Mary Pope Osborne (born May 20, 1949 in Fort Still, Oklahoma) is the main writer and author of the Magic Tree House Series. She has collaborated with her husband and her sister for writing the series.
Early Life[]
She wrote the first Magic Tree House book in 1992, entitled Dinosaurs Before Dark. During those ten years, she wrote many other books, and aimed toward younger audiences.
She was initially inspired to write the books while working in a teen homeless shelter and realizing that for the teens writing themselves into stories taking place in the Himalayas or Serengeti had a major effect on the teens.[10] Osborne says she tried writing the book seven different ways before finding a way that worked." It introduces the main characters of Jack and Annie, a brother and sister duo of adventurers who are transported to different areas of time thanks to the titular magic treehouse. The first book established the format for feature books and introduced recurring characters Morgan le Fay and Merlin, as part of the Arthurian motifs. Osborne says she is more like Jack but wishes she was more like Annie. Osborne tends to place small cliffhangers at the end of each chapter, which has been highlighted as one of the major reasons for the appeal of the books within their target age group. Another important factor in their success is the educational nature of the series. The books are cited for their ability to interest students in history and Osborne’s usage of vocabulary encourages young readers to learn new words and for their promoting gratitude and cross-cultural understanding in its readers.