Reading with Joy — Chapter Six

““Meg, I give you your faults... I think you’ll find they come in very handy on Camazotz.””

— Mrs. Whatsit (A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle)

Welcome back to my summer book club! This week I am joined by the one and only Sally Mama to discuss chapter six of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin begin to find just how deep their struggle for light will be in this chapter, as they encounter the terribly conformist world of Camazotz armed only with their gifts from the Mrs. W’s— Calvin’s gift for communication, Charles Wallace’s resilient childhood, and Meg’s… faults?

This book was a reminder for both of us, from childhood on, that we can choose to be champions of goodness even in our weakness: a reminder that life is good, that we have the capacity to bring light into the world, and that God never leaves or forsakes us. Join us as we ponder the ways that awakening wonder and bravery in children help them walk through hard times with resilience.

It’s not too late to join in!

This is how the book club works: I’ll post an episode per chapter each week on Monday, which you can listen to in preparation for discussion. Then, I’ll post discussion questions on this website, my instagram, my twitter, and my Facebook. (full disclosure: I think discussion tends to go best on Instagram and Facebook). Post your thoughts, comments, questions on these threads as a way to engage the text. I also encourage you to discuss the book in real life (or over Facetime, given our weird times!) with a real friend… it’s so much more fun! In that spirit, each week I’ll have a different guest discussing each chapter with me.

A Wrinkle in Time (Time Quintet)

By Madeleine L'Engle







Today’s Guest: Sally Clarkson

Sally Clarkson is a best-selling author, world renowned speaker, and beloved figure who has dedicated her life to supporting and inspiring countless women to live into the story God has for them to tell.

Sally hosts a weekly podcast "At Home With Sally" where she invites you into her home, thoughts, and life to share her candid wisdom and winsome discipleship. The podcast reaches women around the world and now has millions of downloads. She has been married to her husband Clay for almost forty years and together they founded and run Whole Heart Ministries— an international ministry seeking to support families in raising faithful, healthy, and loving children, in an increasingly difficult culture.

Sally has four children, Sarah, Joel, Nathan, and Joy, each exceeding in their own fields as academics, authors, actors, musicians, filmmakers, and speakers. She lives between the Mountains of Colorado and the rolling fields of England and can usually be found with a cup of tea in her hands.

You can follow Sally’s life-giving ponderings at sallyclarkson.com, follow her on Instagram @sally.clarkson, or find her on Twitter @Sally_Clarkson.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:Why do the Mrs. W’s give Meg her faults as a gift that will protect her on Camazotz? How do The Mrs. W’s narrate to Calvin, Meg, and Charles Wallace the battle to come? How does the story we tell ourselves and others about challenges in the world shape the way we face them? Both Meg and Charles Wallace react very emotionally to the Black Thing, but this is seen as appropriate and right. Might emotions, even negative ones, be holy or helpful?
















Awaking Wonder: Opening Your Child's Heart to the Beauty of Learning

By Clarkson, Sally
























Girls' Club: Cultivating Lasting Friendship in a Lonely World

By Clarkson, Sally, Clarkson, Joy, Clarkson, Sarah







P.S. Patreon book club…

We’ll be reading and discussion Julian of Norwich’s Revelations of Divine Love on my Patreon. It is the first book written in english by a woman, and describes her visions of Christ after a near death experience. It is a classic in the Christian mystical tradition, and has encouraged me very much. I'll do the podcast book club for the $10 tier (podcasts belonging in that tier originally). So if you want to join the book club, make sure you're in that tier by June 15th (but wait till after June 1st, if you want to avoid getting charged for May). 

Find out more here.