FROM THE MIXED-UP FILES OF MRS. BASIL E. FRANKWEILER by E.L. Konigsburg
Claudia knows that she is under-appreciated, and she intends to teach her parents a lesson. That is why she begins plotting to run away. She selects her younger brother Jamie as her companion, for although Claudia has all of the grand plans, she lacks Jamie’s sense for financial planning. They hide in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art, originally planning to return after a few days, when their parents are sure to no longer take Claudia for granted. But when they discover a mystery surrounding a museum sculpture, the adventure becomes even more exciting and Claudia is determined not to return home until the adventure has changed her from the ordinary girl she was into someone heroic and different.
Winner of the 1967 Newbery Award, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler is a children’s literature classic. It addresses themes of growing up, the balance between fun and responsibility, and finding adventure in ordinary life. If you liked From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, I would also recommend Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbit and A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. For teens, I would recommend Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt.
Susan the Librarian 