Mod 4: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

Summary:

The Newberry award winning novel A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle tells the story of Margret (Meg) Murry, her younger brother Charles Wallace, and friend Calvin O'keefe's adventure through time and space to save Meg's missing father(Mr. Murry). After an encounter with a strange tramp who turns out to be a celestial being named Mrs. Whatsit, and her friends Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which the trio of children use a tesseract, or wrinkle in time and space, to travel to a distant planet called Camazotz to save Mr. Murry, who is imprissoned there by a great evil that is threatening the universe. While searching for Mr. Murry Charles is corrupted in taken control of by a giant disembodied brain called IT. Meg, Calvin, and Mr. Murry are forced to flee (via another tesseract) to another planet called Ixchel where Mrs. Whatsit and her two strange friends appear as well and inform Meg that only she can rescue her brother using a weapon the evil does not have but Meg does. Meg returns to save her brother but must discover what the weapon is on her own. She realizes in the end it is love, saves her brother, and tesseracts back to earth to be reunited with her family.

L'Engle, M. (1962). A wrinkle in time. New York, NY: Farrar Straus Giroux

My Impressions:

I read this book many years ago when I was in middle school, and remembered liking it, but I had forgotten most of the story, so when I saw it on the list I felt I should read it again and see if I still found it enjoyable. It was just as good as I remembered and despite being over 50 years old, A Wrinkle in Time still holds up as a science fiction classic.

Reviews:

“This 50th anniversary production of L'Engle's Newbery-winning story introduces a new generation to Meg Murry and her younger brother, Charles Wallace, as they travel to rescue their father, a trip that truly "wrinkles time." Engaging vocal interpretations of Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which contrast nicely with the young voices Davis employs for the children. An introduction read by the late author adds to the enchantment of this classic tale. A Common Core text exemplar for grades 6-8. Common Core Standard: RL.6.3. Describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution. Content Standard: Oklahoma State Department of Education (Oklahoma C3 Standards, Language Arts, Grade 6) 2. Inferences and Interpretation b. Make inferences or draw conclusions about characters' qualities and actions (i.e., based on knowledge of plot, setting, characters' motives, characters' appearances, other characters' responses to a character). ”

[Review of the book A Wrinkle in Time by M. L'Engle]. (2012). School library journal. Retrived from http://libproxy.library.unt.edu:2929/DetailedView.aspx?hreciid=|683427|1765538&mc=USA#

Usage in a Library Setting:

Since Sci-Fi stories a popular these days I feel this classic could fit right in with a book talk, perhaps included alongside some other teenage sci-fi tales that are not as new and may be overlooked by some modern teenagers who would thoroughly enjoy it if they gave it a chance.