From the Mixed Up Brain of Mr. James Ponti
By Jamie Ponti - March 26, 2012
For me it was From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.Like a lot of boys, reading did not come naturally for me. When I was a student at Atlantic Beach Elementary and we'd read aloud in class, I was always slower than everyone else. When my friends would lose track of time and simply disappear into a novel while reading, I was always too impatient or restless. Then along came this wonderful book by E.L. Konisburg. For some reason, this story of a brother and sister running away and hiding out inside the Metropolitan Museum of Art took me places. I finally got lost in something. I thought it was clever and fun. I thought it was mischevious but not too much so. I thought it was perfect.
I would like to say that it opened a floodgate for reading, but that's not true. It was still a struggle for me for years to come. But this is the book that planted the seed and stayed with me always. As an adult when I finally made it to Met, I rushed to the giftshop so that I could by a copy that was actually from the place in the story. By this point I had become a writer and when I reread it with my son, I realized how much E.L. Konigsburg had influenced my writing and storytelling sense.
I recently got three advanced reading copies of my upcoming book. My twelve-year old girl protagonist is not so unlike the eleven year old girl in the Mixed Up Files. My story is also set in New York which for me has always held the lure of literary adventure. I decided that I should try to give one of the copies to Ms. Konigsburg as a thank you. Ironically, at 82 she is now the same age as Mrs. Frankweiler in the book. And when I looked her up I was amazed to learn that she has lived, almost since I the time I first read her book, just a few miles from the house where I grew up.
I've reached out to some friends who know some people who know her and hopefully will be able to get her a copy. Part of me wishes that I had known all that time that she was so close. I don't think I ever would have tried to talk to her. I would have been too scared. But it would have been inspiring to know that greatness could be just down the street. And it would have made it seem all the more believable that a boy who was never a strong reader might someday grow up to become a writer.
What book was it for you? Which was the first one to make you lose track of time and just go along for the ride?
I would like to say that it opened a floodgate for reading, but that's not true. It was still a struggle for me for years to come. But this is the book that planted the seed and stayed with me always. As an adult when I finally made it to Met, I rushed to the giftshop so that I could by a copy that was actually from the place in the story. By this point I had become a writer and when I reread it with my son, I realized how much E.L. Konigsburg had influenced my writing and storytelling sense.
I recently got three advanced reading copies of my upcoming book. My twelve-year old girl protagonist is not so unlike the eleven year old girl in the Mixed Up Files. My story is also set in New York which for me has always held the lure of literary adventure. I decided that I should try to give one of the copies to Ms. Konigsburg as a thank you. Ironically, at 82 she is now the same age as Mrs. Frankweiler in the book. And when I looked her up I was amazed to learn that she has lived, almost since I the time I first read her book, just a few miles from the house where I grew up.
I've reached out to some friends who know some people who know her and hopefully will be able to get her a copy. Part of me wishes that I had known all that time that she was so close. I don't think I ever would have tried to talk to her. I would have been too scared. But it would have been inspiring to know that greatness could be just down the street. And it would have made it seem all the more believable that a boy who was never a strong reader might someday grow up to become a writer.
What book was it for you? Which was the first one to make you lose track of time and just go along for the ride?
