Hour of the Olympics (7 page)

Here’s a special preview of
Magic Tree House #17
Tonight on the Titanic

Available now!

Excerpt copyright ©
1999
by Mary Pope Osborne.
Published by Random House Children’s Books,
a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

Arf! Arf! Arf!

Jack finished tying his sneakers. Then he looked out his bedroom window.

A small dog stood in the early sunlight. He had floppy ears and scruffy brown fur.

“Teddy!” said Jack.

Just then, Annie ran into Jack’s room.

“Teddy’s back!” she said. “It’s time.”

It was time for their second mission to help free the little dog from a spell.

Jack threw his notebook and pencil into his backpack. Then he followed Annie downstairs and past the kitchen.

“Where are you two going?” their mom called.

“Outside,” said Jack.

“Breakfast will be ready soon,” she said. “And Grandmother will be here any minute.”

“We’ll be right back,” said Jack. He loved his grandmother’s visits. She was kind and funny. And she always taught them new things.

Jack and Annie slipped out the front door. Teddy was waiting for them.

Arf! Arf!
he barked.

“Hey, where did you go last week?” Jack asked.

The small dog wagged his tail joyfully.

Then he ran up the sidewalk.

“Wait for us!” Annie shouted.

She and Jack followed Teddy up the street and into the Frog Creek woods.

They ran between the trees. Wind rattled the leaves. Birds swooped from branch to branch.

Teddy stopped at a rope ladder that hung from the tallest oak tree in the woods. At the top of the ladder was the magic tree house.

Jack and Annie stared up at it.

“No sign of Morgan,” said Annie.

“Let’s go up,” said Jack.

Annie picked up Teddy. She carried him carefully up the ladder. Jack climbed after her.

Inside the tree house, Teddy sniffed a silver pocket watch on the floor. Beside it was the note that Morgan had written to Jack and Annie.

Annie picked up the note and read it aloud:

This little dog is under a spell and needs your help. To free him, you must be given four special things:

“We’ve got the first special thing,” said Annie, “the gift from a ship lost at sea.”

“Yeah,” said Jack. He picked up the silver pocket watch.

The time on the watch was 2:20—the time the
Titanic
had sunk.

Jack and Annie stared at the watch.

Arf! Arf!

Teddy’s barking brought Jack back from his memories.

“Okay,” Jack said. He sighed and pushed his glasses into place. “Now it’s time for the gift from the prairie blue.”

“What’s that mean?” said Annie.

“I’m not sure,” said Jack. He looked around the tree house. “But I bet that book will take us there.”

He picked up a book in the corner. The cover was a picture of a wide prairie. The title was
The Great Plains
.

“Ready?” Jack said.

Teddy yipped and wagged his tail.

“Let’s go,” said Annie. “The sooner we free Teddy, the better.”

Jack pointed at the cover.

“I wish we could go there,” he said.

The wind started to blow.

The tree house started to spin.

It spun faster and faster.

Then everything was still.

Absolutely still.

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Guess what?

Jack and Annie have a musical CD!

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(including how to order the CD!),
visit
www.mthmusical.com
.

Discover the facts
behind the fiction with the

Magic Tree House
^®
Books

  #1: D
INOSAURS
B
EFORE
D
ARK

  #2: T
HE
K
NIGHT AT
D
AWN

  #3: M
UMMIES IN THE
M
ORNING

  #4: P
IRATES
P
AST
N
OON

  #5: N
IGHT OF THE
N
INJAS

  #6: A
FTERNOON ON THE
A
MAZON

  #7: S
UNSET OF THE
S
ABERTOOTH

  #8: M
IDNIGHT ON THE
M
OON

  #9: D
OLPHINS AT
D
AYBREAK

#10: G
HOST
T
OWN AT
S
UNDOWN

#11: L
IONS AT
L
UNCHTIME

#12: P
OLAR
B
EARS
P
AST
B
EDTIME

#13: V
ACATION
U
NDER THE
V
OLCANO

#14: D
AY OF THE
D
RAGON
K
ING

#15: V
IKING
S
HIPS AT
S
UNRISE

#16: H
OUR OF THE
O
LYMPICS

#17: T
ONIGHT ON THE
T
ITANIC

#18: B
UFFALO
B
EFORE
B
REAKFAST

#19: T
IGERS AT
T
WILIGHT

#20: D
INGOES AT
D
INNERTIME

#21: C
IVIL
W
AR ON
S
UNDAY

#22: R
EVOLUTIONARY
W
AR ON
W
EDNESDAY

#23: T
WISTER ON
T
UESDAY

#24: E
ARTHQUAKE IN THE
E
ARLY
M
ORNING

#25: S
TAGE
F
RIGHT ON A
S
UMMER
N
IGHT

#26: G
OOD
M
ORNING
, G
ORILLAS

#27: T
HANKSGIVING ON
T
HURSDAY

#28: H
IGH
T
IDE IN
H
AWAII

Merlin Missions

#29: C
HRISTMAS IN
C
AMELOT

#30: H
AUNTED
C
ASTLE ON
H
ALLOWS
E
VE

#31: S
UMMER OF THE
S
EA
S
ERPENT

#32: W
INTER OF THE
I
CE
W
IZARD

#33: C
ARNIVAL AT
C
ANDLELIGHT

#34: S
EASON OF THE
S
ANDSTORMS

#35: N
IGHT OF THE
N
EW
M
AGICIANS

#36: B
LIZZARD OF THE
B
LUE
M
OON

#37: D
RAGON OF THE
R
ED
D
AWN

#38: M
ONDAY WITH A
M
AD
G
ENIUS

#39: D
ARK
D
AY IN THE
D
EEP
S
EA

#40: E
VE OF THE
E
MPEROR
P
ENGUIN

#41: M
OONLIGHT ON THE
M
AGIC
F
LUTE

#42: A G
OOD
N
IGHT FOR
G
HOSTS

#43: L
EPRECHAUN IN
L
ATE
W
INTER

#44: A G
HOST
T
ALE FOR
C
HRISTMAS
T
IME

Magic Tree House
^®
Research Guides

D
INOSAURS

K
NIGHTS AND
C
ASTLES

M
UMMIES AND
P
YRAMIDS

P
IRATES

R
AIN
F
ORESTS

S
PACE

T
ITANIC

T
WISTERS AND
O
THER
T
ERRIBLE
S
TORMS

D
OLPHINS AND
S
HARKS

A
NCIENT
G
REECE AND THE
O
LYMPICS

A
MERICAN
R
EVOLUTION

S
ABERTOOTHS AND THE
I
CE
A
GE

P
ILGRIMS

A
NCIENT
R
OME AND
P
OMPEII

T
SUNAMIS AND
O
THER
N
ATURAL
D
ISASTERS

P
OLAR
B
EARS AND THE
A
RCTIC

S
EA
M
ONSTERS

P
ENGUINS AND
A
NTARCTICA

L
EONARDO DA
V
INCI

G
HOSTS

L
EPRECHAUNS AND
I
RISH
F
OLKLORE

R
AGS AND
R
ICHES:
K
IDS IN THE
T
IME OF
C
HARLES
D
ICKENS

More Magic Tree House
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G
AMES AND
P
UZZLES FROM THE
T
REE
H
OUSE