E. L. Konigsburg (1930–2013)
Author of From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
About the Author
Elaine Lobl Konigsburg, noted children's writer and illustrator, was born February 10, 1930 in New York City. She received a BS in chemistry from Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie-Mellon University) in 1952. She did graduate study at the University of Pittsburgh. Her best-known titles show more included A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver, The Second Mrs. Giaconda, Father's Arcane Daughter, and Throwing Shadows. She won the Newbery Honor in 1968 for From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and the William Allen White Award in 1970. She won the Newbery Medal again in 1997 for The View from Saturday. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler was adapted into a motion picture starring Ingrid Bergman in 1973 and later released as The Hideaways in 1974. It became a television film starring Lauren Bacall in 1995. Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth was adapted for television as Jennifer and Me for NBC-TV in 1973. She died on April 19, 2013 from complications of a stroke that she had suffered a week prior at the age of 83. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Ron Kunzman/Simon & Schuster, via Associated Press
Series
Works by E. L. Konigsburg
Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth (1967) — Cover artist, some editions; Illustrator, some editions — 1,327 copies, 26 reviews
The E. L. Konigsburg Collection: Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth; The View from… (2007) 96 copies, 1 review
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler [1973 film] (1973) — Novel — 9 copies, 1 review
The E.L. Konigsburg Collection: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler; Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth,… (2016) 6 copies
From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, the Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg, and the Whipping Boy (2009) 3 copies
Mystery of the Tea Party (Iwanami Bunko boy (051)) (2005) ISBN: 4001140519 [Japanese Import] (2005) 1 copy
The second Mrs. Giaconda 1 copy
Associated Works
When I Was Your Age, Volume Two: Original Stories About Growing Up (1999) — Contributor — 92 copies, 2 reviews
Scholastic Book Clubs Chapters - A Special Sampling of Novels By Newbery Authors (2001) — Contributor — 16 copies, 1 review
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Konigsburg, Elaine Lobl
- Birthdate
- 1930-02-10
- Date of death
- 2013-04-19
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- New York City, New York, USA
- Place of death
- Jacksonville, Florida, USA
- Places of residence
- New York, New York, USA
Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, USA
Youngstown, Ohio, USA
Farrell, Pennsylvania, USA
Jacksonville, Florida, USA
Port Chester, New York, USA - Education
- Carnegie Mellon University (Chemistry)
University of Pittsburgh - Occupations
- author
illustrator
bookkeeper
teacher - Relationships
- Konigsburg, David (husband)
- Awards and honors
- Lewis Carroll Shelf Award 1968
William Allen White Children's Book Award 1970
Regina Medal (2001)
Members
Discussions
YA Modern Fiction in Name that Book (July 2016)
What Are You Reading the Week of 7 February 2014? in What Are You Reading Now? (February 2015)
Book read in elementry school 2nd-5th grade child locked in museum in Name that Book (March 2009)
Reviews
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E.Frankweiler
3.5/5
I didn't enjoy this as much as Konigsburg's previous works. Things really didn't pick up until the middle of the book and the characters felt underdeveloped. That said, the premise is fascinating - Konigsburg does excel at weaving art history into her plots.
Reading some of the reviews surprised me. Yes, there are more complex* topics covered in this novel. Does that make them inappropriate for middle schoolers? I don't believe it does. Often times, teachers and parents underestimate children's comprehension and awareness and unwittingly shape negative attitudes around certain themes by avoiding them altogether.
*I'm referring to Nazi Germany and nudity in art. While the global history of homosexuality is complex (as is any type of history), homosexuality itself is not. Love is love is love is love is love. It's way past time we treated it as such.… (more)
I didn't enjoy this as much as Konigsburg's previous works. Things really didn't pick up until the middle of the book and the characters felt underdeveloped. That said, the premise is fascinating - Konigsburg does excel at weaving art history into her plots.
Reading some of the reviews surprised me. Yes, there are more complex* topics covered in this novel. Does that make them inappropriate for middle schoolers? I don't believe it does. Often times, teachers and parents underestimate children's comprehension and awareness and unwittingly shape negative attitudes around certain themes by avoiding them altogether.
*I'm referring to Nazi Germany and nudity in art. While the global history of homosexuality is complex (as is any type of history), homosexuality itself is not. Love is love is love is love is love. It's way past time we treated it as such.… (more)
Lists
Overdue Podcast (1)
Five star books (1)
scav (1)
1960s (1)
Best Young Adult (1)
Books for Tori (1)
Sonlight Books (6)
Female Author (1)
Urban Fiction (1)
Elevenses (2)
Comfort Reads (1)
1970s (1)
Newbery Adjacent (1)
Witchy Fiction (1)
Favourite Books (1)
Tagged Runaways (1)
Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 37
- Also by
- 6
- Members
- 32,379
- Popularity
- #599
- Rating
- 4.1
- Reviews
- 610
- ISBNs
- 412
- Languages
- 13
- Favorited
- 38
