Find Adventure and Mystery in the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

The world was a much different place in 1968 when author E.L. Konigsburg won a John Newbery Medal for her book, From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. For that matter, the world was a much different place a month ago when my 11-year-old daughter checked the book out of the library. She read it for the first time; it was the third time for me.

The Story

As its title suggests, the story comes right out of Mrs. Frankweiler’s files. The book begins with a note from Mrs. Frankweiler to her lawyer, Saxonberg. She wants to make some changes to her will, and the file she attaches to her note is a long explanation of her reasons for the changes. She tells Saxonberg,

”I’ve spent a lot of time on this file. I listened. I investigated, and I fitted all the pieces together like a jigsaw puzzle.”

Right off the bat, we know our narrator is Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler herself. What we don’t know, and what remains a mystery for much of the story, is how Mrs. Frankweiler hooks up with the characters she writes about in her file—Claudia and Jamie Kincaid. Following Mrs. Frankweiler’s note is the account of Claudia’s plan to run-away and live at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. While in no way mistreated or abused, she feels unappreciated at home and wants to give her parents a taste of life without her. Her plan includes her younger brother, Jamie, because he, of all her brothers, is the one with the most ready cash. While 12-year-old Claudia has a bit saved up, she knows she doesn’t have enough money to make her plan successful. Nine-year-old Jamie does.

Claudia’s careful and thought-out preparations help the two children run away without a hitch and begin their adventure as museum “stow-aways”. Standing on restroom toilet seats and bathing in a fountain (and scooping up coins to supply much-needed cash) become part of their nighttime routine…along with, of course, admiring the museum exhibits.

One exhibit—a new statue—fascinates Claudia. It becomes her mission to find out as much as she can about it, including who actually crafted it. That’s where Mrs. Frankweiler comes in (again), but I won’t spoil the story from there.

What We Like

There’s much about this book to like—it is part adventure and part mystery. Most kids prefer reading about their own kind—kids overcoming obstacles and triumphantly surviving. From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler has all that, with a bit of sibling-related comic relief thrown in, too.

Parental Pet Peeves

I devoured this book when I read it as a child—I absolutely LOVED it. But I have to say that From the Mixed-Up Files rubs me the wrong way now that I’m all grown-up with children of my own.

My adult mind fully realizes that this is a work of FICTION…it’s not true and it didn’t happen. However, it isn’t written in a fairy-tale style—not even close. In the moments of willing suspension of disbelief, we can imagine that these two children did run away, and beyond that, wonder:

1) How did Claudia’s and Jamie’s parents feel all the time they were away?
2) What kinds of dangers exist now, in 2001, that weren’t prevalent in the late 60s?

OK, maybe I’m over-analyzing here, but as I stated at the beginning of this review, our world is a different place nowadays.

To top it off, I didn’t care for Claudia's reasons for running away or for the fact that she and Jamie apparently feel little, if any, remorse for what their actions put their family through.

Do We Recommend It?

In spite of my criticisms of it, I do recommend From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler to you, and so does my daughter. Hopefully parents are in the habit of reading many of the same books their children are reading—this is one worth discussing together afterwards.


More Books by E.L. Konigsburg

Altogether, One At A Time
Silent to the Bone
Throwing Shadows
Amy Elizabeth Explores Bloomingdale’s
Jennifer, Hecate, MacBeth, William McKinley and Me, Elizabeth (A Newbery Honor Book)
Father’s Arcane Daughter
The Dragon in the Ghetto Caper
Up From Jericho Tel
A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver
Journey to an 800 Number
About the B’Nai Bagels
Second Mrs. Giaconda
Samuel Todd’s Book of Great Inventions
T-Backs, T-Shirts, Coat and Suit

The View From Saturday won the Newbery Medal in 1998.

Other honors for From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler: Library of Congress Children's Book of the Year; ALA Notable Children's Book.

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Atheneum
ISBN: 0689205864
162 pages