Everyone in town thinks Meg Murry is volatile and dull-witted, and that her younger brother, Charles Wallace, is dumb. People are also saying that their physicist father has run off and left their brilliant scientist mother. Spurred on by these rumors and an unearthly stranger, the tesseract-touting Mrs Whatsit, Meg and Charles Wallace and their new friend Calvin O'Keefe embark on a perilous quest through space to find their father. In doing so, they must travel behind the shadow of an evil power that is darkening the cosmos, one planet at a time. This is no superhero tale, nor is it science fiction, although it shares elements of both. The travelers must rely on their individual and collective strengths, delving deep within themselves to find answers.

Everyone Should Read A Wrinkle In Time

Gliding through the glaxaies, meeting the witches, getting to know the kids, and enrolling in the new adventures every time you turn the page is what I loved about reading this book. I never wanted to put this book down. I felt so envolved and fasinated every chapter I read of the book. A wrinkle in time is a great book to read if you want a real thriller. I definetly think everyone should read this book!

Just a classic

I still remember getting Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time from the book mobile library when I was probably around 10 years old. As my first introduction to science fiction, I devoured it. The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature sums up the story well:

Juvenile novel by Madeleine L'Engle, published in 1962. It won a Newbery Medal in 1963. Combining theology, fantasy, and science, it is the story of travel through space and time to battle a cosmic evil. With their neighbor Calvin O'Keefe, young Meg Murry and her brother Charles Wallace embark on a cosmic journey to find their lost father, a scientist studying time travel. Assisted by three eccentric women--Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which--the children travel to the planet Camazotz where they encounter a repressed society controlled by IT, a disembodied brain that represents evil. Among the themes of the work are the dangers of unthinking conformity and scientific irresponsibility and the saving power of love.

Two images remain with me after 30 years since reading the book. One is Meg saying the multiplication tables to focus her mind and resist being taken over by IT. The other is Meg calling out her love to Charles Wallace to pull him back from the IT's mind control. At the time, and still now, I was struck by the power of love in this story, which I think was Ms. Engle's primary point. Disney just ran a made-for-TV movie on A Wrinkle in Time. It started out well. I think the three kids were well cast, especially Charles Wallace. But unfortunately the special effects were way too cheesy, almost Dr. Who-ish, and detracted from rather than providing support for the story. Too bad. Disney blew it. This book deserved better.

I wish I'd read this when I was ten.

This book is simply gorgeous; it's all about time travel, but it's also timeless in the artistic sense. Written over 40 years ago, A Wrinkle in Time is still fresh. Its central theme is about developing self-reliance, judging nothing by its face value, and realizing one's inner strengths. The female characters are just as powerful as the male, and everyone in the story is imperfect and very human. When it was first published in the early 60s, this book would have been way ahead of its time.
I just finished reading this a few days ago; I didn't read it when I was ten, but I really wish I had, because it probably would have gotten me hooked on science early in life. There is a scientific and spiritual theme running through this book - no doubt a lot of people have spotted a zillion "symbols" in it - but it is simply an "unputdownable" book. I would highly recommend it to young and old alike.