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spiderelsa's review against another edition
3.5
I remember parts of this from childhood. I was much more devout back then, so I think I wasn't bothered by the instances where out of context christianity was tagged in for exposition.
I love that our heroine didn't end up with someone not good enough for her, whether an ecthros or someone from a different universe or a priest.
I'm gonna go find out more about what Meg has been up to. In all of this, she's why I'm still reading.
I love that our heroine didn't end up with someone not good enough for her, whether an ecthros or someone from a different universe or a priest.
I'm gonna go find out more about what Meg has been up to. In all of this, she's why I'm still reading.
thatokiebird's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Happy to finally be finishing this series with An Acceptable Time, the fifth book in this series for middle school ages. It is certainly a series that is best read in order, however this book felt like the most standalone of the series. As it was written nearly 30 years after the first book in the series, it makes sense since its original audience will be older jaded adults and the author surely wanted to greet new audiences with this title.
It has all the time-traveling, magic sci-fi science elements of the previous books but with a mostly new set of characters. This time we follow Polly's journey, Meg and Calvin's (oldest?) daughter. She is staying with her aging grandparent's, Meg's parents, in their almost-a-character-in-itself house, which of course is steeped in its own peculiar brand of magic. Polly travels back 3,000 years, this time with new characters with a different set of conflicts and storyline.
I liked this book a lot better than the 4th book in the series, but not as much as the 1st or 3rd. It's well written as always, dialogue is good, and the story moves along at an okay pace. It probably would have been a lot better if it was more heavily edited with tangents and diverting plots cleaned up.
It has all the time-traveling, magic sci-fi science elements of the previous books but with a mostly new set of characters. This time we follow Polly's journey, Meg and Calvin's (oldest?) daughter. She is staying with her aging grandparent's, Meg's parents, in their almost-a-character-in-itself house, which of course is steeped in its own peculiar brand of magic. Polly travels back 3,000 years, this time with new characters with a different set of conflicts and storyline.
I liked this book a lot better than the 4th book in the series, but not as much as the 1st or 3rd. It's well written as always, dialogue is good, and the story moves along at an okay pace. It probably would have been a lot better if it was more heavily edited with tangents and diverting plots cleaned up.
melissa_who_reads's review against another edition
5.0
Once again, an enjoyable read from L'Engle this time about going back in time 3,000 years. The odd thing is the Murry grandparents are so weirded out by it when going back in time and traveling to odd destinations in time and space has been a family hallmark; and the implication that Calvin, Polly's father, would be especially freaked out is odd. However, I really did enjoy this one, and looking at the list of characters (family tree) in the back with the Austins and Murry/O'Keefe families I realized I had not paid much attention to Zachary Gray as a character at all -
katiereads24's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
4.5
aggressive_nostalgia's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars.
This was...not my favorite. The plot drags often, and sometimes feels like it's just trundling around in circles, covering the same ground over and over. The characters are sort of okay. They get more solid in the last quarter or so – and some of the supporting cast are the most superior characters – but the Murry grandparents in particular behave erratically for no reason, and Zachary is so sketchy and emotionally manipulative from the beginning that I was continually baffled by everyone's willingness to trust him without question.
I think there are (as I've come to expect from L'Engle) solid nuggets of insight into human nature and behavior throughout the story, but the theology is muddy. There are definitely some excellent themes of redemption, change, and mercy, some pithy quotes on love and prayer, but the time travel and Native mysticism confuses it so much. I'm not sure if it occasionally borders on heretical, or if it's an uncommon view of the transcendent power of Christ that is beyond my understanding at this point.
Maybe I'll reread this novel twenty years from now and love it. Or maybe the characters will always feel a little flat, and thus the plot and its twists will never quite resonate for me. Ah – I feel like I'm just slightly out of tune every time I read part of the Time Quintet, and this one was easily the strangest book of the series for me.
This was...not my favorite. The plot drags often, and sometimes feels like it's just trundling around in circles, covering the same ground over and over. The characters are sort of okay. They get more solid in the last quarter or so – and some of the supporting cast are the most superior characters – but the Murry grandparents in particular behave erratically for no reason, and Zachary is so sketchy and emotionally manipulative from the beginning that I was continually baffled by everyone's willingness to trust him without question.
I think there are (as I've come to expect from L'Engle) solid nuggets of insight into human nature and behavior throughout the story, but the theology is muddy. There are definitely some excellent themes of redemption, change, and mercy, some pithy quotes on love and prayer, but the time travel and Native mysticism confuses it so much. I'm not sure if it occasionally borders on heretical, or if it's an uncommon view of the transcendent power of Christ that is beyond my understanding at this point.
Maybe I'll reread this novel twenty years from now and love it. Or maybe the characters will always feel a little flat, and thus the plot and its twists will never quite resonate for me. Ah – I feel like I'm just slightly out of tune every time I read part of the Time Quintet, and this one was easily the strangest book of the series for me.
veness08's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
4.0
katmarhan's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
6.5/10
While this book is little heavy-handed in its message, the characters are engaging and the descriptive details make the settings come alive.
I have read the other 4 books in the The Time Quintet but not the other 3 “Murry-O’Keefe” books. Maybe they would have helped act as a bridge between the time period of Many Waters and this book.
While this book is little heavy-handed in its message, the characters are engaging and the descriptive details make the settings come alive.
I have read the other 4 books in the The Time Quintet but not the other 3 “Murry-O’Keefe” books. Maybe they would have helped act as a bridge between the time period of Many Waters and this book.
yanskeedoodle's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
peanutfor15yrs's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25