In a recent Horn Book article, T.A. Barron, author and conservationist, reflected on the greatest of Madeleine L’Engle’s classic “A Wrinkle in Time.” With the success of Harry Potter and the “Lord of the Rings” series/movies, fantasy novels he believes have had a resurgence of popularity. Although new fantasy novels tend to be longer in length, bigger, he stated is not always better. “A Wrinkle in Time” runs about 200 pages. Stories must be more than a series of obstacles. They must bring to the reader ideas and lead the reader to questions and meaning. This is what this novel does.
He believes that there are three qualities that fantasy must share with all literature. It must have depth of character, truth of place, and richness of meaning. Barron tests his theory by using “A Wrinkle in Time” as a model. All three criteria are met in L’Engle’s fifty year-old story. Meg, the main character, grows in wisdom and takes the reader along for the ride. The setting is more than a backdrop to the action. It is a fully realized place where we are. Meg also grows in character for she struggles, makes choices ,and learns what it means to be human.
Barron concluded that the “best fantasy is true.” The best fantasy “selectively distorts reality in pursuit of truth.”