Book Review: From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Kongisburg

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Kongisburg
Aladdin Paperbacks
162 Pages
Copyright 1967 (this edition, 2002)

Claudia Kincaid is 12. She is a straight A student but she chafes under the rules imposed at home. She doesn’t like the chores she has to do. Nor does she like the fact that she must share TV time with her brothers and oversee the youngest one at various times. So, Claudia does what many 12-year-old, put-upon children do – she plans to run away. Claudia, however, is not content simply to run away, she decides she has to run away to somewhere special. She devises a plan to escape the outrage of her life by hiding away in the New York Metropolitan Museum of the Arts and she decides to take her younger brother, Jamie, with her. Once there, the children find themselves involved in a mystery concerning the statue of an angel. Was it really sculpted by Michelangelo? Can they help the museum determine its authenticity? And who, exactly, is Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and what does she have to do with it all?

The story is told in a letter from Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler to her attorney and, as such, includes several parenthetical remarks aimed at the attorney that I felt detracted from the overall story. Beyond that, however, it was an enjoyable story.

Recommendation: It’s been awhile since I’ve read a YA book. I’ll admit that I’ve read better ones but it’s a cute story that weaves a bit of learning into the mix. The recommended ages are 9 – 12 and that seems about right. Twelve-year-olds these days, however, might not be as thrilled with it as the younger ones.