And Both Were Young by Madeleine L'Engle

ISBN-13: 9780374303648
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Published: April 2010
256 pgs
Source: Library



Madeleine L'Engle was the author of A Wrinkle in Time, and though I have yet to read it, I am looking forward to it since I have read so much rave reviews on it. I went to the library for this book but couldn't find it, instead I found And Both Were Young and thus here we are.

Anyway, I started off with the introduction page written by Madeleine L'Engle's granddaughter, Léna Roy, who shared with us that And Both Were Young was in fact L'Engle's first young adult novel. She was inspired to write this book after she was being dropped off at a boarding school instead of living with her parents when they were seeking a cure for her journalist father, who had inhaled mustard gas during WWI in 1930 (L'Engle was twelve-year-old then).

So basically this story is about the life of Philippa "Flip" Hunter during her studies at a Swiss boarding school. Flip travels to Switzerland with her artist father after her mother's death in an automobile accident, and along with the journey is another woman who is hoping to take the role of the late Mrs. Hunter but Flip didn't like her. She thinks she is bossy and arrogant, and she is absolutely dismayed and infuriated with her father for listening to her demands at times.

Feeling homesick and not to mention a loner and self-conscious at heart, she struggles to fit into the school life and making friends. She later knew a few girls whom she called her friends, but deep in her heart she knew she could not compare them with a boy named Paul, who she has met by chance before her admission to the boarding school. They became good friends quickly, and as their friendship grows, Flip no longer feels so miserable and with Paul's encouragement, her self-confidence began to grow too. The thing is, Paul is not a student at their boarding school and Flip has to keep their friendship a secret.

Then there is Madame Perceval, who is Flip's art teacher and kind of a mentor to Flip. Through her guidance, there is a change of mentality in Flip as she has became to be a more confident and ambitious young woman. It is also through Perceval that readers will get to learn a little more of Paul, as he has a tragic past but I will not go further as it is best for you to read it yourself.

At first glance, And Both Were Young may seem like a teenage romance story, but let me assure you there are certainly more to it. Madeleine L'Engle had written a delicate story that revolves around identity, growing up, the joy and misery of adolescence and of course, love. The romance between Paul and Flip is subtle, yet that does not disminish the effect and the attraction they have for each other.

There isn't much glimpse of WWII, though this story takes place after it but readers will see how this has deeply affected the girls at the boarding school, in particularly to Flip's friends. All in all, this is a wonderful read. Now that I have gotten a 'taste' of Madeleine L'Engle's writing style, I will be sure to check out her other books in the near future and needless to say, A Wrinkle in Time will be the top of that list.