The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place by
E.L. Konigsburg
Great Book!
Twelve year old Margaret Rose Kane is incorrigible. Not only does she
refuse to bend to the will of her manipulative cabin mates at Camp
Talequa, she stands up to and inadvertently insults the camp director and
Queen-in-residence, Mrs. Kaplan. The intimidating and cruel
confrontations that threaten to break Margarets spririt only serve to
strengthen her resolve, and everyone is happy when Margaret is finally
banished/rescued from Camp Talequa. Luckily for her, with her parents in
Peru, this means she can spend the rest of the summer with her
delightfully eccentric Hungarian great-uncles, Alexander and Morris Rose.
Margaret adores her great-uncles, and loves the house at 19 Schuyler
Place--especially the three peculiar clock towers (tall painted structures
covered in pendants made from broken china, crystal, bottles, jars, and
clock parts) that the Rose brothers have been building for as long as she
can remember. For Margaret and the Rose brothers, the towers represent
beauty for beautys sake--they sparkle in the sun and sing in the wind--they

exist only to spread joy. Not everyone loves the towers however, and
forty-five years after the birth of the project, the city council declares the
towers unsafe, and demands that they be dismantled and destroyed. Filled
with the same fiery resolve that helped her survive Camp Talequa,
Margaret (with the help of a handyman named Jake, a loyal dog named
Tartufo, and few other unexpected allies) launches a plan to save the
towers in the name of art, history, and beauty. A companion novel to the
award-winning authors acclaimed Silent to the Bone, Outcasts is strikingly
unique, incredibly interesting, and, with references to Bartleby the
Scrivener, and the rose windows of Notre Dame, exceptionally literary. In
other words, The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place is vintage Konigsburg.
This quirky masterpiece will be enjoyed by young fans of Konigsburg’s
other erudite works, and Polly Horvath’s The Canning Season.. (Ages 10
and older)
Personal Review: The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place by E.L.
Konigsburg
"I prefer not to" those are the words of Margaret Rose Kane she says them
every time she is asked to do a summer camp activity. Actually she doesn't
really want to be at this summer camp at all but she is forced to while her
parents are in Peru. The summer camp experience would not last for long
though as her uncles come and rescue her from the apprehensive camp
director and the cruel cabin mates. They bring her back to their exquisite
house at 19 Schuyler Place.
This story takes place in the year of 1983 when many things
happen. For example Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in
space but in the town of Epiphany something even more exciting is
happening! As you know the main character in this book is Margaret Rose
Kane who also is the one who is telling the story. Some other main
characters are her uncles Alexander Rose and Morris Rose. Also there is
the camp director, the very strict Mrs. Kaplan and her son Jake Kaplan.
Jake isn't as bad as his mother and actually helps Margaret. Some final
important characters are Margaret's cabin mates, Peter Vanderwaal and
Loretta Bevilaqua who also help Margaret. When you read this book you
will instantly get hooked. After Margaret gets home from her awful camp
experience she learns why her uncles did really want her to stay with them.
In the uncles back yard they have everything from peppers to roses but
most of all 3 amazing towers that the uncles have been building for the
past 45 years. The towers were made of steel and they were built like a
network of ribs which cast more light than shadow, almost like a spider
web. All of the towers also had rungs on them, from each rung hung
thousands of chips of glass and shards from porcelain and the inner
workings of old clocks. They were of all different colors and different sizes
making each and every one of them unique. Margaret is appalled to find
out that the city has demanded that the tower must come down because
they are not safe and could fall in something like a wind storm and damage
property. Margaret is astonished by this and tries to do everything it takes
to save the towers even if she needs a little help. This book had many
good scenes and in my personal opinion was one of the greatest books I

have ever read. It could go into a little more detail though. Also in the very
end of the book I think it should have explained a little more about what
she was doing. This book could definitely have a sequel.
All in all this is a must read book for any age. It's a great book that
keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole time you're reading it. I
would recommend this book to anybody because it is an all around book
that anybody would enjoy!
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