Percy Jackson & the Olympians series Author: Rick Riordan Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller Titles: Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief (2005); (adapted into film in 2010) Percy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school... again. And that's the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy's Greek mythology textbook and into his life. And worse, he's angered a few of them. Zeus' master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect. Now Percy and his friends have just ten days to find and return Zeus' stolen property and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. But to succeed on his quest, Percy will have to do more than catch the true thief: he must come to terms with the father who abandoned him; solve the riddle of the Oracle, which warns him of betrayal by a friend; and unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.
the Sea of Monsters (2006); (adapted into film in 2013) The heroic son of Poseidon makes an action-packed comeback in the second must-read installment of Rick Riordan's amazing young readers series. Starring Percy Jackson, a "half-blood" whose mother is human and whose father is the God of the Sea, Riordan's series combines cliffhanger adventure and Greek mythology lessons that results in true page-turners that get better with each installment. In this episode, The Sea of Monsters, Percy sets out to retrieve the Golden Fleece before his summer camp is destroyed, surpassing the first book's drama and setting the stage for more thrills to come. the Titan s Curse (2007); It is every day you find yourself in combat with a half-lion, half-human. But when you're the son of a Greek god, it happens. And now Percy s friend Annabeth is missing, a goddess is in chains and only five half-blood heroes can join the quest to defeat the doomsday monster. Oh, and guess what? The Oracle has predicted that not all of them will survive...
the Battle of the Labyrinth (2008); Percy Jackson isn't expecting freshman orientation to be any fun. But when a mysterious mortal acquaintance appears on campus, followed by demon cheerleaders, things quickly move from bad to worse. In this fourth installment of the blockbuster series, time is running out as war between the Olympians and the evil Titan lord Kronos draws near. Even the safe haven of Camp Half-Blood grows more vulnerable by the minute as Kronos's army prepares to invade its once impenetrable borders. To stop the invasion, Percy and his demigod friends must set out on a quest through the Labyrinth - a sprawling underground world with stunning surprises at every turn. the Last Olympian (2009); All year the half-bloods have been preparing for battle against the Titans, knowing the odds of a victory are grim. Kronos s army is stronger than ever, and with every god and half-blood he recruits, the evil Titan s power only grows. While the Olympians struggle to contain the rampaging monster Typhon, Kronos begins his advance on New York City, where Mount Olympus stands virtually unguarded. Now it s up to Percy Jackson and an army of young demigods to stop the Lord of Time. In this momentous final book in the New York Times best-selling series, the long-awaited prophecy surrounding Percy s sixteenth birthday unfolds. And as the battle for Western civilization rages on the streets of Manhattan, Percy faces a terrifying suspicion that he may be fighting against his own fate.
Interviewing the author: Where did you get the idea for Percy Jackson? My son Haley asked me to tell him some bedtime stories about the Greek gods and heroes. I had taught Greek myths for many years at the middle school level, so I was glad to comply. When I ran out of myths, he was disappointed and asked me if I could make up something new with the same characters. I thought about it for a few minutes. Then I remembered a creative writing project I used to do with my sixth graders I would let them create their own demigod hero, the son or daughter of any god they wanted, and have them describe a Greek-style quest for that hero. Off the top of my head, I made up Percy Jackson and told Haley all about his quest to recover Zeus lightning bolt in modern day America. It took about three nights to tell the whole story, and when I was done, Haley told me I should write it out as a book. I had a lot to do already, but I somehow found the time to write the first Percy Jackson book over the next year. I just really enjoyed writing it. The story was such fun, and so different from my adult fiction, that I found myself spending a lot of time on it. Now, I m sure glad I did! Many people are comparing your series to Harry Potter. Are there similarities? With any new children s fantasy, comparisons to Harry Potter are inevitable. J.K. Rowling sets the standard for books that connect with kids (and adults, too, for that matter). First, recognize that Percy Jackson and Harry Potter are similar because they draw on the same sources in
folklore and mythology. The idea of a young boy finding out he is special, training to use his abilities, and defeating an evil villain to take his rightful place in the world -- this is the story of both Harry and Percy. Secondly, Percy and Harry are very different kids, who live in very different worlds. Camp Half-Blood is full of magic and mystery, yes, but it has a unique flavor that is totally unlike Hogwart s. Percy and Harry come from different backgrounds. They don t have the same issues with parents. Percy s a bit more of a troublemaker than Harry, I think. He s used to being labeled the bad boy and has gotten kicked out of numerous schools (though this is never entirely his fault). Having said that, do I hope readers of Harry Potter will enjoy my series? Of course. Any comparison to Rowling is highly praised, because I m a huge fan of her work. I totally understand why kids love Harry Potter. The effect those books have had on young readers is hard to overestimate. In my years as a teacher, I ve never seen anything that energizes students like Harry Potter. I used to come into my classroom and find students reading Sorcerer s Stone for the thirteenth or fourteenth time, just because they wanted to. After hearing that for a few years, I realized there was an unfulfilled need for more children s literature that impacted kids the way Harry Potter did. I decided to try doing something about it I knew young readers. I understood what they liked. The Lightning Thief is the result. Whether I succeeded or not, I ll let the kids decide. Readers feedback: Why is the Percy Jackson series so popular among teenagers? 1. It interests people in mythology. It has basis in fact--rick Riordan does not go into this blind. He twists the gods and goddesses to fit a modern theme. He's bringing the Greek mythology into a fun light for young people. What's so wrong with that? Teens love Greek mythology, and the Percy Jackson books only heightened that love. 2. The author had a brilliant idea and he used it. He's educating teens and kids on basic Greek mythology, feeding them little bits of the actual myths so they're interested enough to go looking for more, such as Edith Hamilton's Mythology.