Madeleine L’Engle

By: Jason Grote
November 29, 2009

lengle-quartet

If there were to be a patron saint for misfit smart kids who do poorly in school, it would have to be MADELEINE L’ENGLE (1918-2007). A gifted writer from the age of 5, she was shy and clumsy, and branded as stupid by insensitive teachers. Revenge (or at least justice) would be hers in the form of Meg Murry, the gawky but intrepid heroine of A Wrinkle In Time (1962) and its sequels. Best known for her lauded and cherished YA books, L’Engle also wrote extensively on religion, and provided a living demonstration that it and science needn’t be adversaries. An ardent Episcopalian who believed in universal salvation, she nonetheless provided countless children (including this one) with their first introductions to scientific notions like tesseracts and mitochondria.

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