From the Bookshelf of Never too Late to Read Classics…

A Wrinkle in Time (Time Quintet, #1)

Madeleine L'Engle

Start date: July 15, 2016

Finish date: August 14, 2016

Discussion: Children's Classics Buddy Reads

Discussion leader: Gem

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What Members Thought

Sep 11, 2015 Sara rated it really liked it

I wish I had read this when I was young. I really can't think why I didn't. It has many of the elements that make stories appeal to young readers...magic, time travel, the unpopular smart kid. It is a fun story that would have appeal at that level alone.

What I saw beneath the story, however, were some important ideas and points that all childen and many adults need to hear over and over again. Different is not less; being the same might seem more comfortable, but it is limiting. The idea that h ...more

18 likes · Like · see review

Feb 27, 2015 Christine PNW rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: vintage-women

I decided to reread after seeing the new Ava DuVernay adaptation with my daughter. I read the book as a child of the 1970's - probably a bit more than decade or so after the initial 1963 publication, around 1977, when I was 11. I fell in love with the book then, seeing much of myself in Meg Murry, the ordinary, often grumpy, young woman. I revisited L'Engle in 2015, and found that, while some of her books had not held up with reread, many of them did.

A Wrinkle in Time is a bit of a period piece, I decided to reread after seeing the new Ava DuVernay adaptation with my daughter. I read the book as a child of the 1970's - probably a bit more than decade or so after the initial 1963 publication, around 1977, when I was 11. I fell in love with the book then, seeing much of myself in Meg Murry, the ordinary, often grumpy, young woman. I revisited L'Engle in 2015, and found that, while some of her books had not held up with reread, many of them did.

A Wrinkle in Time is a bit of a period piece, to be sure. Girls today are stronger, more self-aware, more cognizant of the pressures of an often sexist society, and more willing to buck convention in order to be authentic to themselves. Not all girls, of course, but some girls. Our culture, today, at least struggles to understand these pressures and to acknowledge that they exist. This book is part of my personal canon, one of the books that shaped my childhood and had a part in making me who I am today.

Even so, the DuVernay adaptation succeeds in a way that, after reading ALOT of L'Engle, and a fair amount about L'Engle, I believe that she would appreciate. Meg Murry as a biracial young woman was an inspired decision, the relocation of the plot to a more diverse location in California, the addition of Charles Wallace as an adopted child, to me really work to illuminate some of the themes that L'Engle was writing about - alienation and social conformity in particular.

There are parts of the book that are quite different from the movie, of course. In the book, the Murry's have two additional children, a set of male twins who are effortlessly socially competent. They are capable of fulfilling society's expectations with little work. Meg, on the other hand, is prickly, defensive, occasionally angry, and fearsomely intelligent - all things which 1963 America couldn't really cope with in girls. Heck, we still struggle with girls who are prickly, defensive, occasionally angry and fearsomely intelligent.

A Wrinkle in Time shines light into dark places. For that alone, it's worth reading. ...more

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Feb 13, 2017 J. Sebastian rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: childhood

"It was a dark and stormy night. . . . " So begins this famous adventure that I had never discovered as a child. Reading with my daughter the stories that she brings home from school has given me a new childhood. I try to forget everything that my adult mind thinks it knows, turn it off, and engage with the stories as if they were true. That is one thing that I remember about childhood; everything, no matter how far-fetched it might have seemed to the grownups, was possible.

This is a great stor ...more

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Aug 14, 2018 Josh Caporale rated it it was ok · review of another edition

2.5 stars

How this is a novel targeted toward younger readers, those in the 10-14 age range in particular, is beyond me. I am a 26 year old person reading this book and reading it on the surface, let alone on a critical level, gives me a headache. Sure, there are arguments that could be made on any political system or the discussed argument about the Christian implications that are placed on this novel and in turn this series, but the same can be said about C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia and Ha 2.5 stars

How this is a novel targeted toward younger readers, those in the 10-14 age range in particular, is beyond me. I am a 26 year old person reading this book and reading it on the surface, let alone on a critical level, gives me a headache. Sure, there are arguments that could be made on any political system or the discussed argument about the Christian implications that are placed on this novel and in turn this series, but the same can be said about C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia and Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen and both lay things out a bit simpler; the former has a better story while the latter has a memorable story and an even more memorable message to argue its case. A Wrinkle in Time has picked up a lot of attention between Chelsea Clinton mentioning it during the Democratic National Convention in 2016, when her mother, Hillary, became the party's nominee and with the film that came out in February, where Oprah Winfrey played Mrs. Which, in what is a key example of high-profile stars not playing the central characters and yet getting headlining recognition.

In the original book, though, the character of concentration is Margaret "Meg" Murry, who lives with her mother, her twin brothers, Sandy and Dennys, her younger brother, Charles Wallace, and her dog, Fortinbras. Charles Wallace in particular is a fascinating character in how he is five years old, but did not talk until he was four. He is viewed by the general public (in this case the kids at school) as being "dumb," but he is really an extraordinary, intelligent boy who cares immensely for his sister. I would argue that he is on the autistic spectrum. Meg is struggling in school and has started to become stubborn and rebellious to the point that she was approached by the principal of the school. At the same time, the Murrys are approached by beings that Charles has started to communicate with, first Mrs. Whatsit, then Mrs. Who, and then Mrs. Which, and he, Meg, and Meg's friend, Calvin O'Keefe, are swept onto an adventure to find their father who has been away for four years. Both Mr. and Mrs. Murry are scientists.

The adventure that Meg, Charles, and Calvin pursue is an absolute mindgasm where they come across different beings that challenge the way they see their world and one another. These challenges are certainly subject to critical thinking on the adult reader, which means it will almost certainly complicate a younger reader that is looking to examine this text before the surface. Even if they are reading this novel on the surface, the chances of them feeling a sense of confusion are bound to be pretty high. The fact that these beings possess the mortal beings through thought is an intriguing concept, but the way in which it is executed seemed to be mind boggling in its nature.

As for the characters and the story itself, it felt a bit paper thin. The pacing was incredibly rushed and the major moments were treated very rapidly, which includes the closure. Another flaw took place toward the beginning of the book where Mrs. Murry questioned the idea of a Mrs. Whatsit, but upon her arrival acts as if she is already well acquainted. While I feel that this book does a decent job in giving us an idea of Meg's character, it does not do enough, nor do I feel it does enough in fleshing out the other characters. While we get a background of characters like Charles and Calvin, we get a background and then they merely serve a purpose as being in the background. Anyone in the parallel world, particularly the Mrs. Ws, are merely meant to preach the cryptic message of this piece. While works such as Lewis Carroll's two visits to Wonderland have characters that mainly serve the purpose of delivering messages and developing arguments, these messages are more clever, humorous, and easier to digest. Alice's visits to Wonderland, both down the rabbit hole and through the looking glass, are far more intriguing than the expedition that takes place in this book.

This book, the first in a series, does give an effort. I like the idea of Charles Wallace possibly being on the autistic spectrum (it is not mentioned directly, which makes sense given its 1962 release, but I would argue in favor of him being on the spectrum) and how he is generally depicted in a positive light to us the reader, but I do not feel that this is a book or series that is worth the investment. There are so many better options that make you think outside of the box, about Christian morals, and about humanity and our place in this universe. ...more

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Feb 21, 2021 Ashley W rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: genre-fantasy, 0part-of-a-series, 201-300-pages

Having already read the graphic novel, I was familiar was the plot and characters of the story. More than anything else in the full novel, I appreciated the themes and symbols.
Themes:
- Family: Meg's entire purpose in overcoming her fears of failure and self-deprecation was to save first her father, and then her brother. Her greatest trials were faced, not for herself, but for the people she cared most about.
- Embracing Your Flaws: The gift to Meg was her flaws. This didn't make any more sense t ...more

2 likes · Like · see review