Madeleine L'Engle's writings reflect her passionate concern with major aspects of life: a happy family life, the right and responsibility of the individual to make choices, the art of writing, death, and God. Because L'Engle writes about such topics in so many different genres--science fiction, suspense, young adult novels, poetry, playwriting, and nonfiction--she defies convenient classification as a writer. Yet because approximately half her works are written for children, she is primarily known as a children's writer.
There are paradoxes in L'Engle's writing. Although she is a Christian, some of L'Engle's most theological works have been written as a reaction against what is thought of in some circles as Christian piety. Her constant grappling with the idea of God and her all-encompassing theology might well offend readers with a very traditional view of Christianity, while her obviously Christian philosophy might antagonize those who tend toward atheism or agnosticism. She writes her most difficult works for children since she believes that children's minds are open to the excitement of new ideas and that they are able to understand what their parents have rejected or forgotten.
