Review: A Wrinkle in Time

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

My rating: 2 of 5 stars



Many books for children are still magical for adults reading them without the benefit of nostalgia, but this was not one of those for me. Honestly, I found it simplistic and moralistic, and was surprised to find there was much more talking than anything else. I expected more adventure, more action, but everything that actually happens is through philosophizing. I thought it was kind of boring. Talk about bashing kids over the head with how they are supposed to behave in the guise of Science Fiction!

It's also not really about time travel so much as travel to other worlds. The worlds were interesting and sometimes creepy, as were some of the characters they met there. I liked Mrs. Whatsit and her companions. They were entertaining.

But the main characters were basically just led around and told to 'go there' without being given any idea what to do there, and then the final solution was a moral lesson. Not surprising for the time it was written, I suppose, but I expected more... something. Excitement. Action. Fun.

The main character is whiny in a stamp-your-foot kind of way. She's constantly throwing fits and lashing out because she doesn't understand things. And although she dutifully learns her lesson by the end, I found her annoying.

Would I have liked this if I read it when I was a kid? Maybe. But I don't think it would have lived up to the adventures of The Magic Faraway Tree.



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