A WRINKLE IN TIME
A Wrinkle in Time is the story of Meg Murry, a high-school-aged girl who is
transported on an adventure through time and space with her younger
brother Charles Wallace and her friend Calvin O'Keefe to rescue her father, a
gifted scientist, from the evil forces that hold him prisoner on another planet.
Chapter 1: Mrs. Whatsit
On a dark and stormy night, Meg Murry tosses and turns in her attic
bedroom. She is unable to fall asleep because she is preoccupied with all
that seems wrong in her life: she doesn't fit in at school; her high school
teachers have just threatened to drop her down a grade on account of her
poor academic performance; and worst of all, her father has been missing for
many years and no one has heard from him. Meg hears her family's big black
dog Fortinbras barking downstairs, and she begins to worry that a stranger
may be skulking around the house; she suspects the tramp who, according
to local gossip, recently stole twelve bed-sheets from the constable's wife,
Mrs. Buncombe.
Dismissing her fears as silly and attempting to calm her nerves, Meg decides
to make herself some cocoa in the kitchen. She is surprised to find her five-
year-old brother Charles Wallace waiting for her at the kitchen table, though
she notes that Charles always seems capable of reading her mind. Mrs.
Murry soon joins her children, and tells Meg that she has received a call from
Mrs. Henderson, the mother of the boy Meg had beaten up at school that
day. Meg complains to her mother that she hates being an "oddball" at
school. She wishes she were more ordinary like her twin younger brothers,
Sandy and Dennys. Mrs. Murry tells Meg that she needs to learn the meaning
of moderation, the importance of finding a "happy medium." Charles then
comments that he has spoken about Meg's problems with his friend Mrs.
Whatsit, though he refuses to explain who this woman is.
As Charles Wallace is preparing sandwiches for his mother and sister,
Fortinbras begins to bark loudly again. Mrs. Murry goes outside to find the
cause of the commotion. She returns with Charles's mysterious friend Mrs.
Whatsit, an eccentric tramp completely bundled up in wet clothes. Mrs.
Whatsit explains that she glories in nights of such wild weather, but that
tonight she has been blown off course in the storm. Charles asks her why she
stole bed-sheets from Mrs. Buncombe, confirming Meg's suspicion that Mrs.
Whatsit is the neighborhood tramp. After removing her boots and drying her
feet, Mrs. Whatsit suddenly remarks that "there is such a thing as a
tesseract" and then hurries out the door. Mrs. Murry stands very still at the
threshold, stunned by Mrs. Whatsit's parting words.
Chapter 2: Mrs. Who
Summary
Upon awaking the next morning, Meg wonders whether the irrational events
of the previous night were merely a dream, but her mother assures her that
"you don't have to understand things for them to be. That day at school, her
social studies teacher sends her to the principal's office for being rude. The
principal, Mr. Jenkins, tells Meg that he is sure she could do better in school if
only she would apply herself. He asks Meg about her home life, and Meg
feels that he is prying when he asks if they have heard from Mr. Murry. She
becomes defensive and antagonistic when Mr. Jenkins remarks that the
Murrys should just face the facts and accept that Mr. Murry has left them for
good.
After school, Meg, Charles Wallace, and their pet dog Fortinbras go to visit
Mrs. Whatsit and her two friends, who have moved into the local haunted
house. As they approach the house, Fortinbras begins barking, alerting Meg
and Charles Wallace to the presence of Calvin O'Keefe, a popular athlete at
Meg's high school. Calvin explains that he is here to escape his family; he is
the third of eleven children. But upon further questioning by Charles Wallace,
Calvin admits that the house itself also seemed to exert a strong and
inexplicable force on him that afternoon. Satisfied by this response, Charles
Wallace invites Calvin home with them for dinner.
Before heading back, however, Charles Wallace leads Meg and Calvin into
the haunted house. Inside, a plump little woman in large spectacles is busily
sewing with Mrs. Buncombe's stolen sheets; a black pot boils on the hearth
beside her. Charles refers to this woman as Mrs. Who, and asks her if she
knows Calvin. Mrs. Who, who speaks largely in foreign quotations, which she
then translates into English, remarks cryptically that Calvin is probably a
"good choice." She tells the three children enigmatically that the "time"
draws near, but first they must go home and get plenty of food and rest. As
they leave the haunted house, Meg begs Charles for an explanation of the
woman's strange comments and quotations, but Charles insists that he still
doesn't fully understand what is going on. Meg must content herself with this
lack of explanation as she, Charles, and Calvin head to the Murry house for
dinner
Chapter 3: Mrs. Which
Summary
Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin return to the Murry home, where Mrs.
Murry huddles over her Bunsen burner, preparing a dinner of thick stew.
Calvin calls his mother to tell her that he will not be home for dinner, though
he tells Meg that he doubts his mother would have even noticed his absence.
Calvin is deeply moved by the warmth and love that permeates the Murry
household, and exclaims to Meg that she is very lucky to have such a
wonderful family life.
Before dinner, Meg shows Calvin a picture of her father with a group of
scientists at Cape Canaveral. She also helps him with his homework. Calvin is
surprised to learn that Meg, who is several grades below him in school, is
able to help him with his math and physics. Mrs. Murry explains that Meg's
father used to play number games with her when she was a child, thus
teaching her all sorts of tricks and shortcuts.
After dinner, Calvin reads to Charles Wallace in bed while Meg sits with her
mother downstairs. Mrs. Murry expresses her grief at her beloved husband's
absence. She tells Meg that she believes that things always have an
explanation, but that these explanations may not always be clear to us. Meg
finds this notion troublesome because she likes to think she can understand
everything. She comments that Charles Wallace seems to understand more
than everyone else, and Mrs. Murry says that this is because Charles is
somehow special.
In the evening, Meg and Calvin go out for a walk in the Murrys' backyard.
Calvin asks Meg about her father, and she explains that he is a physicist who
worked for the government first in New Mexico and then at Cape Canaveral.
Meg tells Calvin that the family hasn't heard from their father for a year now,
and Calvin alludes to all the rumors that the townspeople circulate about Mr.
Murry's whereabouts. Meg becomes immediately defensive, and Calvin is
quick to assure her that he has always doubted the rumors' truth. Calvin
holds Meg's hand and tells her that her eyes are beautiful; Meg feels herself
blushing in the moonlight.
Charles Wallace suddenly appears, announcing that it is time for them to
leave on their mission to find Mr. Murry. Mrs. Who slowly materializes in the
moonlight and Mrs. Whatsit scrambles over a fence, wearing Mrs.
Buncombe's sheets. Then, in a faint gust of wind, their friend Mrs. Which
announces in a quivering voice that she, too, is here, but will not materialize
completely, as the process is too tiring and the little band has much to do.
