Merry Wanderer of the Night:
percy jackson

I haven't been really interested in a fantasy series since I read Harry Potter, but when I heard a description of The Lightning Thief, the first book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, on Books on the Nightstand I knew I had to check it out. Something about a 12-year-old with Greek gods just screamed amazing to me. Percy Jackson is a troubled kid, he keeps bouncing around from school to school. He has ADHD and he is dyslexic, which makes school kind of tough, and he misses his amazing mom and worries about his horrid stepdad. What Percy doesn't know is that there is a really good explanation for all of his problems.

This book does not waste any time getting to the action. From the first page you get a very clear picture of who Percy is and how this book is going to play out, which wasn't really necessary for me but I think it is probably pretty important for younger readers. Percy is easy to relate to, I didn't have any behavior problems or anything growing up, but I was kind of antisocial and Percy is forced into that because he switches schools so much. I think I would have liked him when I was younger and I know I like him now. Percy's rebellious strike is easy to admire too; I think most of us wish we could be a little more rebellious.

Percy is actually very funny too. One of my favorite quotes is (tiny spoiler, although I'm sure you have figured it out by now) "...most people might think that's just really bad luck; when you're a half-blood, you understand that some divine force really is trying to mess up your day" (168). The humor is pretty evergreen, but some of the references Riordan makes in the story are already dating the book. Hilary Duff is mentioned two or three times, and I'm not sure if kids are really into Hilary Duff anymore. I know one of the first graders I tutor didn't know who she was so you can see that this reference is already floating away.

I didn't feel the characterization in this book was as strong as it was in Harry Potter, and there were a few similarities between the two books that didn't really feel like coincidences to me, but I think both Rowling and Riordan are just "stealing" from older heroes and it just so happens that some of the cooler things from hero myths are used by both of them. But overall Percy is a lovable character and I definitely want to complete the series as soon as possible.

This book earned an A.

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After I finished The Lightning Thief, the first book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, I couldn't wait to move forward with the series to see where it went. I bought The Sea of Monsters

almost immediately after finishing the first book, but it's taken me a few months to get to it. At the beginning of this book Percy returns to Camp Half-Blood to discover that something has gone wrong. The tree guarding the camp is dying, which means the camp is ultra vulnerable. No one is sure why this is happening, but they do know that since it started weird things have been happening at camp and someone needs to do something about it. The solution is the Golden Fleece and Percy, being Percy, knows that he needs to find it.

One of the things I didn't like about The Lightning Thief was that it used some pop culture references that in my opinion are already dead (Hilary Duff? Seriously?). In The Sea of Monsters, Riordan seems to have gotten away from that, which I appreciated. On the other hand, The Lightning Thief started in on the action right away which I think is a perfect way to start a book like this. The second book in the series did start quickly, but it took me a little bit longer to get absorbed in the story. In fact, I'm not sure I ever really was absorbed in the story. There was no moment where I was on my toes wondering what was going to happen. I thought it was little predictable. When you create a character like Percy Jackson who can do superhuman things and has superhuman abilities you have to work extra hard to make us believe he has flaws, that he can fail. That just didn't happen in this book. If I don't think Percy Jackson has flaws, then how am I supposed to convince myself he might fail?

I did really enjoy the changes I saw in Annabeth this time around though. She seemed stronger than last time, more believable. I think Annabeth is actually my favorite character in the series, not Percy, who can be so bullheaded he doesn't even see how much Annabeth helps him. He appreciates her, but without Annabeth he wouldn't be able to do a lot of the things he pulls off. There were some nice moments in this book as well. I like how Percy's dad's absence is played out in this book and how he talks about him knowing that he does care about him. Even though his dad is a god that doesn't mean Percy isn't bothered by the fact he never sees him. There was also a nice message about being yourself and not caring what others think or say about you, which I think is a common thread in the Percy Jackson series especially since he is dyslexic and has ADD as well.

Overall I was a little disappointed with this one and I hope the next one in the series is better. I'm giving this one a C.

I am an Amazon Affiliate. If you make a purchase using one of my links I will earn a small percentage which will then go back into this blog.