From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler - Hardcover

Konigsburg, E L

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 068985322X ISBN 13: 9780689853227

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2002

Synopsis

2017 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the beloved classic From the Mixed-up files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.

Claudia knew that she could never pull off the old-fashioned kind of running away....She didn't like discomfort....Therefore, she decided that her leaving home would not be just running from somewhere but would be running to somewhere. To a large place, a comfortable place, an indoor place, and preferably a beautiful place. And that's why she decided upon the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
-- from From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

When Claudia decided to run away, she planned very carefully. She would be gone just long enough to teach her parents a lesson in Claudia appreciation. And she would go in comfort -- she would live at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She saved her money, and she invited her brother Jamie to go, mostly because he was a miser and would have money.

Claudia was a good organizer and Jamie had some ideas too; so the two took up residence at the museum right on schedule. But once the fun of settling in was over, Claudia had two unexpected problems: She felt just the same and she wanted to feel different; and she found a statue at the Museum so beautiful she could not go home until she discovered its maker, a question that baffled the experts, too.

The former owner of the statue was Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. Without her -- well, without her, Claudia might never have found a way to go home.

For many years E. L. Konigsburg's story has entranced readers of all ages. This special anniversary edition contains a new afterword from the author, along with a few extra surprises to delight readers old and new.

About this title

Review

'Delightful... I love this book... a beautifully written adventure, with endearing characters and full of dry wit, imagination and inspirational confidence' -- Sally Morris, Daily Mail

'Mischievous and metropolitan... A wild rumpus... Japes abound' -- New Yorker

'One of the finest storytellers of her era and genre... [From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler] is a story of discovery and self-discovery' -- Washington Post

'E. L. Konigsburg is one of our brainiest writers for young people, not only in the considerable cerebral powers she brings to her books but in the intellectual demands she makes on her characters' -- The New York Times

'In the US... [Konigsburg] is pretty much required reading for anyone under the age of 11 and, indeed, over, too... From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler... dominated my imagination in the way only a really good book can wholly inhabit the head of a child... Re-reading From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler,... it was, if anything, even more wonderful than I remembered' -- Hadley Freeman, Guardian

'This US classic about two runaways inspired writers such as Hadley Freeman, Wes Anderson and Judy Blume. Astonishingly, it's been out of print in the UK for the last 50 years but it's back with a brand new cover, and it's still just as enthralling' -- Mumsnet's Summer Book Club

'I really loved the setting because I think museums are wonderful and the idea of living in one and exploring it would be my idea of heaven!' -- Guardian Children's Books

'A small miracle... the ultimate escape fantasy which conveys the thrill and fear of being a minor loose in the big city' -- Times Summer Book Club

'It sticks in the mind like a personal memory, like a secret childhood experience. A perfect, miniature adventure' --Wes Anderson, writer and director of Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Royal Tenenbaums and The Grand Budapest Hotel

'A sweet little tale of discovering secrets and growing up' -- An Awful Lot of Reading

'Fun and witty' -- The Reading Fangirl

'It has an all-encompassing air of mystery' -- It Was Lovely Reading You

'Absurdly funny, exciting, highly original and wonderfully rich in its detail... up there with the best in the canon of great 20th century children's literature' -- Lancashire Evening Post

'The nitty-gritty of the runaways penny-pinching is terrifically drawn, as is the mystery's denouement' -- Observer

'An author beloved by readers young and old' --LA Review of Books

About the Author

E.L. Konigsburg is the only author to have won the Newbery Medal and a Newbery Honor in the same year. In 1968, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler won the Newbery Medal and Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth was named a Newbery Honor Book. Almost thirty years later she won the Newbery Medal once again for The View from Saturday. Among her other acclaimed books are Silent to the Bone, The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place, and The Mysterious Edge of the Heroic World.

E.L. Konigsburg is the only author to have won the Newbery Medal and a Newbery Honor in the same year. In 1968, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler won the Newbery Medal and Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth was named a Newbery Honor Book. Almost thirty years later she won the Newbery Medal once again for The View from Saturday. Among her other acclaimed books are Silent to the Bone, The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place, and The Mysterious Edge of the Heroic World.

Edition details

• Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 068985322X
• ISBN 13: 9780689853227
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 176
• Illustrator: Konigsburg E L