RIP Madeline L'Engle

Madeline L'Engle died last Thursday. I just found out via BoingBoing, I missed their post last week. I am sad and feel real loss at the news. She was my favorite author. I learned so much about growing up from her work. A Severed Wasp was my favorite book for years. I love how her characters are all intertwined. I love how she wrote from a strong Christian faith, yet caused no recoil in my agnostic leanings. I can and do believe in the power of love.

I discovered L'Engle in my tweens and have reread all of her books at least once. I first found Arm of the Starfish, then And Both Were Young. My neighbor was a grade school teacher and loaned me the books I could not get my hands on. When my neighbor died her son gave me all her L'Engle books because I was seen reading The Anti-Muffins in her house the day she died. This same neighbor got me a personally autographed copy of Many Waters when she attended a writers workshop Madeline taught. I have 31 L'Engle books cataloged in LibraryThing

I feel like I've lost a friend. She put so much of herself into her fiction and non-fiction. I love her autobiographical Crosswicks Journals. Two-Part Invention: The Story of a Marriage is my favorite of these. I am so sad to know that there will be no more stories with my favorite characters.

Bless you Madeline L'Engle. Thank you for expanding my world.

Comments

[Marisa]

I felt totally bereft when I heard last week. My sister called me as soon as she heard, as she needed to talk to someone who would understand her upset (which I totally did). Madeleine L'Engle had a profound effect on my world and I will be forever grateful that she chose to write.

[distracted]

Somehow I completely missed all of her books --? I will start reading them now. Sad I had to discover her so late.