Excerpt
An Excerpt from From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Claudia knew that she could never pull off the old-fashioned kind of running
away. That is, running away in the heat of anger with a knapsack on her
back. She didn't like discomfort; even picnics were untidy and inconvenient:
all those insects and the sun melting the icing on the cupcakes. Therefore,
she decided that her leaving home would not be just running from somewhere
but would be running to somewhere. To a large place, a comfortable place,
and indoor place, and preferably a beautiful place. And that's why she decided
upon the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
From the Paperback edition.