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Magic Tree House #26
Good Morning, Gorillas
The Magic Tree House whisks Jack and Annie off to the mountains of Africa. There they run into a huge mountain gorilla! At first they don’t know whether they should shake hands or turn tail. But the ominous-looking creature turns out to be surprisingly gentle. Not only that, the gorilla may be able to help them learn their next bit of magic, which Morgan has challenged them to do.
96 pages, Library Binding
First published July 1, 2002
537 people are currently reading
2890 people want to read
About the author
Mary Pope Osborne
1,088 books2,557 followersMary Pope Osborne is an American author of children's books and audiobook narrator. She is best known as the author of the Magic Tree House series, which as of 2017 sold more than 134 million copies worldwide. Both the series and Osborne have won awards, including for Osborne's charitable efforts at promoting children's literacy. One of four children, Osborne moved around in her childhood before attending the University of North Carolina. Following college, Osborne traveled before moving to New York City. She somewhat spontaneously began to write, and her first book was published in 1982. She went on to write a variety of other children's and young adult books before starting the Magic Tree House series in 1992. Osborne's sister Natalie Pope Boyce has written several compendium books to the Magic Tree House series, sometimes with Osborne's husband Will Osborne.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 282 reviews
June 28, 2012
I like this book because in the book it states, Jack and Annie soon discovered that the tree house was magic. It could take them to the places in the books. All they had to do was point to a picture and wish to go there.(pg.1) I also like this book because it makes you think if gorillas are as bad as they look? Or are they gentle giants? I also like this book because in the back of the book it states, Gentle giants or giant monsters? That's the question Jack and Annie have about gorillas when the Magic Tree House sweeps them to the mountains of Africa.(pg.71) I last reason I like this book is because this book made me think that gorillas are not that bad animals, I say that because in page 35 it states, WRAAGH! he roared. WRAAGH! The gorilla dropped on all fours. He charged back and fourth past Jack. Then he threw himself on his bell. He began bashing the ground with his palms. The silverback was sitting on the ground. His lips were curved in a smile. Was his whole act a fake? Jack wondered.(pg.35)
My cousin (Darwin) would like this book. I say that because he likes books about gorillas and he also likes THE MAGIC TREE HOUSE books. I know that because when it was his 9th Birthday he told me that he wanted to see Gorillas in THE BRONX ZOO for his birthday. I know he likes THE MAGIC TREE HOUSE books because when he took out his homework from his bookbag their were a bunch of THE MAGIC TREE HOUSE books.
One challenging aspect of the book is the setting, because it changes from being to the house to the magic tree house, to the forest in Africa, to a gorilla family. Another challenging aspect of the book is the way the story was told, because the story does not state who is telling the story and why?
A character in this book that I can describe is Morgan le Fay. Morgan le Fay is a powerful sorceress in the Arthurian legend. Early works featuring Morgan do not elaborate her character beyond her role as a fay or magician. She became much more prominent in the later cyclical prose works such as the Lancelot-Grail and the Post-Vulgate Cycle, in which she becomes an antagonist to King Arthur and Queen Guinevere. She is said to be the daughter of Arthur's mother.(pg, 50).
My cousin (Darwin) would like this book. I say that because he likes books about gorillas and he also likes THE MAGIC TREE HOUSE books. I know that because when it was his 9th Birthday he told me that he wanted to see Gorillas in THE BRONX ZOO for his birthday. I know he likes THE MAGIC TREE HOUSE books because when he took out his homework from his bookbag their were a bunch of THE MAGIC TREE HOUSE books.
One challenging aspect of the book is the setting, because it changes from being to the house to the magic tree house, to the forest in Africa, to a gorilla family. Another challenging aspect of the book is the way the story was told, because the story does not state who is telling the story and why?
A character in this book that I can describe is Morgan le Fay. Morgan le Fay is a powerful sorceress in the Arthurian legend. Early works featuring Morgan do not elaborate her character beyond her role as a fay or magician. She became much more prominent in the later cyclical prose works such as the Lancelot-Grail and the Post-Vulgate Cycle, in which she becomes an antagonist to King Arthur and Queen Guinevere. She is said to be the daughter of Arthur's mother.(pg, 50).
January 23, 2010
this is a really cool book.You should try on it, it is really intresting.It is about jack and anny going to the jungle,and they meet gorilla!After a while of being with them they recognize that the gorrilas where good.they become friends, and they discover that the point to be their was to use body language. So they use signs. But then they notice that since they found the point, and done it,they had to go.Jack was really sad.But he learn alot of things,and one,was to be a gorilla. :)
this is the book i needed to read in school,the other one i read it because I like intresting books.
this is the book i needed to read in school,the other one i read it because I like intresting books.
July 27, 2025
Can we say Dian Fossey? Another great adventure with the Magic Tree House. Fun, entertaining, educational. Don't let that word scare you--it's just getting acquainted with today's world and worlds of the past. Learn about animals, families, adventure, and people. Oh, and Fun.
May 14, 2022
Jack and Annie visit the Cloud Forests of Africa!
Listened to / read with my 7yo.
Listened to / read with my 7yo.
April 1, 2023
I think I'm just a rainforest girly we are 2/2 now
February 21, 2023
Sumamente increible. Tengo pesadillas tras leerme este libro ya que no soy un gorilla. El no ser un gorilla me causa una grave ansiedad ya que yo me siento como uno. Como una persona trans diria, estoy atrapado en un cuerpo con el que no me identifico.
July 1, 2024
I love gorillas & how smart they are. 💜🦍
February 25, 2016
I started reading this book to a first grade class I subbed for and I had to finish it to see how it ended. This book brought back so many memories of reading my first chapter books when I was young. It made me wish I was little again to experience the magic of reading like young kids do and the places it could take you for the very first time. The Magic Treehouse books seem the perfect books to introduce new readers to the world of reading and the magic it has to offer.
April 11, 2022
Jack and Annie are off on their second adventure to find a special kind of magic. This time there are whisked back into the mountains of Africa where they encounter a baby gorilla. As they spend time with the baby gorilla and it’s family they learn quite a few new ways of communication and the importance of togetherness.
I enjoyed this installment. Through Jack we see the struggles one faces when communicating with someone who doesn’t speak the other’s language. It was creative how it was used as a key driver to keep the story going. Also, I liked how in the end once Jack understood how to communicate he wasn’t feeling lonely and was having fun with the gorillas.
As usual, Annie is great with animals. Her sense of communication and understanding is beyond comparison yet unusual. I do wonder if we’ll ever get to know the secret of how Annie came about such a great and powerful communication skill.
The plot of this installment is quite calm compared to other installments. Much like the previous book there is no immediate danger to the siblings or the time they are visiting. Instead it’s a much calmer journey of experiencing their surroundings and learning new things.
Similar to the last book and this book, the magic learned is something Annie is already well acquainted and experienced with. Jack on the other hand, is learning it for the first time. I would have enjoyed this book more if it was a type of magic both siblings were learning for the first time because then the excitement experienced by both would have been much greater and magical.
Overall, this was a fun story to read. It’s a quick read with a great message of trying to learn new languages and the different types to communicate and enjoy more!
Read more reviews @ Mystic's Review Shelf
I enjoyed this installment. Through Jack we see the struggles one faces when communicating with someone who doesn’t speak the other’s language. It was creative how it was used as a key driver to keep the story going. Also, I liked how in the end once Jack understood how to communicate he wasn’t feeling lonely and was having fun with the gorillas.
As usual, Annie is great with animals. Her sense of communication and understanding is beyond comparison yet unusual. I do wonder if we’ll ever get to know the secret of how Annie came about such a great and powerful communication skill.
The plot of this installment is quite calm compared to other installments. Much like the previous book there is no immediate danger to the siblings or the time they are visiting. Instead it’s a much calmer journey of experiencing their surroundings and learning new things.
Similar to the last book and this book, the magic learned is something Annie is already well acquainted and experienced with. Jack on the other hand, is learning it for the first time. I would have enjoyed this book more if it was a type of magic both siblings were learning for the first time because then the excitement experienced by both would have been much greater and magical.
Overall, this was a fun story to read. It’s a quick read with a great message of trying to learn new languages and the different types to communicate and enjoy more!
Read more reviews @ Mystic's Review Shelf
October 25, 2024
Estuvo bien. Medio rara la moraleja igual, porque el objetivo de los niños era encontrar "un nuevo tipo de magia" y terminó siendo "la magia de los gorilas que nos permitió comunicarnos en lenguaje de señas". Ns cual era el punto. Si querían hablar del lenguaje de señas capaz que no debería ser con gorilas igual 💀.
April 21, 2018
Not a great next book, can't wait to get the next to see if that one will be better.
October 19, 2021
Good story and lots of interesting facts about gorillas.
January 2, 2023
I love it so much it had so many good parts
January 5, 2023
banger
January 2, 2024
Jack and Annie adventure in the rainforest with gorillas and realize that the gorillas have their own family and pattern of life as well.
February 28, 2025
I think it’s so cute and adorable and funny. I love how Annie is so sweet to the gorillas and gives them all the cuddles names.
April 8, 2025
Great story! It kept my 4yo’s interest and had lots of fun information.
Read
September 3, 2025My 6 year old loved this one so much!
June 21, 2018
I enjoyed this book because I like gorillas. I also enjoyed this book because I liked the part when Jack scared a black leopard.
August 13, 2022
Interesting and educational reads for children. As an adult I find them quick fun stories.
January 23, 2023
First read:
It was awesome. I want to read it again. I got to go to a book club at my library about it. This was the first reading of a Magic Tree House book that I did by myself.
--
1/23/23
I remember all of it now!
It was awesome. I want to read it again. I got to go to a book club at my library about it. This was the first reading of a Magic Tree House book that I did by myself.
--
1/23/23
I remember all of it now!
January 15, 2017
This one was very sweet and poignant. Jack broke out of his mold in this one and it was great to see him realize he can do more.
January 8, 2023
My 7-year-old read this on his own. I set him up with his own Goodreads, so you can read his review there: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
January 1, 2024
**2.5 stars**
I don’t like gorillas and this was strange honestly
I don’t like gorillas and this was strange honestly
November 30, 2024
The book that I read was Magic Tree House Good Morning Gorillas. The book is by Mary Pope Osborne. The main characters are Jack and Annie, and 2 gorillas named Hoho and Bubu. Jack and Annie were out in the jungle and they have a tree house. There is a magic librarian named Morgan and she left them a paper. The paper said “To find a special kind of magic in a world so far apart speak a special language talk with your hands and heart”. Then the tree house started to spin and then stoped. Jack and Annie ended up in a cloud forest in central Africa. Jack read a book that said a cloud forest can have many animals including elephants, water buffalos, black leopards, antelopes, wild hogs and gorillas. Then Annie heard something. Jack heard branches snaping. He thought it was a leopard but a gorilla popped out and said Bubu, so Jack and Annie named the gorilla Bubu. Then Annie and the gorilla ran off and Jack followed them. Annie and Bubu climbed up into a tree. There were dark clouds and it was going to rain. Jack said Annie get down because it is going to rain. When Bubu got down then Annie tried to swing down like Bubu and Annie fell. Jack went over and told her to shake her arms and legs and she was able to move them so nothing was broken. Jack was going to go get the flash light and umbrella and got lost, and had to stay the night by himself. In the morning, the gorilla came over to Jack and grabbed his arm and led Jack over to Annie, who was sleeping with all of the gorillas. Jack was going over to Annie. The giant gorilla with silver on its back opened its eyes. It just stared at him and then growled. Jack could tell the siliver back did not like him. Then Jack acted like he was a gorilla so the silver back would like him. Annie woke up and was surprised that she was sleeping with gorillas. Bubu hugged Annie, then another smaller gorilla named Hoho hugged Annie. Jack was acting like a gorilla still and then a black leopard came out, and was going to go after Hoho! Jack acted like a gorilla and scared the black leopard away, saving Hoho’s life. The silver back signed I love you to Jack and Annie. Annie and Jack had to go back home and they where writing notes about the gorillas.They hugged the gorillas and said good bye.
This book connects to the fantasy theme because it was all in there imagination. I rate this book a 3 because the ending just said good bye and the book ended.
This book connects to the fantasy theme because it was all in there imagination. I rate this book a 3 because the ending just said good bye and the book ended.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 13, 2019
Jack and Annie visit an African Cloud Forest armed only with a secret rhyme from Morgan Le Fay to guide them.
My child responded enthusiastically to all of the books in the Magic Tree House series, and I am grateful that each book offers a story through which to teach my child about the larger world. My child seemed genuinely excited at the moment of danger and wanted to mimic gorilla behavior by crouching down and rest on his knuckles; however, he balked at the illustration of the leopard because “it had no spots,” thus giving me an opportunity to discuss that there are many species of all colors. Gorillas speak a special language, which is the mystery of the book and the answer to the rhyme. My son learned the word “love” in a special language that both gorillas and humans are capable of “speaking.” Long may he speak it!
To find a special kind of magicThe children meet a playful little gorilla named Bu-bu, who plays peekaboo, claps his hands, and sticks out his tongue. Mountain gorillas live together in families, and the leader of the family is a large male called a “silverback” because he has silver fur on his back and shoulders. An endangered species, gorillas are vegetarians who eat flowers; ferns; leaves; twigs; bark; branches; and bamboo. They are known to be intelligent, shy and gentle giants, but a nightmare ensues when Annie gets lost in the misty mountain rain forest and a black leopard creeps up on the baby gorillas. Can timid Jack rise to the challenge without fearless Annie?
In worlds so far apart,
Speak a special language,
Talk with your hands and heart.
My child responded enthusiastically to all of the books in the Magic Tree House series, and I am grateful that each book offers a story through which to teach my child about the larger world. My child seemed genuinely excited at the moment of danger and wanted to mimic gorilla behavior by crouching down and rest on his knuckles; however, he balked at the illustration of the leopard because “it had no spots,” thus giving me an opportunity to discuss that there are many species of all colors. Gorillas speak a special language, which is the mystery of the book and the answer to the rhyme. My son learned the word “love” in a special language that both gorillas and humans are capable of “speaking.” Long may he speak it!
June 4, 2019
Actual Rating: 3.5/5
Another one of the few Magic Tree House books I would ever give credit to.
Nice and funny.
Listen to some nice K POP with this under the covers at night with your dogs under the cover and it will create a magical moment.
Short but so adventurous and heartwarming.
About the only book I recommend throughout the whole series.
Things that I didn’t like in this novel (and if I were not nice these are the things I most likely rant about.)
1.Annie eats a stick that is made out of wood. Great. You want to eat wood? Next your eating your hair?
2.Annie tries to swing on a vine only to come crashing down the next second and lose some of her breath.
3.Jack acts like a gorllia (literally) and starts to get crazy like throwing a tantrum that a five year old would do after a panther shows up to harm the baby gorillas.
...That’s most of the absurd things that really make me question Jack and Annie’s sanity. They do pretty stupid stuff to in their other missions so I wouldn’t be surprised. But instead of going “wtf” I was laughing head on. This was a bad good type of funny not a “oh my gosh this is trash” type of cheap comedy.
Things that did make me happy:
1.Jack does not take a lot of notes in this book. Because the gorilla won’t let him. Ha. Thanks gorilla 🦍 for doing me a favor.
2.The baby gorillas are so cute. They are the highlight of the book for me. Every page I turned I was going “awwww.”
3.The gorilla almost attack’s Jack. Jack gets scared but for me: good. He needs to be. It’s time someone tried to make him brave.
And all in all,this showed me one ☝️ message:
What it means to be different.
Aside from all these flops and flips,these little reasons are why I didn’t give this book a perfect 5. But hey this is a step up for the series that I gave so many bad reviews to.
For some examples of what I mean check out:
•Thanksgiving On A Thursday
•Afternoon In The Amazon
•Earthquake In The Early Morning
...to name a few...
Overall this book is not recommended from me but if you want a light fun read,pick this book up and flip through it.
And the ending is Jack and Annie coming home like the usually do reflecting on their adventure and what happened in it.
For more information on this mysterious species:
www.primates
Another one of the few Magic Tree House books I would ever give credit to.
Nice and funny.
Listen to some nice K POP with this under the covers at night with your dogs under the cover and it will create a magical moment.
Short but so adventurous and heartwarming.
About the only book I recommend throughout the whole series.
Things that I didn’t like in this novel (and if I were not nice these are the things I most likely rant about.)
1.Annie eats a stick that is made out of wood. Great. You want to eat wood? Next your eating your hair?
2.Annie tries to swing on a vine only to come crashing down the next second and lose some of her breath.
3.Jack acts like a gorllia (literally) and starts to get crazy like throwing a tantrum that a five year old would do after a panther shows up to harm the baby gorillas.
...That’s most of the absurd things that really make me question Jack and Annie’s sanity. They do pretty stupid stuff to in their other missions so I wouldn’t be surprised. But instead of going “wtf” I was laughing head on. This was a bad good type of funny not a “oh my gosh this is trash” type of cheap comedy.
Things that did make me happy:
1.Jack does not take a lot of notes in this book. Because the gorilla won’t let him. Ha. Thanks gorilla 🦍 for doing me a favor.
2.The baby gorillas are so cute. They are the highlight of the book for me. Every page I turned I was going “awwww.”
3.The gorilla almost attack’s Jack. Jack gets scared but for me: good. He needs to be. It’s time someone tried to make him brave.
And all in all,this showed me one ☝️ message:
What it means to be different.
Aside from all these flops and flips,these little reasons are why I didn’t give this book a perfect 5. But hey this is a step up for the series that I gave so many bad reviews to.
For some examples of what I mean check out:
•Thanksgiving On A Thursday
•Afternoon In The Amazon
•Earthquake In The Early Morning
...to name a few...
Overall this book is not recommended from me but if you want a light fun read,pick this book up and flip through it.
And the ending is Jack and Annie coming home like the usually do reflecting on their adventure and what happened in it.
For more information on this mysterious species:
www.primates
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 282 reviews