I re-read this children's book in advance of seeing the new movie version starring Oprah Winfrey and Reese Witherspoon.

I don't think I've read "A Wrinkle in Time" in about 30 years, and it was fun to revisit it. I was amazed by how many scenes and bits of dialogue I remembered from childhood! It's a remarkable and imaginative story — highly recommended.

Favorite Quotes
"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."

"We can't take any credit for our talents. It's how we use them that counts."

"If you aren't unhappy sometimes you don't know how to be happy."

"Only a fool is not afraid."

"There will no longer be so many pleasant things to look at if responsible people do not do something about the unpleasant ones."

Science fiction/fantasy adventure based around Christian philosophies.

3.5

I had forgotten so much of this book. Most of my memories are of the kitchen and farmhouse, and just the fact that they were searching for their father. I had forgotten how spiritual the book is, for one thing, and found myself almost in tears as I read to my children about this fight between the darkness and the light, between free will and having every choice made for you. Oh, how I love Madeleine L'Engle!

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 thirteen, when I read the entire series several times over, that it became obvious to me.

But I digress. What really makes this book (and others in the series) has nothing directly to do with the writer's faith. It has to do with the different types of non-sexual love found between family, friends, society, and the individual. I know, big thing for a Children's novel, but it generally is shown rather then told thereby allowing young children to learn by example.

Going back to the faith thing for half a second, it's like a large parable for how the New Testament (Protestant Christian, any how) advises people to form relationships and maintain them. We are to love and respect our parents, even when the world doesn't. Meg believes in and loves her father, even though he has some odd theories and has been missing for years. We are to care after our siblings regardless of personal quibbles, again like Meg and her brothers. WE are to show compassion for our neighbors despite what other members of our society think (See Calvin's friendship with Meg and Charles) and To care for them even though it might mean personal risk, as in some of the later scenes. Over all, it demonstrates a non-sexual love as one of the most powerful forces in the Universe. And this is a moral lesson that every faith can embrace.

I JUST read this book for the first time, and it was BEAUTIFUL. The writing is exactly why I adore childhood classics (how can they make the ordinary so magical; and the food is always so salivating) and then this tale took twist after twist...and it was utterly unique. I am a big fan. :)

We all want to fit in somehow. We also want to be ourselves and thus stand out a little bit, but basically we don't want to deviate too much from "the norm" because it's usually considered bad by others (funny, considering that we're pretty much all feeling the same way so we should just let the others be) and especially children often have a hard time when not fitting in with their peers. Thus, being different can be risky.

Meg is a girl that doesn't fit in. Her parents are multiple PhDs and have taught her and her siblings a thing or two (about maths mostly) with the result that Meg can often not understand why she is supposed to solve a (mathematical) problem in school this way instead of that. The problem is that neither her teachers nor the other kids in school are thrilled with what her parents have already taught her and she is therefore subject to verbal bullying from both groups.
Meg has three brothers: twins (Sandy and Dennys) and Charles Wallace. The former two know how to play the game and usually don't let anything get to them. The latter is 5 years old and usually doesn't speak at all because he knows full well that his correct and adult way of speaking - to say nothing of knowing peoples' minds - would freak others out. He prefers letting them think he cannot speak and is "dumb". He's also Meg's confidant and (thanks to his ability) always knows what she and their mother need.
The children live in a house with their mother who conducts experiments in a room off the kitchen. Sadly, the childrens' father has been missing for over a year, leaving the family emotionally desperate. He worked with the government and there isn't any information the family is given by way of explanation. The cruel people of town speak about him having left for another woman, which doesn't make Meg feel any better, of course. In fact, Meg hates people for being so unfair and ignorant and she frequently grows impatient with the way things are (leading to her getting into trouble).
Thanks to her gifted brother Charles Wallace, the family encounters a peculiar old woman called Mrs. Whatsit. The following day, Meg and Charles Wallace not only meet Mrs. Whatsit's sister (Mrs. Who) but also a boy from school - a popular boy, Calvin, who nevertheless seems to have enough troubles of his own and reveals to only be popular because he is what everyone expects of him without it really being him.

To go into such detail about the children is important to me because they are the central characters. Sure, Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who are important as well and the kids meet other creatures besides them, but the author managed to truly write a story for and about children.

Anyway, at one point, the three ladies reveal to Meg, Charles Wallace and Calvin that they want to help getting back Meg's and Charles Wallace's father because he is in great peril. Thus, they take them on a fantastic journey through several galaxies.

It's a tale of all your faults being necessary at the right time if you can apply them properly, of perseverance, love, and self-sacrifice. It's about the darkness in the world and that we can't simply do nothing, even if that might seem seductively easier. It's also about celebrating who you are instead of homogenizing the entire world.
Camazotz, a world the children travel to while trying to find their father, is the perfect example of what happens when everyone has to be like everybody else. Not only does it make the world grey and dull, it also does not make the people in it happy.
This is definitely a tale I'd read to my children if I had any, because it teaches so much about people, the world, perception, and looking beyond the surface. It's also about compassion and intelligence and hard lessons that all people need to learn at one point in their lives or another and the author had a wonderful way of not only delighting me when I travelled to distant planets with the children, but of also breaking my heart once or twice.

I loved the prose, I loved the author's imagination, I loved the children and everyone they encountered for the colourful worlds they inhabited and their strangeness. I loved how the interaction of light and dark was portrayed, how our way of seeing the world was challenged, and the fact that the book was filled with scientific topics, explained so children could understand them. In the introduction to my edition, the author said that the book had been rejected many times, usually because nobody could tell what it was (it was as different as its main characters) and the publishers said that children would never "get it" - to which the author commented that children usually perceive much more than adults, and her own children (demanding more writing from her) were proof enough for her to persevere. I therefore love her self-imposed high standard to make this a tale for children, about children, that nevertheless equally thrills thanks to the adventure and educates through the imbedded facts. It is rather fascinating even though there are plenty of religious themes embedded as well (though much more subtly than C.S. Lewis did in most of his books).

I have the audiobook that was read by Hope Davis and was delighted about her narration. I've listened to a number of audiobooks lately but she must be one of the top 3 narrators I've heard so far and I hope she's narrated the rest of the series as well.
Because this is a quintet and while you could technically regard this as a standalone, it literally ends in the middle of a sentence from Mrs. Whatsit which caught me by complete surprise and left me wanting more (nice touch). *lol*

3.5*
What a fun weird little story!

A classic of children's literature. Even on re-reading this as an adult, it held up very well.

Meg is having trouble coping. It is hard being a teenager. It seems the only thing she likes in school is math. She is rather hyper-sensitive and temperamental. She is awkward socially and rather invisible among her teachers.

And yet her twin brothers are quite normal. Her baby brother Charles is gifted. Her father, known for working on a top secret mission with the government, hasn't been heard from in years.

And then...4 remarkable people burst into Meg's life and things change. An adventure ensues.

Years later, and Meg's character and her quirkiness still feels current. Relatable.

At the time, the book was almost not published because they didn't know how to categorize it. We can now consider it as magical realism or fantasy or a little bit of science fiction.

it has even been made into a film.

Any way you look at this story, it is an opportunity for children to imagine possibility and celebrate their uniqueness.

**** I read this at a time when I needed a big surge of joy, magic, and distraction. I see I only remarked in writing that I would be surprised if there had not been a film of this 1962 extravaganza. I verbally noted to my spouse, Ron and he remembers: if anyone tried to portray these peculiar and dynamic ranges of events in a film, it would be difficult. We did not have long to wait! ****

“A Wrinkle In Time” is an adventure I knew I would love. I embraced it wholly and am glad three novels succeed it. There is an element that is science fictive but I call this youth fantasy, with a complexity appealing to grown-ups that is probably aimed at us. I had no inkling about premise nor characters thus this adventure was entirely new; the way I love stories. There is surreal exploration, discovery, and strong emotions. The easiest description is that the Murrys are special and as it goes in fantasy, hold a pivotal role in their universe. We spotlight all of them but sympathy follows elder sister, Meg.

She is a square peg at school, unlike popular brothers Dennys & Sandy. She underperforms but not for lack of intellect. She is a mathematics whiz and her parents are notable scientists. Their Dad’s government work is secret, they haven’t been permitted to know where he is, and fear trouble when contact halts. Her five year-old brother Charles is an eloquent genius, with extrasensory perception too revved up for him to hide. He introduces Meg and a similarly special school chum to a trio of ladies, who scarcely bother to conceal that they aren’t of Earth. They know Mr. Murry needs help and only these three children are in a position to deliver it.

Madeline L’Engle’s creation is thought-provoking, memorable, and could only be born of the most outstanding imagination I’ve ever seen. The planets the rescue party traverse such as a two-dimensional one, the biological make-up of the ladies and other parties they meet, the sights.... are unparalleled and must already comprise a film! Learning about a dark, unidentified threat to their galaxy and that their Dad’s captivity plays a part, is overwhelming. Madeleine deserves every literary award in existence.

A Wrinkle in Time (Time Quintet #1), Madeleine L'Engle

A Wrinkle in Time is a science fantasy novel written by American writer Madeleine L'Engle, first published in 1962. It is the first book in L'Engle's Time Quintet series, which follows the Murry and O'Keefe families.

The book spawned two film adaptations, both by Disney: a 2003 television film directed by John Kent Harrison, and a 2018 theatrical film directed by Ava DuVernay.

One night, thirteen-year-old Meg Murry meets an eccentric new neighbor, Mrs. Whatsit, who refers to something called a tesseract.

She later finds out it is a scientific concept her father was working on before his mysterious disappearance.

The following day, Meg, her child genius brother Charles, and fellow schoolmate Calvin visit Mrs. Whatsit's home, where the equally strange Mrs. Who and the unseen voice of Mrs. Which promise to help Meg find and rescue her father..

عنوانهای چاپ شده در ایران: «چین دادن زمان»؛ «چینی بر زمان»؛ «سفر شگفت انگیز»؛ نویسنده: مادلین ال اینگل؛ تاریخ خوانش: روز بیست و یکم ماه سپتامبر سال 2009میلادی

عنوان: چینی بر زمان؛ نویسنده: مادلین ال اینگل؛ مترجم: صدیقه ابراهیمی (فخار)؛ بی جا، مترجم، 1371؛ در 216ص؛ موضوع داستانهای نوجوانان از نویسندگان ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده 20م

عنوان: سفر شگفت انگیز؛ نویسنده: مادلین ال اینگل (لنگل)؛ مترجم: صدیقه ابراهیمی (فخار)؛ تهران، دستان، چاپ دوم 1381؛ در203ص؛ شابک9646555888؛

عنوان: چین دادن زمان؛ نویسنده: مادلین ال اینگل؛ مترجم: صدیقه ابراهیمی (فخار)؛ تهران، کاروان، کتابهای لوک، 1388؛ در240ص؛ شابک9789641750833؛

بـُعد پنجم همچون بعدهای: طول، عرض، ارتفاع، و زمان، بعد دیگری از دنیای ماست، اگر بـُعد پنجم را بشناسیم، میتوانیم فواصل طولانی چندین سال نوری را، در چند دقیقه میانبر بزنیم؛ خانم «چیستان (میسز واتزایت)»، «کیستان (میسز ویچ)» و «کدام (میسز هو)»، سه پیرزن عجیب، در خانه‌ ای به نام خانه ی دیوها زندگی می‌کنند؛ آنها به ظاهر ترسناک هستند، زیرا لباس‌هایی شبیه جادوگرها می‌پوشند؛ اما «چارلز» باور دارد، که آنها می‌دانند پدرش کجاست؛ در یک شب توفانی و تاریک، این سه پیرزن عجیب، همراه با «چارلز» و خواهرش «مارگریت»، و دوستشان «کالوین»، راهی سفری دور و دراز بین سیارات دوردست می‌شوند، تا پدر «چارلز» را پیدا کنند، و از آن مهم‌تر دنیا را نجات دهند؛ در داستان علمی-تخیلی حاضر شرح این سفر به تصویر واژه های خیال انگیز کشیده شده است

تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 08/10/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 13/07/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی

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.


I started reading A Wrinkle in Time last year, and I had to put it on a pause (not because it was bad, but because I had the longest reading slump of my life). Moving on to present time, since I've been reading a lot of children and middle grade books, I decided to pick it up again. And I'm so happy I did.

A Wrinkle in Time follows the story of Meg, her brother, Charles Wallace, and their friend Calvin O'Keefe on their fantastic adventures filled with magic and different types of magical creatures. Even though the magic aspect of the story was really good, what I enjoyed the most was the science aspect of the story. Madeleine L'Engle mixed our own world perfectly with the magical one, but she also, at the same time, made it as realistic as she possibly could. The world, mixed with interesting character, and really creepy setting at times together made a wonderful novel, and an amazing start to a series that I cannot wait to continue.