meg and Charles Wallace's father. Just like every rescue novel, this was not exactly easy.

The novel was generally good; however, it had some problems in my o...more

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Oct 23, 2009 Jeanette rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: all-fiction, fantasy, science-fiction, young-adult-books

I do not like Meg. I really do not like Meg. She's a stubborn, whiny little brat.

I wasn't all that into this story until they got to the planet of Camazotz. Then it becomes sort of like a kids' book version of Brave New World, with "IT" instead of "soma."
"On Camazotz we are all happy because we are all alike. Differences create problems."
"We let no one suffer. It is so much kinder simply to annihilate anyone who is ill."

I'm not terribly wild about the in-your-face religious references in the...more

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Jun 26, 2009 Wealhtheow rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: kids from 9-12

Shelves: fantasy, ya

Meg has glasses, braces, an incredible talent for math, and absolutely no patience for bs or mediocrity. She protects her genius little brother, Charles Wallace, against the cruel taunts of the villagers. And she gets into fights over her parents' reputation on a weekly basis.
She is pretty much the best character in the entire world. I would read a novel about her even if it were about the mundanities of village life. Instead she, Charles Wallace, and her schoolmate Calvin (smart, handsome, pop...more

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Feb 10, 2012 Cary rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned

Before anything else, I'd like to remind myself why I've been really meaning to read this book. This a Newberry medal award winner in 1963, and since most of the Newberry Medal books that I've read were really good, i assumed I will also find this one entertaining.

However, contrary to my assumption, I did not find it as entertaining although I really appreciate how it was written in such a way that you will really have to pay attention it and exercise your imagination to the highest level while...more

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Nov 14, 2011 Jay F rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult-children

I seemed to have missed this book when my daughter was at the age to have read it. She tells me she did read it in her youth, but it was not one of the books we shared at the time of her reading. Not having read it to her, I knew the title but not the book’s content.

This year for my twin granddaughters' 9th birthday, their father bought the book for Hannah who, of the two girls, seems the more steadfast reader. Hannah suggested that we read it together. Her proposal: She would read a chapter alo...more

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Apr 13, 2008 Jill rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This classic novel for middle graders begins on "a dark and stormy night." Meg Murry, her younger brother Charles Wallace, and her mother, a scientist, are in the kitchen having a midnight snack when a strange visitor shows up at their door. Soon after, this visitor, Mrs. Whatist, takes Meg, Charles Wallace, and their schoolmate, Calvin, on a dangerous journey to save Meg and Charles Wallace's father, a scientist who has been missing for over a year.

A Wrinkle in Time has been a favorite of child...more This classic novel for middle graders begins on "a dark and stormy night." Meg Murry, her younger brother Charles Wallace, and her mother, a scientist, are in the kitchen having a midnight snack when a strange visitor shows up at their door. Soon after, this visitor, Mrs. Whatist, takes Meg, Charles Wallace, and their schoolmate, Calvin, on a dangerous journey to save Meg and Charles Wallace's father, a scientist who has been missing for over a year.

A Wrinkle in Time has been a favorite of children for many years. Because I never read it as a child, I'm not sure if my opinion about it would be different. For example, I recently reread The Chronicles of Narnia, a series that I read multiple times when I was a child. While I observed some shortcomings in the books and was bothered by the religious undertones I never seemed to notice when I was a child, I thoroughly enjoyed rereading them as an adult and getting reacquainted with familiar characters and plots.

Maybe I would have felt the same with A Wrinkle in Time. However, after reading it for the first time as an adult, it was just okay.

I loved the characters…kind hearted Meg, the exceptionally bright Charles Wallace, down-to-earth Calvin, and the quirky Mrs. Whatist. The plot full of magic, space travel, suspense and mystery is good enough to get a child hooked on sci-fi/fantasy. The dark and frightening climax when Meg is fighting "It", the disembodied brain, will keep kids on the edge of their seats, and I think many will be eager to read the other four novels in the quintet.

What bothered me though was the lack of detail I would have liked to have seen more of. I wanted to know more about Mrs. Whatist and company and more about Aunt Beast, the furry creature that saves Meg's life. I would have liked to have seen the aftermath of Meg's defeat of "It" on Camazotz. Were the people freed? Was "It" destroyed? Granted, this may be revealed in a later novel in the series, but I did wish that there was a little more background information.

The other thing I had a hard time getting past was L'Engle's religious messaging. I admit that I'm uber-sensitive about having religious messaging in children's books that aren't advertised as religious-themed books. I feel that it alienates children of different faiths and is unnecessary in mainstream stories like this, especially when it adds nothing to the storyline. This has been a contentious issue since the book's publication, and L'Engle herself has always claimed that she talks about faith, not religion. I remain skeptical about that.

But religion aside, I do think it's a book that many children will enjoy. Because there are some frightening situations, I do not recommend it as a read aloud to younger children. I think grades 5-7 would be the appropriate age range.
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Feb 10, 2008 Eileen Dougherty rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: child-at-heart

As a child, this book opened up new worlds to me, quite literally almost, that I had never imagined. Madeline L'Engle became a goddess who guided me through the imagination using science as a light. Not that I grew up to be a rocket scientist or anything, but this book really electrifies the mind with its possibilities and bends preconceivced thought regarding reality, devotion and love. Last year, I read it again to my son. It was a new discovery to re-read it as an adult as well as being able...more

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Nov 25, 2007 Jennifer Barnes rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After finishing the book several days ago and thinking about it a lot since putting it down, what stands out most to me is L'Engle's bold choice in 1962 to publish a book with so many strong female characters. In that early post-50's era in America, most women stayed at home to raise their children and did not work outside the home. Mrs. Murry, however, is a brilliant scientist who ponders some of the universe's most challenging questions in what appears to be an equal partnership with her husba...more After finishing the book several days ago and thinking about it a lot since putting it down, what stands out most to me is L'Engle's bold choice in 1962 to publish a book with so many strong female characters. In that early post-50's era in America, most women stayed at home to raise their children and did not work outside the home. Mrs. Murry, however, is a brilliant scientist who ponders some of the universe's most challenging questions in what appears to be an equal partnership with her husband, such as in their joint consideration of whether tesseracts exist. She is also a loving mother who cares for her children while keeping something back for herself -- an important lesson for girls, particularly, who are frequently raised with the idea that Prince Charming will come along and sweep them away to a life of happiness if they only give themselves over completely. Mrs. Who, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Which are not necessarily female in their true
essence (hence the description of Mrs. Whatsit's transformation on Uriel into a centaur-like creature with "a head resembling a man's"), but they choose to appear as female to Meg, Calvin, and Charles Wallace. Although their undeniable power is limited on Camazotz, they do give Meg powerful instruction and advice. L'Engle turns gender constructs on their head even further when she describes Meg's desire to have her father save the day ("Father will make it all right, Meg thought. Everything will be all right now."), and her anger and disappointment over his inability to meet those ingrained expectations. After being nurtured by the clever Aunt Beast, and given the gift of unconditional love by both Aunt Beast and Mrs. Whatsit, Meg then comes to the powerful realization that she (not her father, and not Calvin) must be the one to save Charles Wallace, and she does so using a unique combination of her head and heart: she figures out the riddle that love will be the thing that brings her brother back.
While some of the deeper themes might be difficult for elementary school age children to grasp, certainly they could understand the concepts that 1) girls can do everything boys can do, sometimes better; and 2) unconditional love, given and received freely, has unlimited power to transform even what appears to be the most hopeless situation. While many critics have discussed the clear Christian overtones of L'Engle's story and its parallels to God's unconditional love for us, I believe L'Engle took it one step further than Christian doctrine when she has Charles Wallace, Calvin and Meg identify the "others" in addition to Jesus who have provided "lights ... to see by" to the world. In this regard, Calvin specifically includes non-Christian leaders Gandhi (a Hindu) and Buddha, suggesting L'Engle's inclusion of other religious traditions in the fight against evil. I found this refreshing in the current climate of "us versus them" perpetuated by some in the Christian right, particularly in light of my own hodge-podge belief that Jesus died for all of us, but God was smart enough to know that billions of billions of us wouldn't buy the same story to get to Him, so we have other faith traditions enabling an understanding of the divine.(less)

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Jul 11, 2007 Vicki rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

L’Engle, Madeleine,1962. A Wrinkle in Time. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

The children of scientists, Meg and Charles Wallace Murry are both extraordinarily intelligent and unique. Four-year-old Charles Wallace, who lets people continue to think he’s a moron because it “gives people something to feel smug about” and sees no reason to disillusion them, has the special ability of being able to communicate with others without hearing them speak. Meg, a math wiz who is frequently getting into fights wi...more

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Jan 23, 2008 Lindsey Weise rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kid-lit, sci-fi

I passed over these series as a child, although I remember wanting to know what the hype was about. I finally picked up this first book and gave it a try. I'll just come out and say it: I was almost annoyed with how bored I was reading this. I'm really confused as to why it was such a big deal! It felt like a short story! I've read a lot of children's books and none of them felt this...lackluster in regards to the content inside the story. I'm not saying I disliked the characters or the events....more

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Aug 30, 2010 Kathryn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, favorites

I don't ever remember reading this book before and I am truly glad I took the time to enjoy it. There is a part of me that really wishes I had some form of witchery, angel visions, paranormal in a good sense in my own life. I don't like the scary part of the story, I just want to read about everyone's quirky behaviour and how everyone gets along with it. Well, I do like the story well enough that I've rented the movie from Netflix. I want to see how it portrays everyone. Will I read the other bo...more

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Nov 26, 2007 Borsi rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Mr. T

This book has teached me, to know that the future, can be changed. That the past is just the past that you can change it into something else. Madeline Lengle made me understand that a wrinkle in time is just a wrinkle you can make it go away.its suchn a great book because it was the book that was extremely chalenging and had the best vocabulary! Also because it made you want to know about the future and makes you reflect about it. This book is about to kids that there father and mother are scien...more

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Aug 09, 2012 Paige rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First, understand that I am editing this review after several outraged responses. I knew that "Wrinkle" was considered to be a classic, but I was unaware that it was considered a Beloved Classic Beyond Criticism. I read this in grade school and just REread it aloud, to my daughter. I didn't have a clear memory of it, though I remember that I loved the way it started. Now I realize why I forgot so much of it. I STILL love the first 3 chapters, and dislike the rest. But since some of you found (an...more First, understand that I am editing this review after several outraged responses. I knew that "Wrinkle" was considered to be a classic, but I was unaware that it was considered a Beloved Classic Beyond Criticism. I read this in grade school and just REread it aloud, to my daughter. I didn't have a clear memory of it, though I remember that I loved the way it started. Now I realize why I forgot so much of it. I STILL love the first 3 chapters, and dislike the rest. But since some of you found (and WILL find, I'm sure) my review to be judgmental, harsh and undiplomatic (a review IS a critique, right?) to the point of insulting, I thought I'd do a little research, look over the book again, think about it some more. So I've edited this review. But I find I just can't retract my statements. They are my opinion, that's all, and I haven't changed my mind. I can only try to be open minded, be honest, and try to explain my thoughts & feelings more clearly. Otherwise, I'd be a simpering fake.

Like C.S. Lewis books (especially the last of his Chronicles of Narnia, The Last Battle), A Wrinkle In Time has strong, (heavy-handed, I think), overtones of Christian doctrine. I'm not anti-spiritual, but I have a personal discomfort with this kind of religious doctrine. (You many not, and that's fine.) But more than that issue, the book is an odd combination of intelligent hard science, interesting quantum science that is brushed over, and quotes from the bible. At least there are a few respectful mentions of other spiritual leaders from other cultures, and moral messages from classic literature and philosophers. I understand this combination garnered criticism from both religious fundamentalists as well as atheists and secular society. L'Engle has earned my respect for taking on the difficult and controversial marriage of science and religion. She has also earned my criticism for raising this issue and then failing to really grapple with it. It's treated lightly, as though it's a natural thing that should be easy to accept, in spite of the many holes and inconsistencies in her story. I wouldn't even mind, except that this book takes itself SO seriously! It's easy to imagine that a school teacher might use this book to demonstrate that Evolutionist Theory and Creationism can be combined, but I find science and religion to have a disjointed and uneasy coexistence in this book. One is always dropped abruptly for the other. Or at least, it seems so to me.

Ok. Now that I have tackled that big one, let's move on. I found the characters rather flat, (the genius child, the misfit girl, the beautiful, genius, scientist mother who nonetheless stays home and cooks stew in bunsen burners while her husband has adventures). The story itself is made up of vague scenarios of conflict of the psyche and spirit, with the entire Universe at stake. L'Engle's metaphors are obvious and their manifestations flat. [SPOILER ALERT] There is a quest to fight a "Darkness" (oooh!) that wants to rid us all of individuality & free will. There are 3 beings who used to be stars before they died in the fight with the "Darkness" and became something beyond our comprehension. They can appear in any form to us, so that we have some way of processing their existence. They are, in fact, so beyond anything knowable that I can't feel much for them or say much about them, except that they make a convenient plot device for transporting the characters throughout the Universe and the story. Anyway, the "Darkness" takes over a planet which turns into a kind of sci-fi beehive, with brainwashed automatons. I found the planet to be delightfully creepy and would have liked to know more about it, (even if it seems suspiciously like a thinly veiled anti-communist warning message.) So guess what's doing the brainwashing? - a giant, evil, disembodied brain, called IT, who is personally responsible for spreading the Darkness across the Universe. Really? A brain? Doesn't anyone else find this simplistic and cliche? The main character defeats this brain by gushing love. I am quite sure that many, many readers were moved to tears by Meg's gushing, but I do not happen to be that kind of person. Before Meg realizes that she has the power to gush love, the crusaders tesser through time and space (no explanation of how the father can do this) to a fascinating planet with very interesting aliens who can't see, but have other senses. I'd have loved to know more about their society and these mysterious other senses, but again, these ideas aren't very developed.

These are the things in this book, and in L'Engle's writing that I love: As I mentioned, I love her courage in at least attempting a controversial issue like mixing science and spirituality. I love that this book has the heart to recognize love as the greatest power, and that it has the wisdom to recognize fear as one of the biggest weapons. I love that individuality prevails, and the romantic in me approves of the loving, whole family. I love that she has enough respect for children that she included difficult vocabulary and a few difficult concepts. Many children are far more capable of handling complex ideas than we give them credit for, especially if we expose them to these things early on. I love that L'Engle doesn't underestimate them in this way, at least initially, on the surface. Since my biggest problems with this book all involve my finding it simplistic, naive, and certain parts of it cliche & obvious, I wonder if I need to remind myself that it's meant for children. Perhaps children should be idealistic, or even naive, in the way that this book is. But then I wonder if that is another way of underestimating them. ESPECIALLY since I felt exactly the same way when I read this book as a child!

Wind In The Willows makes me feel closer to God, or a creative power (though there's some gushing in there too, at the end.) The Jungle Book explores social constructs and morals, more deeply and naturally, for me. A Sound Of Thunder blew my mind, in grade school, with its "butterfly effect" theory of the power and responsibility of each individual. All of these are childrens' books, though they span generations, and time and space, more gracefully than tessering did for me. I could name so many more.

But, if A Wrinkle In Time opened your mind to new ideas, (instead of making you feel frustrated by light treatment of them), made you question some latent prejudice, (instead of feeling bored by obvious metaphors), lifted your spirits & made you cheer for bookish outcasts, (instead of feeling that no one is that one-dimensional) or cry for the love of a big sister & little brother, (instead of cringing when a version of "I love you Charles Wallace" appears 19 times in 2 pages), then it is a wonderful book. For you.(less)

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Apr 07, 2011 Sebastian E. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-choice

A Wrinkle in Time is a very interesting, but it may seem boring until you get past the first three chapter. My favorite part of this book is when Calvin, Meg, and Charles resist IT (an evil brain-computer) because IT has never been resisted before. This part was interesting because of the suspense. My favorite character of the book is Charles Wallace because he was the leader of the three kids and he knew what other people will do before they even they do it! I think the author wrote this book b...more

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Dec 10, 2010 Caroline M. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-ve-reviewed

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. A Wrinkle in Time:
The Adventures Through the Fifth Dimension
What would you do if your dad was lost and no one has any idea where he could possibly be? In the science fiction novel, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’engle, Meg Murry and her brother Charles Wallace are faced with this problem, and they both want to look for him. One day, they bump into a boy named Calvin, and in front of them, three people named: Mrs.Whatsit, Mrs.Who, and Mrs.Which. They traveled through the fifth dimension and sh...more A Wrinkle in Time:
The Adventures Through the Fifth Dimension
What would you do if your dad was lost and no one has any idea where he could possibly be? In the science fiction novel, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’engle, Meg Murry and her brother Charles Wallace are faced with this problem, and they both want to look for him. One day, they bump into a boy named Calvin, and in front of them, three people named: Mrs.Whatsit, Mrs.Who, and Mrs.Which. They traveled through the fifth dimension and showed the three kids what planet that their dad was on. They dropped them off on the planet named Camazotz, and told them to go look for them. I gave this book 3/5 stars because it was good and I liked it, but it wasn’t my favorite. The main character Meg has a very good personality because she has a natural instinct to protect those that she loves, she takes control when she needs to, and she can solve problems given to her well.
The main character Meg has a very good personality because she has the natural instinct to protect those that she loves. Throughout the book, she is always worried about her family. For example, her brother Charles Wallace and her father Mr.Murry. After she saves her dad from IT, they both along with Calvin have to save Charles Wallace. During the process, they had to tesser to get away, because Meg had almost been killed by IT. They had to leave Charles Wallace, and Meg became furious with her father for leaving him. Plus, she became obsessed with saving him. This shows just how much she has the natural instinct to protect those that she loves. Also, more near the beginning of the story, when they find their dad and he is trapped in a cell, she immediately dives in to go and save him. She was very persistent in wanting to save her dad, and this also shows how much she wants to protect those that she loves.
Another reason the main character Meg has a very good personality is that she takes control when she knows that she needs to. Once she has recovered on the planet that her dad accidentally tessered them to, Mrs.Whatsit, Mrs.Which, and Mrs.Who came and told them that is was time for someone to go and save Charles Wallace. So, Meg immediately decides that is herself who must do this. As she says, “I don’t understand Charles, but he understands me. I’m the one who’s closest to him.” This is the main reason why she wants to go. Also, this shows that when she knows she has to take control and do something, she does.
Finally, the main character Meg has a very good personality because she can solve problems when given to her well. Before she leaves to go and save Charles Wallace, Mrs.Which gives her her last words of advice. She said that Meg had something that IT does not. She said that this thing was her only weapon and that she had to find it for herself. While she was talking to IT, she realized that what IT didn’t have was love. He was only a big brain that brought misery and hatred. He couldn’t love. This proves that Meg is a good problem solver because it is hard to find something that no one has given the answer to you.
The main character Meg has a very good personality because she has a natural instinct to protect those that she loves, she takes control when she needs to, and she can solve problems given to her well. My personal connection with Meg is that I can’t imagine what it would be like to loose your dad and not know where he is. If my dad suddenly disappeared, I wouldn’t be able to stand it. Plus, it would be really hard to recover, and so therefore I respect Meg for being so strong. In conclusion, I learned that sometimes you have to do more then hope to make something workout. Instead, you have to take your words and thoughts and put them into action.

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About Madeleine L'Engle

Madeleine L'Engle was an American writer best known for her Young Adult fiction, particularly the Newbery Medal-winning A Wrinkle in Time and its sequels A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, and Many Waters. Her works reflect her strong interest in modern science: tesseracts, for example, are featured prominently in A Wrinkle in Time, mitochondrial DNA in A Wind in the Door, organ regener...more Madeleine L'Engle was an American writer best known for her Young Adult fiction, particularly the Newbery Medal-winning A Wrinkle in Time and its sequels A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, and Many Waters. Her works reflect her strong interest in modern science: tesseracts, for example, are featured prominently in A Wrinkle in Time, mitochondrial DNA in A Wind in the Door, organ regeneration in The Arm of the Starfish, and so forth.

"Madeleine was born on November 29th, 1918, and spent her formative years in New York City. Instead of her school work, she found that she would much rather be writing stories, poems and journals for herself, which was reflected in her grades (not the best). However, she was not discouraged.

At age 12, she moved to the French Alps with her parents and went to an English boarding school where, thankfully, her passion for writing continued to grow. She flourished during her high school years back in the United States at Ashley Hall in Charleston, South Carolina, vacationing with her mother in a rambling old beach cottage on a beautiful stretch of Florida Beach.

She went to Smith College and studied English with some wonderful teachers as she read the classics and continued her own creative writing. She graduated with honors and moved into a Greenwich Village apartment in New York. She worked in the theater, where Equity union pay and a flexible schedule afforded her the time to write! She published her first two novels during these years--A Small Rain and Ilsa--before meeting Hugh Franklin, her future husband, when she was an understudy in Anton Chekov's The Cherry Orchard. They married during The Joyous Season.

She had a baby girl and kept on writing, eventually moving to Connecticut to raise the family away from the city in a small dairy farm village with more cows than people. They bought a dead general store, and brought it to life for 9 years. They moved back to the city with three children, and Hugh revitalized his professional acting career. The family has kept the country house, Crosswicks, and continues to spend summers there.

As the years passed and the children grew, Madeleine continued to write and Hugh to act, and they to enjoy each other and life. Madeleine began her association with the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, where she has been the librarian and maintained an office for more than thirty years. After Hugh's death in 1986, it was her writing and lecturing that kept her going. She has now lived through the 20th century and into the 21st and has written over 60 books and keeps writing. She enjoys being with her friends, her children, her grandchildren, and her great grandchildren."

http://us.macmillan.com/author/madele...

Copyright © 2007 Crosswicks, Ltd. (Madeleine L'Engle, President)(less)

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“Life, with its rules, its obligations, and its freedoms, is like a sonnet: You're given the form, but you have to write the sonnet yourself. - Mrs. Whatsit” — 334 people liked it

“Believing takes practice.” — 258 people liked it

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