Young readers who remember Madeleine L'Engle for her exciting A Wrinkle in Time may enjoy "The Sea Monster," "Summer City," "The Monkey," "The Dragon," "Song of Simeon," and "The Parrot" in [Lines Scribbled on an Envelope]. These poems present a segment of life in a quasi-humorous way sustained by a youthful point of view. They also represent Madeleine L'Engle's marvelous gift for combining dissimilar elements from opposing historical periods.
But most of the poems in this collection will appeal to older adolescent and adult readers because the poet views her subject matter in retrospect. She is a concrete adult wondering about present day values in terms of birth, death, passion, and religious experience. I believe it must be these poems which made Madeleine L'Engle hesitate about publishing this book. In her preface to the volume she writes of being afraid "of making myself vulnerable to people I don't know." She is aware that the distilled language of verse magnifies her thoughts.
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