50 Years of A Wrinkle in Time
I remember reading A Wrinkle in Time about — dating myself — 35 years ago and how much I loved this Newbery winning chapter book and this author. It was as if entire worlds opened up for me; suddenly science was something mysterious and exciting, as it should be, not something to toil over and memorize.
And yet, I had only a fuzzy recollection of the plot. Much like a dream when you wake up and know that you’ve just had the most pleasant dream ever but can’t remember anything but just the feeling it gave you.
So I really enjoyed the re-read over the December break and fifty years since its publication, the story is as compelling, mind-expanding, suspenseful, and engaging as it was for me more than three decades ago. Is it because it’s a tale of a classic theme of good versus evil; light against dark? No, there is so much more to this book. Madeleine L’Engle is not just a great storyteller, but a scientist, dreamer, and philosopher.
Why is it that tales of epic battles against Evil/darkness/chaos rivet us so? Is it the state of our human condition? Or are we actually continually locked in a battle against some kind of omnipotent Evil that is the cause for human suffering? Is this the only way we can explain war?
And furthermore, is it possible that our blue planet is shadowed by evil that threatens to take over? If you enter the world of Madeleine L’Engle, anything is possible and plausible.
Here’s another hypothesis: she is simply one who resists IT — a.k.a. The Great Darkness, Evil, the devil. Perhaps she’s a Chosen One. It would not be a far cry in the world of Madeleine L’Engle and, I, for one am glad for her and for it. (Not IT).
“… some of our very best fighters have come right from your own planet, and it’s a little planet, dears, out on the edge of a little galaxy. You can be proud that it’s done so well.
“Who have our fighters been?” Calvin asked.
“Oh, you must know them, dear,” Mrs. Whatsit said.”
… Jesus, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Shakespeare, Bach, Louis Pasteur, Madame Curie, Einstein, Schweitzer, Gandhi, Buddha, Beethoven, Rembrandt, St. Francis, Euclid, and Copernicus.
For those who want to explore more deeply the pantheon of great people in history that are listed in A Wrinkle in Time, They Stood Alone: 25 Men and Women Who Made a Difference by Sandra McLeod Humphrey is a great non-fiction tie it. Many of these 25 are the “fighters” mentioned above: Leonardo da Vinci, Nicolaus Copernicus, Marie Curie, Albert Einstein, and Mahatma Gandhi. Coincidence? Are there coincidences in the world of L’Engle??
And what is remarkable about the 50 year anniversary of A Wrinkle in Time is how it has stood the test of time. My oldest, now a 6th grader, has recently discovered this chapter book and loved it much as I did 35 years ago. Such is the power of parental love. Madeleine L’Engle knows all about that too.
The Quintet Boxed Set:
And …
A WRINKLE IN TIME 50th ANNIVERSARY EDITION
The 50th Anniversary Commemorative edition features:
- Frontispiece photo*†
- Photo scrapbook with approximately 10 photos*†
- Manuscript pages*†
- Letter from 1963 Caldecott winner, Ezra Jack Keats*†
- New introduction by Katherine Paterson, US National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature †
- New afterword by Madeleine L’Engle’s granddaughter Charlotte Voiklis including six never-before-seen photos †
- Murry-O’Keefe family tree with new artwork †
- Madeleine L’Engle’s Newbery acceptance speech
* Unique to this edition † never previously published
To view any book more closely at Amazon, please click on image of book.
p.s. Please LIKE the 50th Anniversary A Wrinkle in Time Facebook page.
p.p.s. Here’s the blog tour schedule:
Week 1: Revisiting A Wrinkle In Time
January 16 -20
There’s A Book
I Swim For Oceans
The Story Siren
Week 2: Sharing A Wrinkle In Time
January 23 – 27
Hi Miss Julie
5 Minutes For Books
Lost in the Library
Week 3: Characters in A Wrinkle In Time
January 30 – February 3
Anna Reads
S. Krishna’s Books
Week 4: Expressions of A Wrinkle In Time
February 6 – February 10
Word For Teens
Fictional Food
Modly Chic
The J. Sorese Visual Companion
Week 5: Reading A Wrinkle In Time for the First Time
February 13 – 17
I Just Wanna Sit Here And Read
Page Turners
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My books:
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
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Food for the Future: Sustainable Farms Around the World
- Junior Library Guild Gold selection
- Massachusetts Book Award Long List
- Selected as one of 100 Outstanding Picture Books of 2023 by dPICTUS and featured at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair
- Starred review from School Library Journal
- Chicago Library’s Best of the Best
- 2023 INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist
- Green Earth Book Award Long List
- Imagination Soup’s 35 Best Nonfiction Books of 2023 for Kids
Amazon / Barefoot Books / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Scholastic / Signed or Inscribed by Me
50 years! I just reread this last year and had forgotten so much of it, even though I had considered it one of my favorite books ever for so long!
To Craftwhack,
I am almost as old as A Wrinkle in Time! I really enjoyed re-reading it and I’m going to read the next 3. Two are familiar from childhood but somehow I never read Many Waters so I’m excited for this new read!
I love this book, and this series! I only haven’t read the last one yet. But I’ve been enjoying them all.
I read the first one for the first time when I was 22 or something. Wish I’d read it as a kid! 🙂
To Michael,
I’m the same! Somehow I missed Many Waters too! Must have come out when I was older … but I am nearly as old as A Wrinkle in Time. I am going to read the last 3. They are on my huge pile next to my bed. I’ll let you know if it’s worth procuring! I’m sure it probably is just for the sake of finishing the series! Plus, I doubt L’Engle ever wrote a bad book.
It’s amazing how well some books/stories stand up to the passing of time. I just finished reading “When You Reach Me” by Rebecca Snead and the main characters in the book are reading “A Wrinkle in Time”. (I’ve often told my kids that the reason I have them read older books is because they will find new authors who refer to these stories or characters in newer books).
I do so love books that allow for such open discussions with kids – and so many times I find that my kids pick up on things that I have either forgotten or just didn’t see as an adult reader.
I too am going back to read the last 2, which I didn’t read as a child. Thanks for a great post!
Jacquie
To Jacquie,
Me too! Loved that about When You Reach Me so much that it’s a blog post! LOL! WRINKlES FROM A WRINKLE IN TIME: http://www.pragmaticmom.com/?p=16650. Thank you so much for your kind words! I’m so glad to meet another fellow adult who loves Madeleine L’Engle!!