A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
203 pages
Published 1962
Read August 27
Rating: ★★½ out of 5
I had been thinking this book would probably have been a lot better if I'd read it as a kid -- all the cliches and obvious plot twists and "saved by the power of love" crap probably would have felt fresher way back then. But then again, there was also all this Christian mumbo-jumbo toward the end. A little bit of religious treacle is okay from time to time, like if the characters believe in a god or whatever and want to mention that occasionally, but this crossed the line into evangelization, I felt. Or maybe this was more or less commonplace for a book published in 1962. In the first couple chapters I'd been mildly impressed by how progressive the characters seemed for such an ancient date, what with the Scout-esque heroine and her scientist mother, but almost immediately the book swerved into feeling dated (all the young characters valuating their mothers based on personal beauty, the bald Communism vs. Christian "freedom" allegory, etc.). I don't know how much my opinion was soured by the religious stuff and how much of it was a result of the trite resolution.
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