“I know!” Jack said. “Will helped us. Let’s thank him!”
“Later,” said Annie. “First I have to show you something. I need your help! Quick!”
Annie led Jack downstairs and outside. As people streamed away from the Globe, the late afternoon sun was going down.
“This way,” said Annie. She headed for the patch of trees behind the theater.
When she and Jack stepped into the gloomy shade, Jack saw an odd figure near a tree. A purple cape barely covered his furry back. A golden wig and a lion mask barely hid his furry head.
Jack gasped. “The bear! You stole him!”
“I had to,” said Annie. “I went to the cart when no one was looking. I put a costume on him. So if we passed people on the way here, they’d think he was an actor.”
“But you can’t just steal him!” said Jack.
“I wasn’t stealing. I was saving,” said Annie. “I’m not sure what to do with him now. What do you think?”
Just then the bear’s owner charged into the woods. “Where’s my bear?” he shouted. His face was red. He was scowling.
“Thieves!” he yelled. “Give him back! I’m selling him to the fights!”
“NO!” said Annie, standing between the bear and the man. “He’s a tame bear! Not a fighter!”
“She’s right!” said Jack, jumping in. “And besides, bear fighting is stupid! Really stupid!”
“ ’Tis, indeed,” said a deep voice.
Jack, Annie, and the bear’s owner whirled around. Will and Puck were standing at the edge of the woods.
“Tut, tut, you’re a sorry sight, man,” Will said to the bear’s owner. “Trying to sell an old tame bear to the fights. Well, I’ve been planning to write a play with a part for a bear. So take this money for him and be gone.”
Will handed some gold coins to the bear’s owner.
The man’s eyes grew wide. He laughed.
“You can have him!” the man said. And he took off.
“Thank you, and good riddance!” called Will. Then he turned to Puck. “Take our new player to the stables. Tell the actors they needn’t be afraid of him. He’s tamer than most of them.”
“Come this way,” Puck said. He put his arm around the bear and gently led him out from the trees. “You’ll love the stage, old man.”
“Bye, Puck! Bye, Dan!” said Annie.
Puck smiled and waved. The bear stared for a moment at Jack and Annie. He had a grateful look in his eyes. Then he lumbered off with Puck.
“Thanks, Will, for helping Dan,” said Annie. “And for helping us.”
“Thank you both for helping me,” said Will. “You saved the day.”
“The night, you mean,” said Jack.
“Indeed, the night,” said Will. “Oh, here is your bag. You forgot it.” He gave Jack his leather bag. Then he held up their two scrolls with their lines on them.
“And you can take these,” said Will. He handed them to Jack, and Jack put them in his bag.
“Where are you off to now?” said Will.
“The other side of London Bridge,” said Annie.
“Ah, I can take you there in my boat,” said Will. “Follow me.”
Will led them along a dusty path toward the river. The last rays of the sun slanted through the trees. Soon they came to a small rowboat docked on the Thames.
“Climb in,” said Will.
Jack, Annie, and Will climbed in. Will untied the boat from the dock. Then he began rowing across the river.
The water reflected the purple and pink in the sky. Only a few white swans now glided over the shimmering ripples. The river smelled as bad as before, but Jack didn’t mind now. He had grown used to it.
Jack pulled out his notebook and pencil.
“What are you doing?” Will asked.
“I wanted to write some of my memories in my notebook,” said Jack.
“Ah, and I’ll note you both in my book of memory,” said Will.
Jack smiled.
“I have a question, Will,” said Annie. “Why does Queen Elizabeth have black teeth?”
“Too much sugar,” said Will.
“I hope it doesn’t make her feel bad—looking that way, I mean,” said Annie.
“Oh, no, she’s not the least hurt,” said Will. “The queen has no idea how she looks. She hasn’t peeked in a good mirror for twenty years.”
“Is that true?” said Annie.
“ ’Tis,” said Will. “The queen pretends to be young and beautiful. Just as you pretended to be a boy, and the bear pretended to be an actor. You see, all the world’s a stage.”
Jack liked that idea. He wrote in his notebook:
Jack looked up at London Bridge as they passed by. The shops on the bridge were closed now. The theater crowd was thinning out.
The scary black birds were no longer on the rooftops. They had swooped down and were picking at the garbage left on the cobblestones.
The show was over.
By the time they came to the riverbank, night was falling. It was much cooler. Will tied up his rowboat and climbed ashore with Jack and Annie.
“Thanks a lot,” Jack said to Will. “We can go the rest of the way by ourselves.”
“Where do you live?” said Will.
“In Frog Creek,” said Annie.
“What path do you take?” asked Will.
“You’ll never believe this,” said Annie. “We climb up the rope ladder to a tree house in that tree over there. And we open a book—”
“Then we make a wish,” said Jack, “and we go to the place in the book.”
Will smiled.
“Thy life’s a miracle, isn’t it?” he said.
“Yes!” said Annie. Jack nodded. He liked the way Will looked at things.
“I have an idea,” said Will. “Why don’t you both stay here instead? You can live and act at the Globe Theater. I’ll ask the queen to exclude you from the law about girls going onstage, Annie—because of your great talent. And I will teach you both to write plays.”
“Really?” said Jack and Annie together.
Jack couldn’t imagine anything more fun. Then he thought of his parents back in Frog Creek.
“But our mom and dad—” he said.
“We would really miss them,” said Annie.
Will smiled.
“I understand,” he said. “And I would miss you if I were them.” He put his hand over his heart. “So, good night, good night. Parting is such sweet sorrow.”
“Yes, ’tis,” said Annie, nodding.
“Farewell!” said Will. He waved.
Jack and Annie waved back. Then Will turned on his heels and headed back to his rowboat.
Jack and Annie walked to the rope ladder and climbed up to the tree house. When they got inside, they looked out the window.
Will was rowing back across the Thames River. A single white swan glided across the ripples beside his boat. A silver moon was rising in the sky.
At that moment, Jack did feel sweet sorrow. He wanted to stay in merry olde England just a little longer.
“Wait, Will!” he shouted.
But Annie picked up the Pennsylvania book.
“I wish we could go home,” she said.
The wind started to blow.
The tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster.
Then everything was still.
Absolutely still.
Jack opened his eyes.
They were wearing their own clothes again. A lightning bug blinked inside the growing darkness of the tree house.
Annie picked up Morgan’s note. She repeated the rhyme:
To find a special magic,
You must step into the light
And without wand, spell, or charm,
Turn daytime into night.
“We found the special magic,” said Annie. “Theater magic!”
“Yep,” said Jack.
He opened his backpack. He and Annie took out the two scrol
ls Will had given them. When they unrolled them, Jack saw that Will had written something. He read aloud:
“William Shakespeare?” said Annie. “I’ve heard that name before.”
“Me too,” said Jack.
He took out their research book. He looked up Shakespeare in the index. He turned to a page and read aloud:
William Shakespeare lived from 1564 to 1616. He wrote thirty-seven plays and many sonnets and other poems. Many people think he was the greatest writer who ever lived.
“The greatest?” said Annie. “Our Will?”
“Oh, man,” whispered Jack. He stared in amazement at William Shakespeare’s autograph.
“Hey, we can leave our scrolls with Morgan’s note,” said Annie. “It’ll prove to her we found a special magic.”
They put their two scrolls next to the note on the floor. Then they climbed down the rope ladder.
When they started walking through the woods, a breeze blew, shaking the tree leaves. Shadows shifted. Birds called from hidden places.
“Remember the enchanted woods?” Annie said in a hushed voice. “The fairy queen and the fairy king?”
Jack smiled and nodded.
“And Puck, the merry wanderer of the night?” said Annie. “And Will, our Will.”
Jack nodded again.
“I had a great time,” said Annie. “Didn’t you?”
Jack sighed.
“Yes,” he said. Then he took a deep breath and spoke very clearly and with feeling:
“I have had a most rare vision.
I have had a dream … .”
MORE FACTS FOR JACK AND ANNIE AND YOU!
William Shakespeare did write a play that included a small part for a bear. That play is called The Winter’s Tale.
Queen Elizabeth’s teeth were black from eating too much sugar (as were the teeth of many other people from that time). One of the queen’s ladies-in-waiting wrote that the queen was not given a clear mirror to look at herself for the last twenty years of her life.
There is no historical evidence that Queen Elizabeth I ever visited the Globe Theater. It is believed, though, that she liked Shakespeare’s plays very much and that A Midsummer Night’s Dream was performed at her palace for her and her court.
Today, the place where theaters sell tickets is called a “box office.” That’s because in Shakespeare’s time, people dropped their admission money into a box held at the door.
The reason actors’ parts are now called “roles” is because in Shakespeare’s time, actors were given scrolls, or rolls of paper, with only their own lines written on them.
For over 400 years, people have been quoting lines written by Shakespeare. Some of the lines quoted in this book are:
“I’ll note you in my book of memory.”—from Henry the Sixth
“All the world’s a stage.”—from As You Like It
“Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow.”—from Romeo and Juliet
“Thy life’s a miracle.”—from King Lear
“I have had a most rare vision. I have had a dream past the wit of man to say what dream it was.”—from A Midsummer Night’s Dream
It is believed that William Shakespeare invented over 2,000 words and expressions, many of which we still use. Some of Shakespeare’s words in this story are:
blushing hush
bump lonely
downstairs long-legged
excitement shooting star
for goodness’ sakes sorry sight
forward swift as a shadow
gloomy tut, tut
good riddance upstairs
howled
Here’s a special preview of
Magic Tree House #26:
Good Morning, Gorillas
Available now!
Excerpt copyright © 2002 by Mary Pope Osborne.
Published by Random House Children’s Books,
a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
Tap-tap-tap.
Jack sat up in bed. Rain tapped against his window. His clock said 5 A.M. It was still dark outside.
Annie peeked into his room.
“Are you awake?” she whispered.
“Yep,” said Jack.
“Ready to find some special magic?” she asked.
“Maybe we should wait,” said Jack. “It’s so dark and rainy.”
“No waiting,” said Annie. “I’ll get an umbrella. You bring a flashlight. Meet you downstairs.”
“Okay, okay,” said Jack.
He jumped out of bed. He pulled on his clothes and put on a jacket. Then he grabbed his backpack and flashlight.
Jack slipped downstairs and out the front door. Annie stood on the porch in jeans and a T-shirt. The air was chilly and breezy.
“Don’t you need a sweater or something?” said Jack.
“I’m okay,” she said. “Let’s go.”
Annie raised the umbrella. Jack turned on the flashlight. They followed a circle of rainy light down their street into the woods.
They headed through the Frog Creek woods. The flashlight lit up the trees—the wet leaves and dark branches. Then it shined on a dangling rope ladder.
Jack raised the flashlight beam.
“There it is,” he said.
A circle of light lit the magic tree house.
“Morgan’s not there,” said Annie. “I can tell.”
“Maybe she left us a message,” said Jack.
Jack grabbed the rope ladder and started up. Annie put the umbrella down and followed. When they climbed inside, Jack shined the flashlight around the tree house.
Morgan le Fay wasn’t there. But the scrolls from their trip to old England were.
“Here’s proof we found a special magic yesterday,” she said.
“Yeah,” said Jack, smiling. “Theater magic.” He had great memories of acting in a play by their friend William Shakespeare.
“Did Morgan leave us a new secret rhyme?” asked Jack.
He shined the flashlight on a book lying under the window. A piece of paper was sticking out of the book.
“Yes!” said Annie. She picked up the book and pulled out the paper.
Jack shined his light on the paper while Annie read aloud:
Dear Annie and Jack,
Good luck on your second journey to find a special magic. This secret rhyme will guide you:
To find a special kind of magic
in worlds so far apart,
speak a special language,
talk with your hands and heart.
Thank you,
Morgan
“What kind of language does she mean?” Jack asked.
“I guess we’ll find out,” said Annie. “Where are we going?”
Jack shined the flashlight on the cover of the book. It showed huge trees partly hidden by mist. The title was:
AN AFRICAN RAIN FOREST
“Rain forest?” said Jack. “Good thing we brought our umbrella and flashlight. Remember the rain in the Amazon rain forest? Remember how dark it was under the treetops?”
“Yeah,” said Annie. “Remember the spiders and scary ants?”
“Well … ,” Jack said, “not all rain forests have the same bugs.”
“Remember the river snakes?” said Annie. “And the crocodiles?”
“Well … ,” said Jack, “not all rain forests have big rivers. There are different kinds of rain forests, you know.”
“Right,” said Annie. She pointed to the cover of the book. “I wish we could go there.”
The wind started to blow.
“Oh, remember the jaguar?” said Annie. “And the vampire bats?”
“Wait!” said Jack.
But it was too late. The wind was blowing harder. The tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster.
Then everything was still.
Absolutely still.
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Discover the facts
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Magic Tree House® Books
#1: DINOSAURS BEFORE DARK
#2: THE KNIGHT AT DAWN
#3: MUMMIES IN THE MORNING
#4: PIRATES PAST NOON
#5: NIGHT OF THE NINJAS
#6: AFTERNOON ON THE AMAZON
#7: SUNSET OF THE SABERTOOTH
#8: MIDNIGHT ON THE MOON
#9: DOLPHINS AT DAYBREAK
#10: GHOST TOWN AT SUNDOWN
#11: LIONS AT LUNCHTIME
#12: POLAR BEARS PAST BEDTIME
#13: VACATION UNDER THE VOLCANO
#14: DAY OF THE DRAGON KING
#15: VIKING SHIPS AT SUNRISE
#16: HOUR OF THE OLYMPICS
#17: TONIGHT ON THE TITANIC
#18: BUFFALO BEFORE BREAKFAST
#19: TIGERS AT TWILIGHT
#20: DINGOES AT DINNERTIME
#21: CIVIL WAR ON SUNDAY
#22: REVOLUTIONARY WAR ON WEDNESDAY
#23: TWISTER ON TUESDAY
#24: EARTHQUAKE IN THE EARLY MORNING
#25: STAGE FRIGHT ON A SUMMER NIGHT
#26: GOOD MORNING, GORILLAS
#27: THANKSGIVING ON THURSDAY
#28: HIGH TIDE IN HAWAII
Merlin Missions
#29: CHRISTMAS IN CAMELOT
#30: HAUNTED CASTLE ON HALLOWS EVE
#31: SUMMER OF THE SEA SERPENT
#32: WINTER OF THE ICE WIZARD
Stage Fright on a Summer Night Page 3
