A Wrinkle in Time

Title: A Wrinkle in Time
Author: Madeline L'Engle
Genre: Children Lit
Published: 1962

Recommendation: Better appeal to teens than adults.
Rating: 7/10

Summary: Meg and Charles Wallace are very close as brother and sister. Their father has been missing for over a year and they haven't heard from him. Then Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which appear and take the children along with their friend Calvin on the adventure to find the missing father.

Reactions: A Wrinkle in Time is a classic children novel that I have heard mentioned many times, but have never had a chance to read before. Partially, I wish I had read it earlier because of it's teenage themes of fitting in and finding oneself that probably resonate better with the younger audience. As an adult I found Meg's overly quick friendship with Calvin surprising and Meg's angst over her appearance overly dramatized.

The plot is fairly simplistic as befits a children's book and the ending I found to be a little anti-climatic. Still it's cute and warm in it's own fashion and has that "everything will be ok feel" towards the end. However, I didn't find myself getting particularly warmed up to the characters in the book. Charles Wallace acts too old for his age, Meg is much too angsty, and Calvin barely has any role besides raising Meg's self-esteem.

Overall, I didn't end up enjoying the book as much as I hoped to, partially perhaps because of it's outdated feel and somewhat moralistic overtones. But it was good to get acquainted with children classic lit and I do think it would still be an interesting read for someone of a more suitable age.