Module 4: A Wrinkle in Time

Book Cover Image: 

Taken from Amazon.com (Amazon.com, Inc, n.d)

Genre:

The classic book, A wrinkle in time by Madeleine L’Engle, was the 1963 winner of the Newbery Award.  This novel is written for middle-grade to young adult age children, generally ranging from 10-14 years old and fits in the genre of science fiction and fantasy.  A wrinkle in time is book 1 of the Time Quintet series. 

Book Summary:

Madeline L’Engles story, A wrinkle in time, takes the reader on an adventure with Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin O’Keefe (Meg’s popular classmate) to other dimensions in the universe on a quest to find and save Meg and Charles Wallace’s father. Charles Wallace has a special gift of being able to communicate and understand others, except for his twin siblings because they don’t need him, at the young age of 5-years old.  Charles introduces them to Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which who take them through the tesseract, which is the ‘wrinkle in time’ to find Mr. Murray who has been gone for over a year on a special government assignment with his work as a scientist.

APA Reference of Book:

L'Engle, M. (1962). A wrinkle in time. New York: Square Fish.

Impressions:

After seeing so many previews for the upcoming Disney movie, I was eager to read the book, and this was the perfect opportunity. 

For starters, what middle grade student wouldn’t want to read more when the story starts with “it was a dark and stormy night.”  One short sentence makes the reader want more, and I can even say this being almost 40 years old! I immediately wanted to start the adventure with Margaret (better known as Meg) Murray.   

Madeleine L’Engle does an amazing job of developing the characters in this story, to a point that you really feel like you are on the time traveling adventure with them.  The story is told from Meg’s point of view as she is coming of age and experiencing awkwardness, insecurity, and feelings for a boy.  Charles is an amazingly gifted five-year-old boy who is portrayed as wiser than his years, yet still an innocent young boy. I am extremely curious to see how Disney portrays him in the upcoming movie. Calvin is a popular, handsome, and athletic high school boy who appears to be the all-American boy with everything, but really comes from a low-income, less than perfect family situation.  There are just so many different components of this book that I love, and I honestly can’t believe I never read it in my teenage years. 

The author writes at a higher level, yet she keeps the story understandable to younger teens.  There are many very complex concepts, higher level science, symbolism and some imagery and figurative language that could be a challenge for some readers, but I think the story-line is strong enough to carry them through.  There is a classic battle of good and evil, which Meg, the awkward and insecure young girl, is able to battle which is completely empowering for young readers.  There are some Christian undertones, but they are not overpowering, and readers must remember the time in which this was written.  I do not mind it at all, but I know there are some readers that may not like it.  I like seeing different religions in stories and think it opens up great conversations and discussions with your child(ren).

Professional Review: 

Kirkus Reviews  originally reviewed March 1st, 1962

An allegorical fantasy in which a group of young people are guided through the universe by Mrs. Who, Mrs. Which and Mrs. What -- women who possess supernatural powers. They traverse fictitious regions, meet and face evil and demonstrate courage at the right moment. Religious allusions are secondary to the philosophical struggle designed to yield the meaning of life and one's place on earth. Young Meg's willingness to face IT in the form of a black beast in order to save a dear friend is one sign of her growing awareness. Readers who relish symbolic reference may find this trip through time and space an exhilarating experience; the rest will be forced to ponder the double entendres.

Pub Date: March 9th, 1962, ISBN: 978-0-374-38613-9,  Page count: 206 pp, Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Review Posted Online: Sept. 16th, 2011, Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1st, 1962

APA Reference of Professional Review:

Kirkus Media, L. (2011, Sep 16). A wrinkle in time. Retrieved from Kirkus: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/madeline-lengle/wrinkle-time-lengle/

Library Uses:

The book A wrinkle in time is being made into a Disney movie that will be releasing in theaters on March 9, 2018.  I would recommend using this book as a read-aloud in a middle grade classroom for 7^th or 8^th graders prior to the release of the movie.  The teacher could create vocabulary list from the book to be used in ELAR (English Language Arts & Reading) lessons that can be taught prior to reading specific sections to help students grasp some of the larger words that they may be unfamiliar with.  Following each days reading, the teacher could develop writing prompts to be used as journaling exercises to reflect on different parts of the story.  Here are a few examples of writing prompts to be used:

What are some of Meg’s insecurities about herself as she is entering into adolescences? Can you relate to any of these?

What are some of the struggles the Murray family likely faced in their community because of their differences?  Both parents are scientist, Charles has a special intelligence and gift of reading people, and Meg is different than her peers. Is it OK to embrace the differences or should they try to be like everyone else?

When the group lands on Camazotz, everyone is the same, even going so far as all the kids bouncing balls in rhythm to each other.  Would this be an ideal world? Why or why not?

What is IT?  Why is love the only thing that can defeat it?

If you could time travel where would you go and why?

Readalikes:

If the readers really enjoyed A wrinkle in time, I would suggest the read the rest of the Time Quintet series, which includes A wind in the door, A swiftly tilting planet, Many waters, and An acceptable time all by Madeleine L’Engle.

I would also recommend that readers explore other Newbery Award winning science fiction/ fantasy books from different decades and compare the differences in writing styles.   A couple great choices are the 1978 winner Bridgeto Terabithia by Katherine Peterson and The twenty-One Balloons by William Pene du Bois which won the 1948 Newbery Award. 

Bridge to Terabitha features some of the common themes of friendship along with the science fiction/ fantasy as they invent their own enchanted land called Terabithia.

The twenty-one balloons is an older classic fantasy adventure that features the common themes of science and imagination that are seen in L’Engle’s story. 


Checkout my Goodreads list of children and youth literature I read during the Spring 2018 Semester at UNT.