Camilla

by Madeleine L'Engle

Book Overview

Fifteen-year-old Camilla Dickinson has led a sheltered life with her architect father and stunningly beautiful mother. But suddenly the security she's always known vanishes as her parents' marriage... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0374310319
• ISBN13: 9780374310318
• Release Date: April 2009
• Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
• Length: 247 Pages
• Weight: 0.88 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.7" x 8.4"
• Age Range: 12 to 18 years
• Grade Range: Grade 7 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Intricate and Intriguing

Camilla Dickinson has never really had to worry about anything in her life. Everything has always been pretty perfect for her. That is, until her parents, whom had always been loving and trusting of each other, begin treating each other like complete strangers, and begin trying to buy her love. Camilla is confused and upset by their sudden change in personality, and feels helpless about what she can do. That is, until she meets Frank, her best friend's older brother. Frank helps Camilla to realize that she is not alone, and that she is an independent young woman, who needs to accept her parents, and their disagreements, for what they are.Being an avid fan of Madeline L'Engle, I just knew that I had to have this book. I couldn't be happier with making that purchase. I was amazed with this book from page 1. Camilla Dickinson is one of my favorite characters ever in a book. L'Engle has created a teenage girl whom everyone can love, and identify with. Someone who is going through something that many teenagers have to deal with everyday. Camilla is an empowering, and intelligent young woman, who will change the lives of every young woman who reads this book. You can't miss CAMILLA. A must-have for everyone. Young or old, male or female.Erika Sorocco

Beautiful Bildungsroman

I've read "Camilla" during different stages in my life and have found new meaning in the novel each time. I have always loved the book for its rich imagery and descriptions of everything from New York's Central Park to a piano concerto by Prokofiev. I also love it for its strong protagonist, Camilla Dickinson, who can seem unbelievably perfect for a teenage girl. After all, she isn't just intelligent and sensitive, but she also has a sense of the cosmic and the beautiful. For instance, she reads the classics not because she is forced to at school but because she likes reading them.Another thing fascinating about the book is that each character has his or her own take on what Life is. These philosophies are great to take apart when analyzing each character's motivations. Madeleine L'Engle is good at writing books with many different characters because she can give each one a different take on Life (as she does here), on Death ("A Ring of Endless Light"), on Love ("A House Like a Lotus"), and on Existence and the Universe (any book in the Time Quartet).The plot is basically about how a young girl, in the course of a few weeks, becomes a young woman. The story is deeper and richer than that description, however. What makes "Camilla" stand out among other bildungsroman stories for young people is the fact that its protagonist's "growing pains" are less troubling and awful than usual, not because the author gave her a break, but because she had learned to cushion her fall into adulthood with a strong faith in the beauty and goodness in the Universe. If I could compare Camilla Dickinson to any other person, real-life or fictional, I would pick Anne Frank.

Well Written, Heartfelt, Philosophical Novel

I recently finished this book - CAMILLA - by Madeleine L'Engle. I had picked it out simply because L'Engle is one of my favorite authors and I hope to collect all - or most - or her works someday ... certainly I had not expected it to be so well written, with a total understanding of the thoughts, words, and actions of teenage girls, especially those with disagreeing parents. Which, of course, it was. Camilla Dickinson, the title character, is a girl in her middle teens whose father is a stern and undemonstrative architect, and whose mother always has a Jacques around. Camilla suspects that Mrs. Dickinson is seeing Jacques, but knows it for sure when she walks in on them kissing. CAMILLA is about this girl trying to deal with the fact that she is an individual - and nobody else is like her, and most may not be thinking about her as she is at her bedroom window, wondering if they are - and her parents are, too, individuals: Faulted and unique individuals, and she has to accept them as that. Her best friend is also going through parental disagreements. Her brother, Frank, takes an interest in Camilla and the two spend hours together. I especially like their special talks, where they philosophize about death, life, religion, and how their existence came about. The end, I felt, but satisfying but unexpected. I assure you, if you read this book, you will A) love it; and B) not be able to put it down until you've finished it. I urge you, in the name of good books, read it!

An excellent book!

I loved this book! I really felt that the main characters were real people and I could understand how they were feeling really well. I also thought that the author captured teenagers' feelings very well especially since she is an older author. The romance was also very nice and not sappy with no excessive hugging or kissing.One of my favorite things about the book was that the two main characters had wonderful meaningful conversations about the world and death. They were conversations that really made you think. I have to admit however that the ending was rather disappointing because I got really into the book and then it just kind of ended. The sequel, "A Live Coal Under the Sea," is pretty good too but is actually an adult book that I would suggest for people 13/14 or older. Even though the ending is kind of weak, I suggest that you read "Camilla" by Madeleine L'Engle!

This is a very good book

This book is very good, but I have something else to say, too: the last reader thought that there should be a second Camilla book. Well, I have good news: there is one! It's called 'A Live Coal in the Sea' and was published in 1996. I reccomend it!