Monday, July 31, 2023

Started: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle


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5 comments:

Whisky Prajer said...

A Wrinkle In Time -- I loved the novel, but it's another "the suburbs are bad bad bad bad bad" book. If it's available I recommend another ya novel, When You See Me Next by Rebeccah Stead.

BTW, I remember "the Happy Sadist" from my first reading of AWIT because I had to ask my mother what a "sadist" was (I got the pronunciation wrong). We had no idea the term was first applied to the Marquise de Sade. So was "sodomy."

August 2, 2023 at 7:52 AM
Joel Swagman said...

Yes, actually your fondness for this novel was another reason that prompted me to pick it up. I don't remember where, but I think at one point you mentioned that you re-read it regularly. (maybe it was a comment on your blog? Maybe on mine? It was somewhere).
I'm 70 pages in and so far, I'm still skeptical. The dialogue is just really strange. Not how people talk at all.
The characters don't really seem to make sense.
I don't know. I'm trying to reserve judgement until I get a bit further in and see where this is going.

August 2, 2023 at 8:39 AM
Joel Swagman said...

I've just searched your blog to remind myself what you've said about this book, and...
I've significantly understated your affection for it, haven't I?
So, obviously all that wasn't in my active memory, but I suspect some of that was still in my subconscious memory. All those years of reading Whisky--That's why I've been thinking to myself more and more recently that I need to come back and give this book another chance.
Apologies in advance if it turns out I don't like this book as much as you do. I'm going to do my best to try to see the good in it though. I guess we'll see what I make of it in the end.

August 2, 2023 at 12:55 PM
Whisky Prajer said...

AWIT was one of the few SF books I was allowed to read but my mother had grave misgivings about it and Madeleine L'Engle in particular. It's one of the few SF books I remember from my childhood -- that, and a Scholastic book about a couple of fellows stowing away on a UFO. After that it was Frank & Joe Hardy, Star Trek and the novels of John Christopher. Then it was "game over" for me -- let me read it all, man.

I'm glad you're sticking with it. As you say, it is a short book.

BTW, L'Engle's kids were often asked which of the book's scenes were based on real life. "The potato on a Bunsen Burner," was the reply. "She was a TERRIBLE cook."

August 3, 2023 at 7:55 AM
Joel Swagman said...

I've just now finished the main text. But, since I've got the 50th anniversary edition in my hand, I'm going to read all the extra bits (the afterward, the interview with the author, etc), before I count it as truly finished.

I don't know, I'm still trying to process it. My immediate take is that I was confused by some parts of it, and unimpressed by other parts of it, but I'm trying to let it sit a while and see what is of value here. I wonder if the interdimensional travel parts of it would have impressed me more if I had read it when I was younger. Maybe it's a pity I didn't stick with this book when I was in 4th grade.

I'll probably post a review coming soon. Apologies in advance if the review is a little unenthusiastic in places. I don't know, I could just need another reading to appreciate it more.

August 3, 2023 at 8:41 AM

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