Ep 022: From the Mixed-up Files of Lawrence P. Library

Polli and Kate explore Magic (both Big and Darker), plus books to help you talk about race and books to help you sublimate your righteous anger. This month we discuss From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E. Frankweiler through the eyes of two mixed-up adults who missed it as kids.

Bookish News:

• Earlier this year, BookRiot launched a feminist book club called "Persist" that takes place entirely on Instagram 
  • This past quarter they discussed Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud by Anne Helen Peterson. According to the recap, they had “over 500 people joining every week to chat about everything from fat shaming to racism in sports to whether or not we should expect celebrities to be feminists.”
  • The next set of discussions start up on June 4th for Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Brittney Cooper!
• Last week was National Library Week, but you can follow these 10 tips any time of the year. 

Two Book Minimum:

• So You Want To Talk about Race by Ijeoma Oluo 
• Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
• The Red Word by Sarah Henstra
• A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab

She Said/She Said: From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

Neither of us read this book when we were children, and SO MANY of our friends have gushed about it that we decided it needed a look-see. In case you, like us, grew up under a rock, here's the basic spiel:

When suburban Claudia Kincaid decides to run away, she knows she doesn’t just want to run from somewhere, she wants to run to somewhere — to a place that is comfortable, beautiful, and, preferably, elegant. She chooses the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Knowing her younger brother Jamie has money and thus can help her with a serious cash-flow problem, she invites him along.

Once settled into the museum, Claudia and Jamie find themselves caught up in the mystery of an angel statue that the museum purchased at auction for a bargain price of $225. The statue is possibly an early work of the Renaissance master, Michelangelo, and therefore worth millions. Is it? Or isn’t it?

Claudia is determined to find out. Her quest leads her to Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, the remarkable old woman who sold the statue, and to some equally remarkable discoveries about herself.

Was it as good as everyone said? Can you enjoy a formative book decades after your formative years? Are we both Claudia? LISTEN AND FIND OUT.

Library News:

• If you haven't already, get to browsing our sweet new website! If you have any questions, suggestions, or rave reviews, fill out our feedback form - LPL would very seriously appreciate it! 
• Remember to mark your calendars for Thursday, May 24th at 7PM: Dr. J Drew Lanham will be at Liberty Hall talking about what it means to bird-watch while black.

We also talked about our dogs. Here are Gunther and Luna looking extremely pathetic because they probably did bad things:

Twice a month, the librarians are in, with their favorite recommendations in Two Book Minimum, a toe-to-toe discussion on a book or topic, as well as news from the book world, updates from Lawrence Public Library, and beyond.

This episode was produced by Jim Barnes in the Sound & Vision studio. Our theme song is by Heidi Lynne Gluck. You can find the Book Squad Podcast on iTunes, opens a new window, Stitcher, opens a new window, or SoundCloud, opens a new window. Please subscribe and leave us comments – we’d love to know what you think, and your comments make it easier for other people to find our podcast. Happy reading and listening! xo, Polli & Kate