Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Book Details

Author: Rick Riordan
Ages: 10+
Rating: 8/10
Number of Pages: 375
Plot: This novel is the first in a series of five books which depicts the life of Percy Jackson, a twelve year old boy who suffers from dyslexia and ADHD and has been kicked out of multiple private schools. As Percy's life becomes more strange and peculiar he makes the amazing discovery that he is a demigod, half human half god, and the magical world of the Greek gods is real. With help from his satyr friend Grover Percy arrives at Camp Half Blood where he meets more demigods including Annabeth, one of the daughters of Athena, who he instantly becomes friends with. The novel follows the action packed and dangerous life Percy now faces as a demigod and how his life of being kicked out of schools and putting up with his smelly stepfather Smelly Gabe is over.
As Percy learns more skills and finds out who his father is his life gets a whole lot harder and he is put on a dangerous quest in order to prevent a war against the Gods.

I have recently read this book after my younger brother told me how interesting it was. I know very little about Greek mythology so, at first, I was unsure if I would enjoy it as much as other series I have read like Harry Potter and The Hunger Games. Despite this, I was pleasantly surprised. The characters all have well thought out back stories and the interesting mix of modern day and Greek mythology make the book interesting, unique and appealing to the target age group.

We first learn about Percy Jackson's life and his different school troubles; through humorous short sentences we immediately get the idea that Percy is a troubled yet charismatic character. As Percy's life becomes full of Furies, centaurs and magically enchanted pens Percy learns that his life is not what it seems and he soon learns that he is a demigod. After defeating a Minotaur Percy and Grover, his satyr friend, arrive at Camp Half Blood where demigods are safe to train and live without the fear of being killed by monsters. Percy meets many new characters who each have a difficult past and a range of skills, for example Annabeth and Luke. With the aid of Annabeth and Luke he learns how to fight and begins to fit in before his father,Poseidon, one of the three greatest Gods claims him as his son. From here, Percy's life is threatened by even more monsters and powerful Gods as he is accused of stealing Zeus' lighting bolt. In order to save his own life and prevent the outbreak of a war between the Gods Percy must find who stole the lightning bolt with the help of his friends Grover and Annabeth.

The quest in which Percy must take showcases the different powers and abilities that the Gods and monsters possess and how powerful Percy has actually become. As the book progresses the main trios friendship grows stronger making their unlikely friendship more relatable for the reader. Each character also has very different personalities, Percy becomes more brave and courageous as he faces more monsters and stands up to powerful Gods like Ares. Grover, my favourite character, at first appears to be quite timid and scared but as the quest continues and he tries to protect the innocent the reader can see that he too is brave and also a loyal and protective friend, at one point sacrificing his own safety for Percy's mothers freedom. Annabeth, much like her mother, is strong and intelligent and becomes a good friend to Percy, despite their parents rivalry.

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief is a great book for those who enjoyed Harry Potter and is very good for those who are interested in Greek mythology. Overall, I really liked the plot and the main characters but in some points I thought that Percy was older than twelve, taking on a giant Minotaur was one of them, and I think it would have been more 'believable' if he would have been an older teenager. Despite this, I believe that this book mixes education, humour and excitement to create a truly unique piece. I can't wait to read the rest of the series!

Reviewed by Daisy Wallis