A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle / Graphic Novel by Hope Larson

A Wrinkle in Time and A Wrinkle in Time: The Graphic Novel
by Madeleine L’Engle [j L’Engle for book]; adapted by Hope Larson as a graphic novel [YA L’Engle for Graphic Novel] 

This is an absolute classic in the field of youth or Young Adult science fiction/fantasy fiction. Originally published in 1963, A Wrinkle in Time is part adventure story, part coming-of-age tale, and part allegory. Young Meg Murry feels like an outcast, not liked by any of the other kids she knows, and ostracized in her circle of contacts. She is the daughter of a pair of brilliant but eccentric scientists, and her father disappeared months ago — the people of the town believing he ran away with another woman. In fact, the only person who seems to understand her is her five-year-old brother, Charles Wallace, a brilliant wunderkind. Charles Wallace has befriended a trio of odd elderly women, who have taken up residence in a nearby “haunted house”. He introduces Meg and their new friend Calvin O’Keefe, to the three ladies, who soon launch the trio of children on an adventure through time and space, in search of their missing father — and in opposition to a dark and oppressive force that is taking over planet after planet and has Earth in its sights.

The Graphic Novel adaptation of L’Engle’s novel was adapted and illustrated by Hope Larson, and is a very faithful telling of the story. All the art is black & white, with blue highlights and shadings. The artwork is fairly good, but I felt that the choices made by Larson for graphic purposes sometimes missed opportunities to enhance the story. The “Red-Eyed Man” that features in the story’s middle is not literally “red-eyed” in the art. None-the-less, this is a reasonable alternate way to enjoy this story. There is a big-budget movie version of A Wrinkle in Time coming to theaters very soon.

This is the first volume in The Time Quintet, but is the most well-known of the volumes in the series. I give the original novel an “8” and the Graphic Novel version a “6”.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the rest of the Time Quintet by L’Engle]

[ Wikipedia page for A Wrinkle in Time ] | [ official Madeleine L’Engle web site ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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