madeleine l'engle

I wish we didn't try to turn real lions into imaginary ones. The lions are not imaginary. They are real. I have experienced a lot of lions in my lifetime, and these encounters are what I write about, and why I write as a storyteller: it's the best way to make the lions visible.

-excerpt from A Circle of Quiet

This is the way Madeleine L'Engle describes her role as a writer--a career that began when she first put started her work of words at the tender age of five, when, as she puts it, "I wrote my first story then about a little g-r-u-l--that's how I spelled "girl" at the time. Spellcheck and I don't always agree!" (Snelson 2004). Though school began in a difficult manner for Madeleine, with her personal writings distracting her from school work, by high school she had found her niche and was flourishing as a student.

Since that time, writing has been a tool with which she has inspired all ages of readers. Born to a writer and a pianist, L'Engle desribes her home as filled with artists when she was a child in New York (Scaperlanda 2000). Some combination of an artistic upbringing, worldwide travels, Episcopalian roots, and a vibrant faith has left L'Engle with a unique and unabashed perspective on life that lends itself to the birthing of inspiring, and at times controversial, literature for children and adults.

L'Engle has also enjoyed a unique diversity of experiences in her adult life. From actress to business-owner to Newbery-award-winning author to librarian, she continues, now in her eighties, to live an active and influential life.

Biographical Timeline:
  • November 29, 1918--Born to writer Charles Wadsworth Camp and pianist Madeleine Hall Camp, in New York City
  • 1930--Family moves to Europe, where L'Engle attends Swiss boarding school.
  • 1941--Graduates from Smith College in Massachusetts. Begins work as an actress in Greenwich village.
  • 1945--Publishes first novel--The Small Rain.
  • 1947--Marries TV and stage actor Hugh Franklin.
  • They move to a Connecticut farmhouse, where they run a small store and begin raising their family.
  • They move back to New York, where Madeleine works as a teacher, contining writing in her spare time.
  • 1963--Wins the Newbery Medal for A Wrinkle in Time.
  • Begins working as Librarian at St. John the Divine Cathedral and school, where she has been for over 30 years.
  • 1987--Hugh dies of cancer.
  • 1988--L'Engle publishes Two-Part Invention, which chronicles their 40-year marriage.
  • Present--Madeleine continues writing, speaking, and working as a librarian.

    Other Useful Links:

  • Lunaea's_L'Engle_Pages
  • The_ Wheaton_College_Madeleine_L'Engle_Collection
  • The Official Madeleine L'Engle Home Page

    References:
  • Scaperlanda, Maria. "Madeleine L'Engle: An Epic in Time." St. Anthony Messenger. June 2000. Retrieved from http://www.americancatholic.org/
  • Snelson, Karin. "A New Wrinkle: A Conversation with Madeleine L'Engle." Retrieved from Amazon. 11 November 2004. http://www.amazon.com
  • Vaughn, Henry. "The World." Retrieved from The Official Madeleine L'Engle Home Page
  • The Official Madeleine L'Engle Home Page
  • Lunaea's_L'Engle_ Pages

    Prepared by
    Anna G. Joujan
    University of Tennessee
    School of Information Sciences
    SIS 490
    Fall, 2004