Rating:  Summary: This book is good Review: Reading this book was an exciting adventure through time and space. In this book a young girl, her brother, and a strange old lady go looking for her lost father butt get stopped by many aliens along the way. They travel to many galaxies just to find out her father has left. On every page another adventure awaits them butt they won't stop till her father is found.
Rating:  Summary: Wow. Review: This book was absolutely amazing. It kept me interested until the very end. I cannot believe the imagination of Madeleine L'Engle. I would never have been able to dream up this idea in a million years. The characters seemed so real, as though they actually exist, but at the same time, you can never imagine these events happening. Ms. L'Engle, if you ever read this, I'm begging you to write more books, especially about Vicki Austin and her gift of kything.(By the way, if you haven't read ahead into the series, Meg and Calvin get married and have seven kids. It's very interesting, don't you think?)
Rating:  Summary: After all that time, still a splendidly unwrinkled story! Review: "It was a dark and stormy night." In her 1962 Newbery Medal winning novel "A Wrinkle in Time", Madeleine L'Engle uses this cliched opening to tell an uncliched tale about time travel, a tale that itself has marvellously stood the test of time. The protagonist Meg is a rather plain and ordinary looking girl from a rather extraordinary family. Meg's father and mother are brilliant scientists, and her father has been away for a considerable time on a secret government mission. But things start happening when that "dark and stormy night" brings the other-worldly Mrs. Whatsit to Meg's home, with her mysterious comment: "by the way, there *is* such a thing as a tessseract." (p18). A tesseract, we discover, is a fifth dimension which enables instantaneous travel to different places in the universe (p72). Meg, her genious five-year old brother Charles Wallace, and their new friend Calvin O'Keefe, are joined by Mrs. Watsit and her two companions, the classic-quoting Mrs. Which and the stammering Mrs. Who (whom Calvin later describes as "Guardian angels! Messengers of God!" p179) in a quest to rescue Meg's father. The travellers from earth come to discover that Meg's father is in the center of a "grand and exciting battle" (p82), a cosmic battle between good and evil, fighting the Dark Thing which also threatens planet earth with its evil: "That is why your planet is such a troubled one." (p81) The wrinkle in time takes them to the planet Camazotz, which seems to be a play on the word "comatose" because all its inhabitants are victims of thoughtless conformity controlled by one mind, the IT (p132). Charles Wallace too falls under the spell of the enemy and IT's manipulating mind (p126). With the help of the three Mrs. Ws, can Meg and Calvin rescue both Meg's father and brother? Meg can only succeed if she recognizes the saving power of love (p194). As a Christian, L'Engle is clearly using the cosmic battle against the Dark Thing as a metaphor of the battle between the kingdoms of Christ and Satan, with an explicit reference to John 1 that Jesus is the light shining in the darkness (p82). There are a few peculiarities, such as the inclusion of the occult in the form of the Happy Medium and her crystal ball on the side of good (p78ff) and the facade of witchcraft employed by the three Mrs Ws, as well as the bizarre list of humans who have fought on the side of good (p82). But on the whole, astute readers familiar with the Bible will find much deep spiritual meaning in the imagery and language that L'Engle uses. Charles is vulnerable because "he trusted too much to his own strength." (p155) Despite her weaknesses, Meg is commissioned to rescue Charles because "God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty." (p189) "But of course we can't take any credit for our talents. It's how we use them that counts." (p78) The apparently blind Aunt Beast says: "We look not at the things which are what you would call seen, but at the things which are not seen." And Meg's rejection of common scepticism about her Father's return ("Why don't you face facts about your father?") resembles the attitude that the Bride of Christ can have to her Bridegroom's return: "As long as she says Father *is* coming home, then I'll believe that." (p23) Meg's mother shares another pearl of wisdom about the humble attitude of believers: "I think that with our human limitations we're not always able to understand the explanations. But you see, Meg, just because we don't understand doesn't mean that the explanation doesn't exist." (p41). Although the profound religious depth gives L'Engle's stories a lasting significance, the facts of theology never overpower the excitement of the fiction. When combined with identifiable characters, an imaginative and fantastic world, and an exciting plot, this combination of theology, science and fantasy is a formula for success. It's little wonder that "A Wrinkle In Time" has proven to be timeless, and worthy of being placed alongside Lewis' Narnia Chronicles, and above Harry Potter. This story may be forty years old, but it hasn't worn out its pleasure for either children or adults, and after all that time is still a winning story without wrinkles!
Rating:  Summary: A classic fantasy novel Review: I had recently needed to read a fantasy novel, and I thought that this would be a good choice. I remember enjoying this as a younger child. When i read this book for a second time, it had a whole different twist to. I know that this time it was much better. It is a great story of three young children, Meg, Calvin, and Charles, that venture out into space to find Meg and Charles' father. It would be a shame to give the story away, so i choose to just say that is a good fun read. I appreciate it and hope that you do to!
Rating:  Summary: Still a winner Review: I first read this book around age 10, like so many. Even then, it had been out for around a decade, but it hadn't become dated. It wasn't lost in some early 60's vortex of overly sweet sentimentality. The story of struggle against your insecurities, against what people think of you -- it's still relevant. I reread it a few times over the years and even as an adult, it made me remember those awkward adolescent times. I identified with Meg, and still do. My daughter, who much to my dismay, isn't much of a reader, has never "enjoyed" reading a book. She's 10 and had a mandatory book report, so I pushed this book (probably too hard) at her, hoping she would identify with Meg as well. She's the odd girl out right now, and I thought ...maybe. Much to my delight, she read it quickly, proclaiming it the best book she had ever read, and she enthusiastically wanted to march out and buy the others in the set. Maybe, we've finally found something she wants to read. I guess it's still relevant 40 years after it was first published. So, if you've got a 10 year old, especially a 10 year old girl who feels out of place, gently give them a copy of this book. Amazing things might happen.
Rating:  Summary: A Wrinkle in Time Review: Everything seems mostly normal for Meg and her brother Charles Wallace. Then she meets Mrs. Whatsit and a new friend, Collin. Meg never knew where her father dissappeared to. Little does she know she'll need the help of a new found friend and Mrs. Whatsit to save her father. In another dimension where everything is the same. What will Meg do? A Wrinkle in Time is a strange thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat.
Rating:  Summary: a wrinkle in time write up Review: Everything seems mostly normal for Meg and her brother charles wallace. Then she meets Mrs. Whatsit and a new friend,Collin. Meg never knew where her father dissappeared to. Little does she know she'll need the help of a new found friend and Mrs. Whatsit to save her father. In another dimension where everything is the same. What will Meg do? A wrinkle in time is a strange thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat.
Rating:  Summary: Not just for kids Review: I read the first part of this set in 1963 and was enthralled with it. I waited (not so patiently) for the rest of the set to come out and was richly rewarded for my patience. The first book sets the stage for the next three and introduces the characters of Meg, Charles Wallace and Calvin> Meg's father was working for the government and has been gone quite some time, leaving Meg and her family alone. Meg's mom keeps the home fires burning, but never lets on to the children her fears. Charles Wallace was just a baby when his father left, now he's in school. And then there's Meg - not cool like the other girls, not beautiful, too outspoken and smart to fit in her class, she worries that her father has died. Throw Calvin, a sort of popular boy from school into this mix and you got the makings of an adventure. (The twins show up in this book, but later they are showcased more.) Meg and company set out ot find her father, which turns out to be a lot harder than it looks - and it looks pretty darn hard! The other books continue the adventures of this group, as the characters age and other things come along to upset their world. The books are set up as a classic good versus evil, but it never feels preachy or didactic and you will be swept away in the current of the stories. I highly recommend this for girls as it shows a protagonist who isn't cool or popular and how she handles things - not so well at times. My sons loved it, too so I know other boys would like it. I reread it every few years as it seems there's something in there I need to read again or I learn something different. Obviously, in the beginning, I identified more with Meg, but now I see the parents' point of view, too. Buy this set for yourself or for somebody who needs to be a little challenged on their reading and thinking and enjoy it.
Rating:  Summary: First read at age 10, still love it at age 25 Review: I first read this book when I was in 5th grade. I loved it. It's an unforgettable story that offers, I think, for a child, the ability to see things in a different way. Which is an important life skill: looking at things from every possible angle. I have read many books. Anything from quantum physics and quark symmetries to Jack Kerouac and Kahlil Gibran. And I still get a kick out of this book every time I read it. There are certain books that will forever stay in your collection and be read multiple times. This is one of them. As far as listening to it on audio (in the car no less) and the complaints they had...I can only say that maybe you and the rest of the family should take on the joy of reading. It is quickly becoming a lost art an a forgotten past time. Maybe if you read it, instead of a machine doing the work for you, you would enjoy it more. Give it a whirl.
Rating:  Summary: cool Review: this book is about a dog and a cat who travel to alaska by sailboat. They enconter ogers, wizards and polar bears. Then they meet an eskimo. The message of this story is to always hug an eskimo.
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