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Summary: A Book of Fantasy, History, and Adventure
Review: Meg Murry O'Keefe has just come home to her family for Thanksgiving accompanied by her mother-in-law. Her husband is not able to come due to a meeting in London. Meg has a beautiful mother who is also an accomplished scientist. Her Father is also an extremely talented scientist, so talented that the President of the United States often asks for his help on some cases such as terrorist attacks. Meg has a fifteen-year-old brother, Charles Wallace, who is very small for his age, and too smart for even his teachers. He also acts very strangely; he can tell what people are thinking. Just as the family is sitting down to dinner, a phone call comes from the President saying that a terrorist from South America, Mad Dog Branzillo, is threatening to start a nuclear war, which would bring an end to mankind. After the family hears about this, an eerie silence comes over them. After a few minutes of it, Meg's mother-in-law, who is always very cranky, starts to chant an old verse from Britain. The chant's powerful meaning awes the whole family. Meg's mother-in-law tells every one that she doesn't know much about it, but that it has a powerful meaning. That night Charles Wallace takes a walk to the star gazing rock to think about every thing that had happened that night. He has a felling that he has something to do with it all, that he would have to stop nuclear war. Suddenly he stands up and shouts the ancient chant to the stars. He looks up in the sky, and can see what looks like a star quickly approaching from the sky. It lands next to Charles Wallace, and he can see that it is a Unicorn. He climbs on it's back, and sets off to go back in time to change history, to prevent all of the violence that has taken place in history, to save the race of mankind. I enjoyed this book a lot, and would highly recommend this book to any one who enjoys reading books about fantasy and history. It is also a very suspenseful and emotional story. The main downside to this book is it is extremely confusing at times because the family uses many scientific terms like a "tesceract", meaning the fifth dimension, that is nearly impossible to understand, even if it had a whole page that tried to describe what a tesceract is. On a scale from one to ten I would give this book an eight for its creativity and excitement.
Rating: 
Summary: Definitely one of my all-time favorites!
Review: I can't really remember when I first read Madeleine L'Engle. It must have been before I was 12. But she is one of my favorite authors, and this book is my favorite of hers! Each time I read it I feel like I get more out of it. I can't wait to get back home and read this book again.
This book IS complex. I would recommend it to anyone who is of the opinion they can think, regardless of age. Yes, it is disturbing at times. But that's no reason to prevent a child from reading it, for life is disturbing at times. What's important here is that good triumphs over evil in the end, due to choices people make, and due to a higher power. And I don't think there is anything wrong with being pregnant! Meg is probably thinking of writing her thesis or something at the time, it is kind of besides the point of the story.
Also fascinating are the historical references to an apparently European genetically influenced tribe in America long before Columbus. It makes me wonder, and I also wonder where L'Engle came up with the rune. Really, I can't say enough, just read this book!
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Summary: A Journey to What Might-Have-Been
Review: I remember arguing with my 4th grade teacher that a straight line is NOT the shortest distance between 2 points, thanks to having nearly memorized "A Wrinkle in Time" and its "tesseract" theories. Having read most of Ms. L'Engle's books, some of them repeatedly, "A Swiftly Tilting Planet" is by far my favorite of her books, and may be my favorite of all the books I've ever read. When I read it as a teenager, it was my first real glimpse into a world outside my very narrow field of vision - the premise that every thing every person does can and often will impact the future, for better or worse. Who knows what "might-have been" in our world now? ...in the book, as in reality, each person chooses what to follow. Several on-the-fence characters make choices that clearly define their futures, and the future of the world. What a life lesson for a person mature enough to realize the implications of their decisions. Also, folks, it's a good idea to pre-read books before reading them to your children, particularly if you or your child is sensitive to certain issues, and this book is no exception. War and child abuse are portrayed in gruesome detail, and molestation is hinted at, all of which are reasons why this book is not listed in the intermediate readers section. Overall, what a great read for those who have the discernment to see the real story.
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Summary: If you love books by Madeleine L'Engle you'll love this book
Review: Charles Wallace, 16 years old now has to find a way to save the planet earth from total destruction by neucler war. His sister Meg, married and carring her first child can still be with him in his mind and thoughts by "kything" with him. This this is a tale of saving the world through the "when" not the "where". This chilling tale is one I personally LOVED.
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Summary: Many Waters
Review: Many Waters was one of the best books, in my opinion, that I have ever read. Most of the characters and events that were in the story really did happen in the BIBLE.It was such a great book, it was so exceleent that I could not put it down, and read it in 2 days! It is a great book.
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Summary: Probably too complicated and upsetting for most kids
Review: I am a mom with two bright boys, ages 8 and 11. My husband and I read this book to the 11 year old, but I also read it to myself. In this book, the protagonist travels back and forth through time to change history to try to prevent a catastrophe. The changes must be very subtle to avoid paradox. The story line is complex because the reader must keep track of many generations of two branches of the same family. The story is very suspenseful because bad spirits are constantly trying to kill the protagonist, or prevent his success. The book has good points and bad points. On the good side:
1. The book presents a peace loving and anti-racist point of view;
2. It also makes a fascinating exploration of historical rumors that when British colonists first arrived in the southern part of the US they found a tribe of Welsh-speaking Native Americans with some Caucasian features; and
3. I enjoyed the complexity, but you really had to pay very close attention, or you got lost -- like my husband did. On the bad side:
1. I did not like the idea that, starting from two brothers, the descendents of the bad brother would be bad and the descendents of the good brother would be good over several hundred years and a large number of generations. Each person makes his or her own destiny and decisions of right and wrong. It's not a very good message to send kids that a person's goodness and badness are determined by some ancestor so long ago. This is the sort of attitude that leads to perpetual war in the Balkans.
2. There was one very disturbing sequence about a critical character being severely injured and ultimately dying as a result of child abuse. This portion was really not appropriate for small children. In sum, though this is an interesting, enjoyable book, I disagree it is appropriate for ages 9-12. It would be better for teenagers.
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Summary: A Swiftly Tilting Planet; Best out of all 4!
Review: A Swiftly Tilting Planet is the best out of all 4 books in the Time Quartet by L'Engle. It is so strange how Meg went from being a little girl to a woman who is married, and going to have a baby! Little Charles Wallace is growing too, he went fom 6 to 16! I would recomend reading this book, it is filled with a lot of exitement and adventure! It is so good, that you won't be able to put it down!
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Summary: OUTSTANDINGLY AWESOME THIS BOOK IS
Review: These series from L'Engle are amazing and i couldnt get enough of it. Especially this book. It has so much adventure and mysteries that it seems like you're involved with the story. Its full of surprises that it will keep you reading on and on for hours. The charcters are wonderful and unpredictable. You'll never know whats going to happen next and you always learn something new from them. It's a good book but i dont think the charcter's personality should hve changed so much though...Meg who was once an adventurous girl is now a housewife. But that's reality right? That is why the book is great, it has a little mix of reality and imagination and you could picture everything from what you read in the book. I would totally recommand this book to anyone around any age group. You'll enjoy it.
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Summary: A Swiftly Tilting Planet
Review: Mad Dog is threatening to start a nuclear war. It is up to Charles Wallce to stop the madman from starting the war. He has the help of Gaudior, a unicorn that helps him change the past by teaching him how to go Withing people from long ago. Meg also helps her brother by figuring out the relationship between Mad Dog and Matthew Maddox. At the end, Mad Dog didnt start a nuclear war. Charles Wallce had changed the past, and Mad Dog was never born. "A Swiftly Tilting Planet" was a very exciting book. There was a lot of suspence in it. I couldn't predict what was going to happen in the book unlike fiction books. That is what makes this book so exciting. Anything can happen because it's a fantasy book. People can fly, unicorns are real, these things can never happen in fiction books. My favorite part in this book is when Charles Wallce goes Within Brandon. This is during the Salem witch trials. Brandon's best friend, and Indian, is being accused of being a witch. The villagers thought she was holding back the rain so their crops would die. They were thinking of burning her alive, but Brandon saved her. The wind people, people of Brandon's best friend, gave Brandon a rune. He chanred the rune and a huge thunderstorm rose. carolmanP6
Rating:
Summary: An enjoyable book
Review: This book is a challenging book to read but also full of many adventures and mysteries. A Swiftly Tilting Plant has a lot of surprise for you to keep on reading. I enjoyed this book very much because of how the author told the story and what the story was about. And you always learn something new whenever you were to read the book. The book is so realistic that you could imagine every picture in your head, thats how descriptive that words were. It was an amazing book. It's full of fun and about the good side trying to prevent the bad side from destorying the world before he could. I recommmand this book to anyone who is up for adventure, mysteries and surprises.
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