Sunset of the Sabertooth

(The Mystery of the Magic Spell 3)

(Magic Tree House 7)
by
Mary Pope Osborne

illustrated by

Sal Murdocca

Random House, April 1996, 68 pp.
ISBN: 0-679-86373-7

Genre: Early Chapter
Subgenres: Time Travel / Pre-historic Ice Age
Reviewed: 11/18/2003

Reviewed by: Conan Tigard

Book Cover

Excerpt

Jack , Annie and Peanut looked outside.

Snow was falling from a gray sky.

The tree house was in the tallest tree in a grove of tall, bare trees.

The grove was on a wide, white plain. Beyond the plain were high, rocky cliffs.

"I'm c-cold," said Annie. Her teeth chattered. She wrapped her towel tightly around her.

Sq-squeak. Peanut sounded cold, too.

"Poor mouse," said Annie. "I'll put you into Jack's pack. You'll be warmer there."

Annie slipped Peanut into the pocket of the backpack.

"We have to go home," said Jack. "We need warmer clothes."

"We can't go home," said Annie. "We can't find the Pennsylvania book. Not until our mission is complete. Remember? That's the way the magic works."

"Oh...right," said Jack. He looked around. There was no sign of the Pennsylvania book that always took them home.

Annie peered out the window again. "Where are we, anyway?" she asked.

"I'll find out," said Jack. He picked up the open book and read the title on the cover."Life in the Ice Age."

Synopsis

They end up in the middle of a frozen plain with thick snow all around them. Knowing they will freeze to death if they do not find some shelter and clothing soon, Jack and Annie find a cave that belongs to some of the local people, the Cro-Magnon. In the cave is a warm fire and some clothes made out of skins.

They soon stubble upon some wall paintings and then literally stumble into a pit trap. The trap is deep enough that they cannot get out. Then they hear someone approaching. Will they be friend or foe?

Sunset of the Sabertooth is the seventh book in the Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne. This is the third of four books in "The Mystery of the Magic Spell" collection. The book is illustrated by Sal Murdocca. This story is intended for early chapter book readers in 2nd to 4th grade. The writing is perfect for young readers as there are not a lot of difficult words, but new ones are introduced and then reinforced with repetition.

Review

In this seventh installment of the Magic Tree House, I found it interesting that Jack and Annie were transported to the Ice Age without any means to keep themselves warm. My daughter thought they were goners for sure. Lucky for them there were some pre-historic men there: the Cro-Magnon.

I wondered how they were ever going to find the object they were looking for in that winter wonderland. But they always do. Isn't that amazing?

Overall, Sunset of the Sabertooth is another excellent book in the Magic Tree House series. I can't wait to see if they rescue Morgan le Fay in the next book in the series.

I rated this book an 8 out of 10.