Two-Part Invention: The Story of a Marriage [Hardcover]

Madeleine L'Engle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1988

This moving memoir documents a marriage of more than forty years between two gifted people, a long term marriage that was: "full of wonderful things, terrible things, joyous things, grievous things, but ours."

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Since her debut with The Small Rain in 1945, L'Engle has continued to write critically acclaimed books for adults and young readers, including a Newbery Medal-winner, A Wrinkle in Time. But this story of her marriage surpasses her best work so far. Starting with accounts of her childhood, she describes her life as a young woman in Manhattan, attracted to the theater and landing a job as an understudy touring with Eva Le Gallienne and Hugh Franklin. L'Engle and Franklin married in 1946, creating a bond that was broken ony by his death 40 years later. As Franklin's roles (with the Lunts, Ethel Barrymore, Maurice Evans, etc.) kept him absent frequently, there were problems, especially when they became parents. Yet most crises were viewed in perspective, especially when the couple gathered with children, grandchildren and friends at Crosswick, the old house in Connecticut that remains L'Engle's "icon." As expected, she writes beautifully here, sharing funny, exuberant and trying moments of the "two-part invention." Reading the book is a profound spiritual experience.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

YA-- Those who have enjoyed L'Engle's fiction or who have followed her husband Hugh Franklin's character of Dr. Charles Tyler on All My Children should enjoy reading about their real - life marriage. L'Engle shares many moments from their early life in the New York theater and publishing circles. In addition, she tells about their early marriage and family life at their Connecticut farmhouse. A large portion of the book details Franklin's death from cancer in 1987. During this trying period their great love and L'Engle's strong Christian faith are both centerpieces of her story. Like L'Engle's other nonfiction works, this one demonstrates an easy conversational style and an expert prose technique.
- Carolyn Praytor Boyd, Episcopal High School, Bellaire, Tex.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; 1st edition (October 1, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374280207
• ISBN-13: 978-0374280208
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,299,863 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Madeleine L'Engle, the popular author of many books for children and adults, has interspersed her writing and teaching career with raising three children, maintaining an apartment in New York and a farmhouse of charming confusion which is called "Crosswicks."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quietly beautiful and inpsiring, April 2, 2000

By 

Elizabeth (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Two-Part Invention: The Story of a Marriage (The Crosswicks Journal, Book 4) (Paperback)

This book, along with C.S. Lewis' A Grief Observed, are two of the best books ever written about love and loss. L'Engle's characteristic style of inspired wanderings brings you back gently and eventually to her main discussion of her courtship and 40-year marriage, and to the inevitable and tragic ending thereof. While certainly saddening, this book is not about wallowing in grief, but is a celebration of the non-traditional (in many ways) life that she and Hugh built together, and how the strength and love of their relationship rippled outward to affect all they came in contact with: children, god-children, friends, neighbors, and acquaintances.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sentiments rarely praised these days, October 1, 2003

By 

MH (Southern Calif) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Two-Part Invention: The Story of a Marriage (The Crosswicks Journal, Book 4) (Paperback)

(Two Part Invention) I was touched by the way this woman thought as she entered marriage; how she considered the marriage before any other factor in life. As someone born in the last 40 years, I have honestly never heard a woman talk about her marriage in those terms. I was humbled and thought what a shame...we have lost something very special and gentle: honoring marriage. I never did, never knew anyone who did, marriage for myself and those in my circle was more of a nuisance. After two painful divorces I could finally hear Madeline's voice and everything she said made such beautiful and perfect sense. I long for that type of life and marriage and never realized all along it had to come from me. I also cried after putting the book down and a tear often comes when the book comes to mind. I always remember her thought about moving into the city - where she didn't particularly want to live - so that she could be the wife "hosting the slumber party" when they were snowed in, rather than being the wife getting the call when the husband wouldn't be coming home to the suburbs. And how she adjusted her whole sleep schedule to accomodate her husbands' late work nights. Sigh. Thank you Madeline, thank you for a voice that is not often heard.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Model of marriage and relationship, February 19, 2000

By 

Eric Brotheridge (Indianapolis, IN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Two-Part Invention: The Story of a Marriage (The Crosswicks Journal, Book 4) (Paperback)

What if this book were spread across the bookshelves of stores in the marriage section, replacing the countless "How to.."'s? I believe those seeking guidance and strength for their own marriages would be better served. There is, in so much of what is written about marriage today, an abundance of techniques, tips and tricks to smooth the struggle, if not attempt to eliminate it altogether. L'Engle honors the struggle in this book. Her writing sings when she describes the most difficult times in her relationship.

Life and relationship in marriage is about the details. L'Engle's descriptions of countless meals, sitting on her four-poster bed talking into the night with close ones, and of conversations held with intimate friends and family, are jewel-like stones laid on a fascinating and well-told tale of one path of marriage.