Ch1-I Know Her!

#1 New York Times Bestselling Series MAGIC TREE HOUSE #51 High Time for Heroes

CHAPTER ONE I Know Her! Jack sat in a sunny spot on the front porch, studying a book of magic tricks. He was planning to put on a magic show for his parents and grandparents. He took a sip of lemonade, then started making a list in his notebook:

flying paper clips "Hey." Annie tapped on the screen door. "Let's do something." "I'm already doing something," said Jack. He took another sip of lemonade and added more tricks to his list: magical clinging pen great pepper trick Annie gasped. "Did you hear that?" she asked. She opened the door and came out onto the porch. "Hear what?" said Jack. He added another trick: steal-the-strength trick "That whooshing sound," said Annie. "Whooshing sound?" Jack read his list and decided he still needed two or three more tricks. "Like the tree house just whooshed into the woods!" said Annie. "Yeah, yeah," said Jack. He flipped through the pages of his book.

"Come on, go with me," Annie pleaded. "Let's check the woods again. Please." "We've already checked five times since Tuesday," said Jack. "Once more won't kill you," said Annie. "I have this feeling… I'm serious." Jack sighed. "Okay. You win," he said. "One more time." He put his notebook and pencil into his backpack. Leaving his book of magic tricks on the porch, he stood up and followed Annie down the steps and across their yard. "Aren't you dying to find another secret of greatness for Merlin?" Annie asked as they headed up the sidewalk. "And what about the magic mist? Don't you want to have another great talent for an hour?" "Of course," said Jack. "But I'm also tired of looking for the tree house and not finding it! For two weeks you've had these hunches." Jack and Annie crossed the street and headed into the Frog Creek woods. Winding through the shadows of trees, Jack took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of warm earth and summer leaves. Hidden birds sang from the tree branches. As Jack

and Annie drew closer to the tallest oak, Jack's heart started to pound. This time, something was there, high in the branches of the tree. "Whoosh," Annie said softly. Jack grinned as he looked up at the small wooden house nestled high in the branches. "Okay," he said. "I'm glad we checked." Annie ran to the rope ladder and started up. Jack followed. Inside the magic tree house, the shadows of branches danced on the wooden walls. A piece of paper, a gold ring, a tiny bottle, a small book, and a scroll were waiting on the floor. "A new message from Merlin!" said Annie. She picked up the scroll, unrolled it, and read aloud:

Dear Jack and Annie I hope you enjoyed your time with the houdinis. I ask you now to find the third secret of greatness from a woman named florence nightingale. -M "Florence Nightingale?" said Annie. "I know her! I gave a report on her!" "I just know her name. Who is she?" said Jack. "She's amazing! She's one of my heroes!" said Annie. "Yeah, okay, but what did she do?" asked Jack. "Florence Nightingale lived in the 1800s, in England," said Annie. "The English army was fighting in this place called the Crimea, on the Black Sea, and Florence Nightingale was a nurse there. The soldiers called her the Lady with the Lamp, because after the hospital was quiet and dark at night, she went alone from bed to bed with