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Magic Tree House "Merlin Missions" #24
Soccer on Sunday
Goal! Jack and Annie have tickets to one of the most exciting soccer games ever—the 1970 World Cup! They are sure thefamous soccer player Pelé will tell them a “secret of greatness.� The game is nonstop action and the stands are packed. But how will they find Pelé in a crowd of 100,000 soccer fans? Have they failed their mission? Or will the answer come when they least expect it?
Did you know that there’s a Magic Tree House book for every kid?
Magic Tree Adventures with Jack and Annie, perfect for readers who are just beginning chapter books
Merlin More challenging adventures for the experienced reader
Super A longer and more dangerous adventure
Fact Nonfiction companions to your favorite Magic Tree House adventures
Have more fun with Jack and Annie at MagicTreeHouse.com!
Did you know that there’s a Magic Tree House book for every kid?
Magic Tree Adventures with Jack and Annie, perfect for readers who are just beginning chapter books
Merlin More challenging adventures for the experienced reader
Super A longer and more dangerous adventure
Fact Nonfiction companions to your favorite Magic Tree House adventures
Have more fun with Jack and Annie at MagicTreeHouse.com!
128 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2014
510 people are currently reading
2225 people want to read
About the author
Mary Pope Osborne
1,094books2,514followersMary 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 129 reviews
November 11, 2014
In this whirlwind of an adventure, the magic tree house takes Jack and Annie to Mexico City, during the 1970's World Cup finals. Jack and Annie have tickets to the World Cup, which is between Brazil and Italy, but they also have something important to accomplish. During this adventure, Jack and Annie must find a secret, the fourth secret to greatness to be exact. However, once Jack and Annie reach the World Cup location, they are so overwhelmed by the huge crowds and are overcome with confusion of how to actually get to the soccer stadium. Without help from Roberto, a local boy, Jack and Annie may have never found the stadium in time to watch the game, but with his help they make it there with time to spare and in return, Jack trades his front row ticket with Roberto's ticket, which ends up being so high he can barely see the stadium. After the game is over, Jack and Annie join an impromptu game of soccer and it is there that they discover their fourth word in their search for greatness! Join Jack and Annie as they travel to watch the great soccer legend Pele in the World Cup and help them find the fourth word in the secret of greatness!
*Invent a new scenario in which Roberto hadn't been around to help Jack and Annie find the stadium.
*Do you agree with Jack's decision to trade tickets with Roberto? Why or why not?
*What choice would you have made if you were Jack? Would you have traded tickets?
*What do you think would happen if Jack and Annie hadn't found the fourth word in their search for greatness?
*Why do you think Merlin really relived Jack and Annie's past adventures? And what do you predict will happen now that they've found this final secret of greatness?
Pope Osborne, M. (2014). Soccer On Sunday (Magic Tree House) (52nd ed.). Random House Books for Young Readers.
*Invent a new scenario in which Roberto hadn't been around to help Jack and Annie find the stadium.
*Do you agree with Jack's decision to trade tickets with Roberto? Why or why not?
*What choice would you have made if you were Jack? Would you have traded tickets?
*What do you think would happen if Jack and Annie hadn't found the fourth word in their search for greatness?
*Why do you think Merlin really relived Jack and Annie's past adventures? And what do you predict will happen now that they've found this final secret of greatness?
Pope Osborne, M. (2014). Soccer On Sunday (Magic Tree House) (52nd ed.). Random House Books for Young Readers.
August 21, 2014
Listening to this with Tony whilst commuting to work and Rocking Horse.
These are always good for a bit of fun and education, even if they are predictable. I find them a tiny bit dull, but Tony LOVES them, and that's what counts.
In this adventure, Jack and Annie get to go to the 1970 World Cup with Pele. Most of the action surrounds their inability to use a mass transit system . . . yeah, it is what it is. =)
I was concerned at first by the ending, because Merlin rehashes every adventure the two have had during the last 52 books, and I almost thought that maybe the author was wrapping up the whole series, but, no, there is definitely a hint that there are more Jack and Annie adventures to come.
Overall, fun for the early elementary crowd. Quite good on audio (despite Mary Pope Osborne's rather lackluster reading) because the plots are simple and easy-to-follow.
These are always good for a bit of fun and education, even if they are predictable. I find them a tiny bit dull, but Tony LOVES them, and that's what counts.
In this adventure, Jack and Annie get to go to the 1970 World Cup with Pele. Most of the action surrounds their inability to use a mass transit system . . . yeah, it is what it is. =)
I was concerned at first by the ending, because Merlin rehashes every adventure the two have had during the last 52 books, and I almost thought that maybe the author was wrapping up the whole series, but, no, there is definitely a hint that there are more Jack and Annie adventures to come.
Overall, fun for the early elementary crowd. Quite good on audio (despite Mary Pope Osborne's rather lackluster reading) because the plots are simple and easy-to-follow.
January 8, 2021
Wonderful childrens series!
August 2, 2022
This was a fun read. I wanted to read some of these books before I let my son read them. He’s only 6 and I like to check the books he’s reading to make sure they’re appropriate. I love how the author is able to teach historical events at a level that is fun and interesting to her young readers.
March 6, 2021
We're not really into sports and don't follow soccer so it wasn't as interesting as usual for us but it was still good and taught an important life lesson. Jack and Annie travel back to the 1970's World Cup in Mexico City. There mission is to learn the 4th and final secret to greatness for Merlin. Soccer/sports fans will enjoy this story.
January 22, 2020
I read this to my class. I don't really know what to say about it; It's a book written for small children as an educational time travel adventure. The story itself was fine, and there were some good individual scenes. I liked the concept of going back in time to meet a celebrity and then having the characters never meet the celebrity and learn their lesson from how people view him; Modern Doctor Who could learn from that.
The framing story involving time travel is odd as the characters are basically going on meaningless errands for Morgan La Fay and Merlin. At the end Merlin lists every single other adventure they've gone on; I don't know if that's normal in this series, and I don't understand the purpose of it beyond as advertisement.
It's fine, but I think other educational children's stories have managed to be more interesting. It does its job, just with very little style or panache. That being said, the children mostly liked it and it was written for them not for grumpy 30 somethings.
The framing story involving time travel is odd as the characters are basically going on meaningless errands for Morgan La Fay and Merlin. At the end Merlin lists every single other adventure they've gone on; I don't know if that's normal in this series, and I don't understand the purpose of it beyond as advertisement.
It's fine, but I think other educational children's stories have managed to be more interesting. It does its job, just with very little style or panache. That being said, the children mostly liked it and it was written for them not for grumpy 30 somethings.
December 28, 2014
I read this for a book review for work. Another good adventure for Jack and Annie. This one is the 4th for the group on greatness. It can be read alone because Pope tells the other 3 components of greatness that Jack and Annie find in books 40, 50 ad 51. If you want to read how they found it then you should read the other books.
January 29, 2021
Jack and Annie travel to the World Cup finals in Mexico City in 1970 to learn a lesson in greatness from Pele.
The plot of this story went in something of a surprising direction, and much of the action involved Jack and Annie dealing with very mundane types of adventures like forgetting what subway stop they are supposed to get off at, and dealing with city crowds and traffic. The introduction of a local kid named Roberto whom they befriend was a nice touch, and they have good interactions with Roberto through the whole story. Jack also has to deal with a bit of an internal conflict over an unfair situation.
The kids end up in a local soccer game and lean perhaps a bit more heavily into their magic than was needed, but it was refreshing to see them being open with Roberto about their unusual circumstances. The soccer themes are handled well, and the actual descriptions of the action in the soccer game are fun.
The last chapter is a major epilogue and recap that actually revisits the whole series of (up to this point) 52 books, and it, in some sense. serves as an ending point for the entire series, even though there are additional books after this one. Since my son has pretty much aged out of these books, this will probably be the last one we read together, and it was a good, satisfying conclusion with appearances by some favorite characters from the series.
The plot of this story went in something of a surprising direction, and much of the action involved Jack and Annie dealing with very mundane types of adventures like forgetting what subway stop they are supposed to get off at, and dealing with city crowds and traffic. The introduction of a local kid named Roberto whom they befriend was a nice touch, and they have good interactions with Roberto through the whole story. Jack also has to deal with a bit of an internal conflict over an unfair situation.
The kids end up in a local soccer game and lean perhaps a bit more heavily into their magic than was needed, but it was refreshing to see them being open with Roberto about their unusual circumstances. The soccer themes are handled well, and the actual descriptions of the action in the soccer game are fun.
The last chapter is a major epilogue and recap that actually revisits the whole series of (up to this point) 52 books, and it, in some sense. serves as an ending point for the entire series, even though there are additional books after this one. Since my son has pretty much aged out of these books, this will probably be the last one we read together, and it was a good, satisfying conclusion with appearances by some favorite characters from the series.
March 18, 2020
Das beste Fußballspiel aller Zeiten ist ein wirklich grandioses Fußballspiel, das mich positiv überrascht hat! Nicht nur wird einem ein historisches Spiel näher gebracht, sondern steckt in diesem Buch auch eine wundervolle Portion Freundschaft, die zeigt, wie wichtig es ist zu seinen Freunden zu stehen und sich für sie stark zu machen.
*Leider habe ich mal wieder hiermit einen Band erwischt, der eine übergreifende Handlung besitzt. Das ist echt ärgerlich, denn so wird man ein wenig gespoilert 🤦🏼♀�
*Leider habe ich mal wieder hiermit einen Band erwischt, der eine übergreifende Handlung besitzt. Das ist echt ärgerlich, denn so wird man ein wenig gespoilert 🤦🏼♀�
July 16, 2021
This is the final adventure to find secrets of greatness for Merlin. This time, jack and Annie go to the 1970 World Cup of soccer and receive the secret, enthusiasm, from Pele, through a friend they meet at the world cup, Roberto. They wish to play soccer like Pele for their last use of the mist. Fact Tracker is
July 15, 2023
Nice book but I found it a little boring. Also, those kids are really nice. Andddddd do they do missions once a week? Cause for some reason that feels like a lot�
December 8, 2023
This is the first of this series that Oliver and I read and I thought it would be boring, it was anything but! Magic, time travel, tension and excitement. We loved it.
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April 29, 2014This book is a sport related book that has characters of a young age, in order to relate to children’s literature very well. The illustrations that are proposed throughout the book give the story much more characteristic, as it helps the audience jump into the story and imagine being apart of it themselves. I believe that this is a beneficial piece of literature to bring into a classroom, as children will relate themselves to the characters knowing they are in close relation of age as well as the idea of sports being the main topic of the book. The characters in the book have built up dreams that they fight to conquer, which is important to expose to students, as they should know the significance of following a dream in life. The story line was one that I can remember very well, with the strong images throughout the book along with the narration that followed the illustrations in a chronological way.
May 19, 2014
Intrepid time travelers Jack and Annie head back to 1970 during the finals of the World Cup in Mexico City. They have tickets to the soccer match between Brazil and Italy, and they also have a mission. They need to find the fourth secret to greatness as described by soccer star Pele. Once the youngsters arrive at their destination, they are overwhelmed by the crowds and complexity of getting to the soccer stadium. Thanks to the help of Roberto, a local boy also on his way to the game, they arrive at the stadium in plenty of time. I liked how the author describes how hard it is to see much of anything from the seats at the top of the stadium and how Annie and Jack use their magic in the right way. This series never fails to deliver with good messages and interesting characters and venues.
December 30, 2014
A good close to this series, or maybe it is just the beginning to more wonderful stories? Give these all a read. Even though there are 50+ books, they are all wonderful. Read them with your kids, or any kids that you may be looking after. I read all of these as an adult reader and loved every single one. Reading this last one so far, made me sad to think that these might be over with. It was great that there was a story about one of the greatest soccer player in the world. Give this a read!
June 27, 2014
I liked it. It makes you want to play soccer. They meet someone who is going to the World Cup soccer game and then they are going back to the city when they are playing soccer. Then they play with some people who are playing soccer. Then they go to a restaurant and they go and catch a bus to take them back to the city and they all fall asleep on the bus ride.
September 19, 2014
This time they have to find the last secret of happiness. Well they be able to do that without failing?
Guess what? They will play in a soccer game on Pele's team. They had the best time ever!
I like these books. But I mostly love reading the whole series! It is one of the best series ever!
Guess what? They will play in a soccer game on Pele's team. They had the best time ever!
I like these books. But I mostly love reading the whole series! It is one of the best series ever!
December 7, 2014
Magic Tree House books are formula fiction books. The story was good. I liked that they didn't actually meet the character, but just overheard a quote from their new friend. There was a good amount of emphasis on friends in this story.
December 31, 2014
Jack and Annie travel to 1970s Brazil to see Pele play in the World Cup, and make a new friend. They discover a secret of greatness, but not where they expected. Even my non-soccer-fan son enjoyed this book.
June 2, 2014
Cute Jack and Annie story, like normal. Kind of fun to read about a past World Cup when the latest World Cup is almost here.
October 7, 2017
Davey: "One thing I liked about this book is that they got to play soccer One thing I didn't like about this book is that Jack couldn't find his seat."
August 10, 2014
Great book
Great book
l liked this book a lot. it was a good book. LG g g g g g g g f f jf
Great book
l liked this book a lot. it was a good book. LG g g g g g g g f f jf
September 19, 2014
Jack and Annie learned the last secret of greatness from watching Pele play in WC in Mexico City.
The 4 traits are:
Humility
Hard Work
Meaning and Purpose
Enthusiasm
The 4 traits are:
Humility
Hard Work
Meaning and Purpose
Enthusiasm
May 23, 2015
5 stars for the blast of nostalgia. Oh, to be a kid reading these books again. Wish this one had been written when I was playing travel soccer in grade school.
December 30, 2014
My favorite part was when Jack and Annie met Merlin and Morgan.
March 9, 2016
I still love these books even after all this time
October 15, 2016
Another Magic Tree House - all are good and educational.
May 9, 2017
Jack and Annie get to go to Mexico and see the World Cup game in 1970.
January 6, 2019
I liked this book because I like metros. I also liked this book because I like kicking stuff. I alos liked this book because I like watching the World Cup.
September 5, 2020
In the magic treehouse series, not only in Merlin Missions, Jack and Annie found a magic treehouse. They soon discovered that in the magic treehouse there were lots of books and when they point to a picture in the book and make a wish to go there the magic treehouse just magically transports them there! They soon learned that the treehouse belongs to Morgan Le Fay from Camelot. Jack and Annie have helped Morgan with a humongous amount of missions in all places and time periods with the help of the magic treehouse. However in Merlin Missions it is not however Morgan that sends them on these missions. It is Merlin, a fantastic magician. During Merlin Missions, Jack and Annie make two friends named Teddy and Kathleen. They soon completed four missions that showed they could properly handle magic. On those missions, they were given a book of ten magic rhymes to use on four missions. Each rhyme can only be used once. Since they succeeded in those four missions, they were given the Wand of Dianthus. A magic wand that could create magic. Soon Merlin was not well, and not cheerful at all. Jack and Annie found four secrets of happiness for him, and now he is happy again. However the biggest thing that cheered him up was a little penguin named Penny Jack and Annie had gotten from their last mission to find the last secret of happiness for Merlin. That mission had taken place in Antarctica. Then, after those missions, they helped a girl named Augusta, Mozart, Louis Armstrong, and Charles Dickens. After that, they helped save Penny from a spell Teddy accidentally casted on him by finding four special objects. Last adventure, they figured out they were going to find four secrets of greatnesses for Merlin. They already found three, and this is their mission where they are going to find the fourth secret of greatness then they must hurry to Camelot...
In this book, one day, Jack and Annie decided to visit the magic treehouse. As usual, inside, they found a note, a ring, and a potion. There were also tickets to the World Cup Final! According to the note, they are going to learn a secret of greatness from Pele the Great. Once they are done with this mission, they are going to go to Camelot. A very famous athlete. Whenever they find a secret of greatness the ring is going to glow. And when you smell the potion you can have whatever talent you want for an hour. When Jack and Annie saw the ticket they got really excited! Tickets to the World Cup final. There will only be one final. And they get to go! Where Pele is playing! They will probably get a seat close enough to him to learn a secret of greatness from him! What a great mission! They happily wished to go to Mexico, where Pele was playing and where their mission was going to take place. They happily set off. However, soon they realized they didn’t know when the game was or where it was. So, they asked an embassy officer. This officer was very kind. He wrote the directions on a piece of paper and handed it to them. Then, he gave them the time it was right now and the time the game is beginning. They also talked a little about soccer. When the officer saw their tickets, he was surprised. He said Jack and Annie got one of the best seats in the entire stadium! How lucky! Jack and Annie are very excited. To make things better, they even have money! They can buy a lot of stuff they want! Like food! They then followed the officer’s instructions, pausing only once to ask someone where something was. Soon, they arrived! However, it wasn’t anything like a train or subway station. In fact, it looked like they were in a market! Soon, they noticed they misread the officer’s instructions! Oh no! They better hurry to the right place before time runs out! They finally made it. However, it took another while for them to get the train or something because there were a lot of people and Jack and Annie were practically squished! Soon, they finally got a seat. They were safe. On the train, they looked for the next stop. However, the officer’s instructions weren’t there! Oh no! Now, they can never get to the game! They don’t know where to go! They started panicking. Annie asked a woman. She said she didn’t know. Suddenly the train doors opened. A crowd of people got off the train and a bunch more got on. Oh no! Was it their stop? Where is their stop? The new passengers got on. Now, it was more crowded and noisier than ever! And even if they have to get off at a certain stop they might not make it! A girl suggested they look at the map. However, they are too squished to even walk there! The doors opened again. What if that was their stop? They will never make it to the game! This is horrible! They don’t have the directions! They don’t know where to get off! It’s hopeless! How will they meet Pele the Great and learn a secret of greatness from him if they can’t make it to the game? How will they complete their mission and head to Camelot?
In this book, one day, Jack and Annie decided to visit the magic treehouse. As usual, inside, they found a note, a ring, and a potion. There were also tickets to the World Cup Final! According to the note, they are going to learn a secret of greatness from Pele the Great. Once they are done with this mission, they are going to go to Camelot. A very famous athlete. Whenever they find a secret of greatness the ring is going to glow. And when you smell the potion you can have whatever talent you want for an hour. When Jack and Annie saw the ticket they got really excited! Tickets to the World Cup final. There will only be one final. And they get to go! Where Pele is playing! They will probably get a seat close enough to him to learn a secret of greatness from him! What a great mission! They happily wished to go to Mexico, where Pele was playing and where their mission was going to take place. They happily set off. However, soon they realized they didn’t know when the game was or where it was. So, they asked an embassy officer. This officer was very kind. He wrote the directions on a piece of paper and handed it to them. Then, he gave them the time it was right now and the time the game is beginning. They also talked a little about soccer. When the officer saw their tickets, he was surprised. He said Jack and Annie got one of the best seats in the entire stadium! How lucky! Jack and Annie are very excited. To make things better, they even have money! They can buy a lot of stuff they want! Like food! They then followed the officer’s instructions, pausing only once to ask someone where something was. Soon, they arrived! However, it wasn’t anything like a train or subway station. In fact, it looked like they were in a market! Soon, they noticed they misread the officer’s instructions! Oh no! They better hurry to the right place before time runs out! They finally made it. However, it took another while for them to get the train or something because there were a lot of people and Jack and Annie were practically squished! Soon, they finally got a seat. They were safe. On the train, they looked for the next stop. However, the officer’s instructions weren’t there! Oh no! Now, they can never get to the game! They don’t know where to go! They started panicking. Annie asked a woman. She said she didn’t know. Suddenly the train doors opened. A crowd of people got off the train and a bunch more got on. Oh no! Was it their stop? Where is their stop? The new passengers got on. Now, it was more crowded and noisier than ever! And even if they have to get off at a certain stop they might not make it! A girl suggested they look at the map. However, they are too squished to even walk there! The doors opened again. What if that was their stop? They will never make it to the game! This is horrible! They don’t have the directions! They don’t know where to get off! It’s hopeless! How will they meet Pele the Great and learn a secret of greatness from him if they can’t make it to the game? How will they complete their mission and head to Camelot?
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