I originally read the Magic Tree House books as a child and was a big fan (though my younger brother loved them even more). I was shocked to learn, when I began working as a children’s librarian a couple years ago, that not only is the series still ongoing but still very popular. To this day I continue to check out Magic Tree House books to my patrons and recommend them to those who are not already familiar with them.
It was recently, while scrolling through NetGalley, that I cam across the ARC of the first Magic Tree House graphic novel. I am personally a big fan of graphic novels and was recently able to finally create a graphic novel area in the children’s section of my library. So, I was very excited to read a copy of this book.
The book itself was a graphic novelization of the first Magic Tree House book, Dinosaur’s Before Dark. I will admit to not having read that book in quite awhile, but as far as I could tell the contents were pretty true to the original story. But, what was quite nice were the additional details provided by the visual format without having to depend on intermittent illustrations. For example, readers are able to see some very familiar titles in the books in the treehouse. In addition, while there is nothing particularly “modern” about the graphic novel (which is great for its ability to last on the shelves) the book did seem more fresh and updated. I thought the art was well done and the colors very bright, which would be appealing to young readers.
This was ultimately a big draw for me, I think these books are great for young reluctant readers who would really like Magic Tree House if they tried it, but perhaps just are not there yet. These graphic novels could be a great “gateway book”. As a result, I definitely plan to purchase this book for my library when the book is available for purchase and plan to recommend it to Magic Tree House fans, graphic novel readers, and reluctant readers.

(Thank you to Netgalley and the Random House Children's for the ARC)

A mysterious tree house appears in the woods behind Jack and Annie's house. Before they could figure out what is going on they are magically transported to the prehistoric past. This is a graphic novel adaptation of the first book in the Magic Tree House Series.

I saw this and had high hopes. This series is one of the few things that my children shared. My daughter is 22 and my youngest is 15, they grew up with the Magic Tree House Series. Even now if you were to say "It spun faster" they will instantly respond with "and everything went still, absolutely still". The tree house pages were beautiful. All of my favorite lines were included exactly as they were in the novels.

When Jack and Annie first come into the tree house all of the books are there with the titles from other Magic Tree House adventures. I loved looking through the background and remembering all of the other books in the series. It brought back so many memories of sitting with my kids and reading. I loved it so much and cannot wait to get my hands on this book. I hope they continue to adapt the series. I will be getting a copy for myself and for my classroom.

Creative Team:
Writer: Mary Pope Osborne
Adapted by Jenny Laird
Illustrators: Kelly Matthews and Nichole Matthews
Published by Random House

What a beautiful rendition of one of my favorite series as a child! Graphic novels are a great way to hook younger readers, and the story moves along at a good pace.

This is a great text to reignite kids' interest in the beloved Magic Treehouse series. The graphic format makes the story accessible to struggling readers and helps readers to visualize. I can't wait to add a copy to my classroom!

An excellent adaptation of the beloved series' first book! The art is whimsical and expressive and perfectly captures the action of the original novel. Fans of the series will love exploring these books in a new way, and new fans will certainly flock to this well done graphic novel adaptation.

"The wind started to blow. The treehouse started to spin. It spun faster and faster. Then everything was still. Absolutely still."
My family has been devouring Mary Pope Osborne's Magic Tree House series for the past few months with my preschooler. We were thrilled to see that the series is now being made into graphic novels! My 4 year old is a huge fan of Jack and Annie, and he was glued to each page as we read through the familiar tale. Kelly and Nichole Matthews' have made this story come to life with their beautiful artwork! We are excited to add these upcoming titles to our collection!

I am super excited for this one to be published! An old library favorite updated as a graphic novel? My patrons will be so excited.

This graphic novel version of the first book in the classic series does not disappoint. Jack and Annie are introduced in a new format to engage children who may have missed them in traditional print books. The illustrations are bright and engaging and the words touch on all that's important.

Jack and Annie find themselves in a magic tree house and traveling back in time to the time of Dinosaurs. But is it real? Who owns this magic tree house and who was there before them? Follow Jack and Annie on their adventure as they discover amazing animals and use their problem solving to stay safe and make it home before dark.

This book is perfect for libraries.

Thank you Net Galley for the chance to read this book before it's published.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3778486996

The story’s good, the panels and flow pretty skillful, and kids will like it enough, but the art (especially the portrayals of Jack and Annie) is disappointingly bland. I would have liked to see a strong interesting visual style for this adaptation (like Ben Hatke’s, maybe?). It’s a missed opportunity to really add something to the text version. Jack sometimes looks like a kid, other times like a teen or even an adult. Annie looks dated and dull. I’ll buy this for the library out of a sense of duty and not of excitement.

From a digital ARC via #netgalley

Pitch perfect adaptation of a children's book standard. The art is crisp and engaging. Not overloaded with text and the pace is fast enough for impatient readers. Recommended for all collections that serve juvenile readers.

This was so delightful! I was a little wary about a graphic novel adaptation of these books, but I was really blown away! The illustrations are beautiful, and this felt like it still had the "heart" of the classic chapter books. Very excited to buy this for my library and introduce it to the kids!

Oh, how this book takes me back to my childhood when I read and loved all of the Magic Tree House books 🌳🏠✨🦖 Thanks again to NetGalley and Random House Books for Young Readers for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for feedback.

Brother and sister, Jack and Annie, come across a mysterious treehouse that’s filled with tons and tons of books. One book in particular takes them on an adventure to another time and place, a place that’s filled with DINOSAURS!! How will they get back home? Reading this book definitely brought back great memories of reading this series as a kid and reminds me why I loved reading series growing up. Once you finish one book, you need to read the next one to see what happens to your favorite characters! I can’t wait to see what adventure Jack and Annie go on next 😊

I read this with my 8 year old son and he loved it. He liked comparing what he'd pictured in his head to what was illustrated. I'm sure the kids at my school will love it, too, so I'm sure this series will be purchased and on our shelves once they're released.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's, and Mary Pope Osborne for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This graphic novel is absolutely adorable and perfect for younger readers. I started reading Magic Tree House when I was in Kindergarten and have the collection up to Twister on Tuesday (#23) which is about where I dropped off as I got older and began to read more advanced books.

This graphic novel certainly brought some nostalgia as I was taken back to the very first adventure Annie and Jack ever have in the Magic Tree House: an adventure back in the time of the dinosaurs. It was always one of my favorites, as I love dinosaurs, and it has it's educational bits for young readers while also being a great read for those who are developing their vocabulary and reading skills., Of course, the graphic aspect is a nice touch as well and really adds to the adventures in the world.

Overall, super cute and fun. I loved this graphic novel and see that an adaptation of the second novel is already on the way. Awesome!

This brought a smile to my face.

I'm in my late 20s, and the magic tree house series was a cornerstone of my childhood years. I remember bonding with my younger brother over the books. Having the books reimagined in graphic novel form will give new readers another avenue to get into the book and old readers another format to enjoy.

The illustrations are wonderful and expressive, the dialogue is believable and has the same magic I remember the books having when I was a child. I was excited to find out this isn't a one off and they will be continuing this graphic novel series. Looking forward to purchasing these for my library and recommending them to readers.

This was an absolutely lovely graphic novel adaption of the first Magic Treehouse book, and I cannot wait to read the next ones in the series. The art style is beautiful, modern, and captures all the magic of the original books.

Jack and Annie's first time-travel adventure has been retold in graphic novel format. This beautifully illustrated book will be sure to get new readers interested in the Magic Tree House series. I am looking forward to seeing the other books retold.

Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

My 7-year-old is a big fan of the MTH series, so I jumped at the chance to read this new version. While the original books do have lots of illustrations, the graphic format allows the artwork to do more of the storytelling, and it does so beautifully. We loved the full-color pictures! Shifting the narrative to dialogue makes this series more accessible to younger students while also challenging readers to flex their inference muscles as they put illustrations and dialogue together to comprehend the story.
Magic Tree House fans will love these books. Early graphic novel fans will love these books too.

I couldn't stop smiling while I was reading this! It was so fun to return to the Magic Treehouse, and the graphic novel format was a great way to tell this story. The illustrations were so bright and colorful, and Jack and Annie's facial expressions communicated so much of what they were thinking. I will be reading the other graphic novels in this series when they come out!

As a lifelong fan of the Magic Tree House series, I was excited to see the graphic adaptation of this title.

The images were wonderful and sequencing of boxes easy to follow. Speech was simple and perfectly selected to keep the story moving well. Although I was disappointed at the tremendous condensation of the text, I had to keep reminding myself of the intended audience AND the potential for making the story line accessible for readers who are still working on strengthening their skills.

I see this becoming immensely popular among young readers, whether they are familiar with the series and original text or not. As a former educator and current librarian, I can see many wonderful uses of this within the classroom to reach multiple levels of reading readiness and interests.