A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L'Engle

I probably should begin by saying that this book is completely science fiction and fantasy. The story includes unbelievable creatures, crystal balls, and a giant evil brain. It also includes ideas from science, like tessering, which I will explain later. Some of you who aren’t exactly fantasy readers may see this and think, “Wow, all the stuff I hate in books, all in one story! No way am I reading this book.” Even though it has some crazy stuff added to the story, give it a chance. Many people have been known to dislike stories like that have so much fantasy and sci-fi, but end up really liking the story.

This book begins with a girl named Meg Murry. She is a high-school aged girl who is an outcast at school, yet she is very bright. Her five-year-old brother, Charles Wallace, is also extremely smart. In the middle of a stormy night, the Murry family is visited by a strange and eccentric lady who calls herself Mrs. Whatsit. She startles Meg’s mother by telling her that tesseracts exist. A tesseract is a “wrinkle” in time and space. It is through this wrinkle that Meg and her companions will travel through the fifth dimension in search of Meg’s father, who has been missing for 2 years.

The next day, Meg and Charles go to the “haunted cabin” in which Mrs. Whatsit lives. On the way there, they run into Calvin O’Keefe, a tall, red-headed boy who is quite popular at Meg’s school. The three kids learn from Mrs. Whatsit and her friends, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which that a great and terrible evil called the Dark Thing is threatening the universe. It takes the form of a giant black cloud and engulfs stars around it. It can also take over planets. One of these planets is Camazotz, the planet that Meg’s scientist father is trapped on.

Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin are taken on a frightening journey to save Mr. Murry from the Dark Thing on Camazotz. The three Mrs. W’s tesser them from planet to planet, even taking an accidental stop on a two-dimensional planet in the process. The three children learn more about themselves and accomplish more than any of them ever thought possible.

This is a great book for middle school aged students. Madeleine L'Engle really does a lot of stuff right in this book, but something that I think she does exceptionally well is how she sends messages and gets themes across to her readers. Just by the nature of the story, she gives hope to any average kid that they can accomplish great things, and that everybody has the potential to be great. L’Engle also really emphasizes the importance of family and friendship. All throughout the book the three main characters are helping each other and pulling each other up. It shows that if they didn’t have each other to rely on, none of it would be possible. I enjoyed this book very much, from the themes of the book, to the characters, and to the plotline, this was a great read for me. This book gets a well-deserved A!