Sp as this year’s theme is childhood nostalgia I decided to read the Magic Tree House series for the first time in. . . two decades maybe? And since I had stopped reading them, Osborne had returned to her breakout series with all new stories but I’ll get to that in a bit.

I think Magic Tree House has been beloved since it’s inception for children and for schoolteachers as Osborne blends history, geography, literature, culture, a little bit of everything in her magical tree house along with lots of adventure. Jack is the older brother at eight, and a major bookworm while he’s seven year old sister, Annie is a lover of animals and has unbridled imagination. The combination is the exact reason why they’re able to see the tree house and go on amazing adventures that only increase in intensity as the books go on.

Osborne is unqiue I think as each book can work as a stand-alone but are part in their arcs, four books to each arc, which focus on a certain theme such as long literature, solving a mystery etc. This makes a great sense of continuity and furthers kids’ enthusiasm to learn more as you want to read to the end of the arc. Vicarious reading at its finest.

Also by the rules of the tree house, they can go anywhere in history or time which ensures the books are never dull as Osborne has everything to choose from, ancient history, recent modern times like the 90s, the freaking moon in the future. It’s so much fun.

As requisite with children’s literature, it has a faithful consistancy with Jack’s catchphrase of “Oh, brother” whenever Annie runs off when he’s warning her to stay focus on the mission and read about where they’ve landed, the magic tree house “spinning faster and faster. Until it was still. Absolutely still.” Faithful markers of the formula that always changes.

The series started in 1992 and ended in 2006 initially as Osbourne focused on writing the Merlin Missions that continued Annie and Jack’s adventures of a more fantastical fare for older readers. But in 2017, Osborne returned to her original series to pen new adventures with icon heroes like Ben Franklin and Jackie Robinson with a larger focus on enviromentalism and communication because children are the future rather than just the power of reading.

Besides sporting glossy, gilded cover letters, these books are slightly longer in length numbering 90 pages instead of 70. She removed the stamps of Jack being 8 and Annie being 9, simply saying they’re an older brother and sister. This is gloss over the non-aging of the characters I assume. Unless they have aged in the interim with the Merlin Missions? I haven’t gotten to them yet (I need a little Magic Tree House break) but I’ll correct this once I know for sure.

There is a little more going on in Jack and Annie’s life as they mention going to school and being part of the baseball team, implying some age progression. Plus there is references to phones and computers that weren’t as widely available in the 90s so Osborne has clearly updated with the times.

But she hasn’t lost her magical touch as she inspires a new generation of readers and history aficianados with her beloved books.