Friday, August 16, 2013

A Wind in the Door

Book: A Wind in the Door by Madeleine L'Engle

Published: 1973

Description: It is November. When Meg comes home from school, Charles Wallace tells her he saw dragons in the twin’s vegetable garden.  That night Meg, Calvin and C.W. go to the vegetable garden to meet the Teacher (Blajeny) who explains that what they are seeing isn’t a dragon at all, but a cherubim named Proginoskes.  It turns out that C.W. is ill and that  Blajeny and Proginoskes are there to make him well – by making him well, they will keep the balance of the universe in check and save it from the evil Echthros.  

Meg, Calvin and Mr. Jenkins (grade school principal) must travel inside C.W. to have this battle and save Charles’ life as well as the balance of the universe. (from amazon.com)

My Thoughts: I read A Wind in the Door at a point in my life when I was feeling very depressed and alone, and it was such a perfect balm for my mood that I read it through the night. It's a beautiful novel of fighting against the darkness no matter what--even when you don't understand. Obedience to what you know is right and what those above you (arguably God in this novel, although He's never explicitly mentioned) say needs to be done was a huge theme running through this book, a theme that I needed to hear.

I loved L'Engle's portrayal of science in A Wind in the Door. Science was something worth pursuing, something that could be used to further our understanding of the world (something that was portrayed as a worthy goal in and of itself). The existence of cherubim and all manner of other "supernatural" beings was never portrayed as contradictory to science, but actually complemented it and made it a more complete picture of the world. If only science was always viewed that way!

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