Part of Magic Tree House: Merlin Missions, book 12
First published 2008
Jack and Annie step out of the Magic Tree House onto Antarctica's frozen ground. Wind cuts across the ice as the siblings face their hardest mission yet. They have traveled to all other continents, but this white wasteland challenges them like nowhere else. Their task seems impossible: discover what creates true happiness in this empty place. The answer lies with emperor penguins who call Antarctica home. Jack and Annie follow these remarkable birds across the ice, watching them live and thrive where nothing else can survive. The freezing cold pushes the children to their limits. But as they study the penguin colony, they begin to understand something unexpected. These birds know secrets about joy that have nothing to do with comfort or ease. The siblings learn that real happiness can bloom even in the world's most brutal conditions.
Genres: fiction, adventure, fantasy
Vibes: emotional, thought-provoking, whimsical
Tropes: found-family, quest
Setting: Antarctica
128 pages · Hardcover · Random House Books for Young Readers