The Magic Treehouse series is a popular collection of children's books written by Mary Pope Osborne. The series follows the adventures of siblings Jack and Annie as they travel through time and space to various historical events and places. The books are aimed at primary school-aged children and combine elements of fantasy, history, and educational content. The main idea of the Magic Treehouse series is to encourage children to explore and learn about different time periods and cultures in a fun and imaginative way. Each book in the series takes Jack and Annie on a new adventure, where they discover new facts, solve problems, and learn important life lessons. The books are widely loved by children and educators alike for their engaging storytelling and educational value.
The books are widely loved by children and educators alike for their engaging storytelling and educational value..
Which Witch?
Arriman the Awful, feared Wizard of the North, has decided to marry. But his wife must be a witch of the darkest powers.
A sorcery competition is held to discover which witch is the most potent and fiendish, and glamorous Madame Olympia conjures up a thousand plague-bearing rats! Belladonna, the white witch, desperately wants to be a wicked enchantress, but her magic produces flowers instead of snakes. How can she become more devilish than all the other witches?
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Genres FantasyChildrensMiddle GradeFictionYoung AdultMagicWitches
186 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
Book details & editions Loading interface. Loading interface.About the author
Eva Ibbotson
50 books 2,236 followersEva Ibbotson (born Maria Charlotte Michelle Wiesner) was a British novelist specializing in romance and children's fantasy.
She was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1925. When Hitler came into power, her family moved to England. She attended Bedford College, graduating in 1945; Cambridge University from 1946-47; and the University of Durham, from which she graduated with a diploma in education in 1965. Ibbotson had intended to be a physiologist, but was put off by the amount of animal testing that she would have to do. Instead, she married and raised a family, returning to school to become a teacher in the 1960s. Ibbotson was widowed with three sons and a daughter.
Ibottson began writing with the television drama 'Linda Came Today', in 1965. Ten years later, she published her first novel, The Great Ghost Rescue. Ibbotson has written numerous books including The Secret of Platform 13, Journey to the River Sea, Which Witch?, Island of the Aunts, and Dial-a-Ghost. She won the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for Journey to the River Sea, and has been a runner up for many of major awards for British children's literature.
Her books are imaginative and humorous, and most of them feature magical creatures and places, despite the fact that she disliked thinking about the supernatural, and created the characters because she wanted to decrease her readers' fear of such things.
Some of the books, particularly Journey to the River Sea, also reflect Ibbotson's love of nature. Ibbotson wrote this book in honor of her husband (who had died just before she wrote it), a former naturalist. The book had been in her head for years before she actually wrote it.
Ibbotson said she dislikes "financial greed and a lust for power" and often creates antagonists in her books who have these characteristics. Some have been struck by the similarity of "Platform 9 3/4" in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books to Ibbotson's The Secret of Platform 13, which came out three years before the first Harry Potter book.
Her love of Austria is evident in works such as The Star Of Kazan and A Song For Summer. These books, set primarily in the Austrian countryside, display the author's love for nature and all things natural.
Ibottson began writing with the television drama 'Linda Came Today', in 1965. Ten years later, she published her first novel, The Great Ghost Rescue. Ibbotson has written numerous books including The Secret of Platform 13, Journey to the River Sea, Which Witch?, Island of the Aunts, and Dial-a-Ghost. She won the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for Journey to the River Sea, and has been a runner up for many of major awards for British children's literature.
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Reviews for "The Magic Treehouse Series: a Timeless Classic for Young Readers"
- Sarah - 2 stars - I have to say, I was really disappointed with the Magic Treehouse series. I picked it up because of all the rave reviews, but I just couldn't get into it. The characters felt flat and one-dimensional, and the writing was very simplistic. I think young readers would enjoy it, but as an adult, I was hoping for something a bit more engaging.
- Mark - 1 star - I don't understand the hype around the Magic Treehouse series. I found the plot to be incredibly repetitive and predictable. Every book follows the same formula - Jack and Annie find a new treehouse, travel back in time, encounter some problem, and solve it within a few pages. It just felt like there was no real depth to the stories, and I quickly grew bored with it.
- Laura - 2 stars - I read a couple of books from the Magic Treehouse series, and I have to say, I was not impressed. The writing style felt too simplistic and aimed at a very young audience. I also found the dialogue to be unrealistic and forced. I understand that the series is meant for children, but I think there are other books out there that offer a better balance of simple language and engaging storytelling.
- Jason - 1 star - I really didn't enjoy the Magic Treehouse series. The plots felt rushed and underdeveloped, and the historical settings lacked specificity and depth. It felt like the author just wanted to take readers on a quick, shallow adventure without really exploring the time periods they visited. I was hoping for more substance and detail, and unfortunately, this series just didn't deliver for me.