This book was recognised by the Newbery Award. The Newbery Medal was named for eighteenth-century British bookseller John Newbery. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.

This book has been graded for interest at 9-12 years.

There are 162 pages in this book. This book was published 2002 by Atheneum Books for Young Readers .

Rene Weis is Professor of English at University College London and a distinguished editor and biographer of Shakespeare. E. L. Konigsburg made a remarkable debut in children's books by winning the prestigious Newbery Medal for her book, From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. She is also the author of Silent to the Bone and The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place. She lives in Florida, USA.