A Wrinkle In Time - Book Review

My mother first read this book to my sister and me when we were younger. At first we approached it cautiously. We had heard mixed reviews about it and if it hadn't been for the fact a woman we respected recommended it, I doubt we would've started it. But we were all sucked in quickly and spent hours reading it. It now sits on my bookshelf.

A Wrinkle In Time opens up with stubborn, troubled Meg Murray worrying about her father, Dr. Murray, who has been missing for over a year. Her younger brother, Charles Wallace, befriends three older ladies named Mrs Who, Mrs Which, and Mrs Whatsit around this time and they send him, Meg, and an acquaintance, Calvin, to rescue their father. They inform the children that he is imprisoned on a planet called Camazotz, which is in danger of being swallowed up by the Darkness. It's up to them to destroy the Darkness' hold on the planet and rescue Dr. Murray

This was the first science fiction book I ever read and it wasn't what I expected. There are no spaceships or explosive battles like in Star Wars. Instead it was all about a stubborn girl trying to combat the evil in her universe and saving her family.

While the book isn't explicitly Christian, there are several references to Jesus and various parts of the Bible. Also, there is a strong Light vs. Dark theme throughout the book. Madeleine L'Engle wrote this during the Cold War, which influenced aspects of the book. For example, on Carazotz, only one being, called IT, controlled everything and everyone. Also, there is a lot of supernatural beings and doings, though it's not magic.

This book's best for older teenagers and up because of the concepts in it.