Hatrack River Writers Workshop: Madeleine L'Engle dies at 88

This is topic Madeleine L'Engle dies at 88 in forum Open Discussions About Writing at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.

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Posted by RMatthewWare (Member # 4831) on :

The author of 'A Wrinkle in Time' died yesterday. It's been a long time since I read that book, but I still remember how much I liked it. I have the three book series (inherited from my wife) and I'll have to read them some time.

Posted by Tricia V (Member # 6324) on :

That gives me an idea for a story. Though it will probably sound disrespectful if I were to elaborate here and now.

Posted by I am destiny on :

I am so saddened at this news. It was her book "A Wrikle in time" that first turned me to the love of reading. My teacher read it to us in second grade. Adieu to a wonderfull writer.
~Destiny

Posted by Wolfe_boy (Member # 5456) on :

I've never read it, but it's on the very top of my to-be-read pile now. My wife has the whole box set somewhere.

Jayson Merryfield

Posted by Christine (Member # 1646) on :

I loved her books so much as a child and teen. I must have read "A Wrinkle in Time" a dozen times. They were definitely some of the most inspirational works for me at a time when I was really beginning to write. I may have to re-read them now. It's been a long time.

Rest in peace.

Posted by KayTi (Member # 5137) on :

Oh no!

I was honestly about to write her a letter. My kids and I just finished listening to all three books on CD from the library (read by the author, no less.) I feel so close to them having just enjoyed them in the last month.

The three books in this series are A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind in the Door, and A Swiftly Tilting Planet. All deal with many abstract themes, the lasting themes of love, death, good, evil, light, dark. The thing that makes these books so interesting is she manages to portray the abstract themes in abstract ways using fantastic elements, and connect to kids at the same time. I was probably only 8 years old when I first found these books and have read them countless times over the years.

Oh my heart is just sick, I wanted to write her a letter telling her how much I enjoyed sharing the books I loved as a child with my children (even though much of the books went over their heads - they're aged 3.5 and 6, they still enjoyed and listened and it made many long car rides feel *much* shorter for all of us.)

Sigh.

Pick the books back up, if you haven't in a while. They aren't the most perfect prose, the best things ever written, but they are beautiful books, wonderful stories, with upbeat themes, featuring (mostly) children as protagonists.

The first book came with an audio intro by the author, and she mentioned the difficulty she had in getting the first book published, that they just "didn't know what to do with it" - since it has elements of fantasy, realism, and science fiction. Thankfully it *did* get published, and she went on to write many beautiful books. I think my most favorite is And Both Were Young about a teenage girl in post-WWII Europe in boarding school. I also loved the one, whose title is escaping me, about the girl who learned to communicate with dolphins. Many of Madeline L'Engle's protagonists were girls who didn't feel like they quite fit in. Might explain why they're a mainstay on many grown women's bookshelves.

RIP Madeline.

Posted by JeanneT (Member # 5709) on :

Oh, I can't tell you how that saddens me. I was so influenced as a girl by her books, both as a reader and in a way as a writer.

Farewell to a wonderful woman.

Posted by RMatthewWare (Member # 4831) on :

From a post on my blog:

In Memoriam

Madeleine L'Engle passed away Thursday. She was 88 years old. I confess I have only read one of her books, A Wrinkle in Time, published in 1962. Yet it has left good impressions on me. When I married I found the trilogy in my wife's collection and I've thought of reading Wrinkle again along with its sequels. I've not gotten to it yet, but now being reminded of such a great writer, I may have to take the time to remember my childhood.

I read online today that Wrinkle was rejected repeatedly before finding a publisher. That may sound astonishing for a book that has done so well, but as a writer, I know it's actually quite common. Most writers have such a story. As Jim Butcher says, the trick to getting published is to outlast your competition. Even JK Rowling was rejected by just about every publisher in England. But persistence pays off. So much more so for L'Engle. She has written over 60 books, most featuring children as the main characters. But she did not like to be called a children's author.

And I understand her completely. The book I have written would probably be classed as a children's or YA story, but I didn't write it that way. I just tried to tell the best story I could with the characters that I created and fell in love with. I didn't target an audience. I think you'll disappoint that audience if you do. As L'Engle said: "In my dreams, I never have an age. I never write for any age group in mind. ... When you underestimate your audience, you're cutting yourself off from your best work."

So, lesson learned from L'Engle? Just write. Write what you like and don't underestimate your audience.

Posted by Robert Nowall (Member # 2764) on :

Well, like most kids starved for science fiction and fantasy in my era, I read A Wrinkle in Time, possibly before I read Heinlein. (There were several like that, like The Enormous Egg and The Spaceship Under the Apple Tree. Hope I remember the titles right.) It was one of those books available through the Schoolastic Book Club.

I read it...I reread it...I remember it fondly...it probably influenced me and my writing in any number of subtle ways.

But, alas, I don't think I read any of her books besides that.

Posted by Elan (Member # 2442) on :

"A Wrinkle in Time" was the very first science fiction book I ever read. It lead to a lifetime love and exploration of the genre. I wonder how many other people she influenced as well?

[This message has been edited by Elan (edited September 08, 2007).]

Posted by CoriSCapnSkip (Member # 3228) on :

Farewell to a wonderful writer and very classy lady!

Posted by Pyre Dynasty (Member # 1947) on :

A Wrinkle in Time was the first story I ever read (actually, thinking back it was probably read to me) that stepped into a whole other realm. (otherwise known as speculative) It was the book that showed me that we live in a world of doors not walls. I miss her.