The Time-Space Continuum Made Simple

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle belongs to that fine breed of children's books that withstands the test of time. It is as fresh and meaningful now as it was at the time of its original publication almost 40 years ago. Happily, it is still being read and enjoyed today, not only by old folks like me, but by a new generation of young readers.

This book offers an exciting and imaginative tale guaranteed to entrance even the most reluctant of readers. Just have a look at some of the reviews of this book posted by children on Amazon.com, and you'll see what I mean. Many of those children described themselves as reluctant readers, yet they admitted to loving this book. While it seemed to be the consensus among those youthful reviewers that the book started off too slowly (one child described the beginning as "drop dead boring"), they all agreed that it was worth sticking with it because the rest of the book was so exciting.

Along with its gripping story, A Wrinkle in Time also manages to introduce, in a clear and easy to grasp fashion, some very complicated scientific (and sci-fi) subjects such as mass, gravity, relativity, and transmogrification. The ethical and philosophical concepts of good & evil, cause & effect, and free will are interwoven into the plot and characterization so seamlessly that they are absorbed and understood without effort and without disrupting the flow of the tale.

THE PLOT IN BRIEF
Meg and Charles Wallace Murry, along with their new friend, Calvin O'Keefe, set off with a group of time-travelling, planet-hopping spirits in search of Meg's and Charles' father (who disappeared while conducting top-secret government research). Their journey across the universe exposes them to exciting and perilous sights, situations, and strange beings. They not only discover new worlds and new creatures during their search, but also learn more about themselves and their own world than they ever knew before.

THE CHARACTERS
The characters in A Wrinkle in Time are very believable (even the fantastical ones) and easy to sympathize with in spite of (or perhaps precisely because of) their faults and shortcomings. One thing I particularly appreciated in the characterization was the fact that the adults were not portrayed as bumbling idiots, nor as perfect beings, as happens occasionally in books specifically written for children.

So, here is the cast of characters:

Mrs. Murry: A loving, nurturing, understanding, yet no-nonsense mother. She is not only a brilliant scientist with Ph.D.s in both bacteriology and biology, but she's drop-dead beautiful as well. Of herself she says: "I'm blessed with more brains and opportunities than many people, but there's nothing about me that breaks out of the ordinary mold."

Mr. Murry: Despite his brilliance (a top level physicist, a Ph.D. several times over), he is just a man, with no special powers, no superhuman strengths or abilities. He can't fix it all, but he does attempt to do what he believes is right and necessary. As he says of himself, "I am a human being, and a very fallible one." Mr. Murry understands and respects his children, whose development is sometimes questioned by others. Of his son Charles he remarks, "There's nothing the matter with his mind. He just does things in his own way and in his own time." To his daughter Meg, he observes, "Oh, my darling, you're not dumb...you're like Charles Wallace. Your development has to go at its own pace. It just doesn't happen to be the usual pace."

Meg Murry: A poor student (though not lacking in brains), prone to showing all her emotions, despite the consequences. She gets into fights, and is rude and resentful of both her peers and her elders. She has a mouth full of braces, her beautiful eyes are hidden behind glasses, and her hair is "mouse-brown." She feels resentful of her plainness. Angry at the poor hand she's been dealt, she lapses into self-pity: "Why must everything happen to me?" she asks towards the beginning of the story. Meg hates being an oddball and a misfit. On one level, A Wrinkle in Time is Meg's coming-of-age tale.

Sandy & Dennys Murry: The twins, very minor characters in the tale. "They weren't great students, but they weren't bad ones, either. They were perfectly content with a succession of B's and an occasional A or C. They were strong and fast runners and good at games, and when cracks were made about anybody in the Murry family, they weren't made about Sandy and Dennys."

Charles Wallace Murry: Meg's "dumb baby brother." Blond haired five-year-old who speaks in perfectly articulate sentences and has a better grasp of concepts than most adults. Neighbors remark, "The two boys seem to be nice, regular children, but that unattractive girl and the baby boy certainly aren't all there." Boy, are they wrong! Charles is wise enough to realize that people might react even more negatively to his intelligence than to the developmentally delayed child they had come to believe he was. He observes, "I think it will be better if people go on thinking I'm not very bright. They won't hate me quite so much....Thinking I'm a moron gives people something to feel smug about....Why should I disillusion them?"

Calvin O'Keefe: Tall, skinny, blue-eyed, orange-haired, freckled, teenage boy. People formed incorrect conclusions about him, too, since he was a good student and athlete. No one was aware of the sadness and loneliness of this boy who was one of eleven children of an abusive and uncaring mother.

Mrs. Whatsit: Not quite your normal guardian angel. In her first appearance, she is dressed like a tramp in layers of rags. If this book had been a film, Margaret Rutherford, bless her soul, would have made a good Mrs. Whatsit.

Mrs. Who: A bit ditsy, she is constantly quoting aphorisms in foreign languages. Mrs. Whatsit speaks up in Mrs. Who's defense, when Charles becomes annoyed at her constant quoting, "But she finds it so hard to verbalize, Charles dear. It helps her if she can quote instead of working out words on her own."

Mrs. Which: Once a star, she now sometimes has trouble materializing. She speaks in stammering sentences that have almost as much difficulty materializing as she does: "I ddo nnot thinkk I willl matterrialize commpletely. I ffindd itt verry ttirinngg, andd wee hhave mmuch ttoo ddoo."

Aunt Beast: She and her kind are much taller than humans, furry and gray. Their faces are marked with mere indentations where humans bear eyes and mouths. They have four arms that end in long, waving tentacles rather than fingers. More tentacles appear where humans sport ears and hair. They speak through their tentacles, lacking mouths for this function. Aunt Beast's appearance initially causes loathing and revulsion in Meg, but the kindness and love Aunt Beast exudes overcome Meg's initial reaction to her. (The relationship between Meg and Aunt Beast calls to mind the bond between Davidge and the Drac in Enemy Mine.)

THE THEMES
So many themes are packed into this wonderful tale, some bluntly stated, others more subtle. Most of the themes are developed not merely through plot, but via L'Engle's strong emphasis on character. The very traits which the characters themselves believe to be their own strengths and weaknesses are shown in a new light when circumstances change. Charles Wallace's intelligence and psychic abilities, generally beneficial to him on earth, work to his detriment when he faces the evil power of IT. Meg's tendency to become angry and resentful, so often cause for her problems on earth, becomes her greatest strength when channeled correctly in the battle against evil.

The inclination to judge people and things merely by their appearance is shown for what it's worth. Mrs. Murry attempts to enlighten Meg on this point within the confines of earthly understanding, but the lesson is learned directly and more obviously by Meg when she encounters creatures with a frightening appearance and strange language on other planets.

I particularly liked the scene L'Engle painted when Calvin, Mr. Murry, and Meg arrived on Aunt Beast's planet:

"Who are you?"
"I'm Calvin O'Keefe."
"What's that?"
"I'm a boy. A---a young man."
"You, too, are afraid?"
"I'm---not sure."
"Tell me," the beast said. "What do you suppose you'd do if three of us suddenly arrived on your home planet?"
"Shoot you, I guess," Calvin admitted.
"Then isn't that what we should do with you?"

Well, that is what we humans are inclined to do, isn't it? Judge, fear, and destroy what seems different to us. Unless, that is, we take the time to think and feel. And that, in a nutshell, is probably the greatest strength of this story. It is a wake up call to think and feel, to become aware of and accept one's self and others, to be aware of the distinction between what is evil and what is merely strange. Because of Madeleine L'Engle's remarkable talent, these lessons are all beautifully packaged in a thoroughly captivating tale.