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The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #1)

Rick Riordan

Start date: August 2, 2017

Finish date: August 31, 2017

Discussion: Books of the Month

Why we're reading this: August 2017 Young Adult Book of the Month
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What Members Thought

Aug 14, 2016 Susan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Jan. 19th 2023

I finished this book for the 2nd time and I was hoping I would still love it as much as I did. I can assure you I love it more because th he first time I read it I gave it 4 stars and this time is being 5 stars. WOOOO HOOOO I LOVED MY REREAD!!! I didn't remember that much of this book so I'm thrilled I read it again. I'm rereading the whole series. I think I was stuck on book 4 back in 2016. It's time I start again

This was a great 1st intro into the world of Percy Jackson. I am so ...more

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Jan 20, 2011 Kate rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fill-in-the-gaps-project, mini-books

Why, oh why, did I wait so long to read this book??? It was really good.

I have never been a fan of Greek mythology. I felt like teachers tried to ram it down my throat too much when I was little. I feel like it was brought up almost every year in some form or another each and every year at school. So instead of learning it (like you should through repetition), I came to resent it.

Well, this book threw that all out the window. Now I want to research all of the Greek mythology that was talked abou Why, oh why, did I wait so long to read this book??? It was really good.

I have never been a fan of Greek mythology. I felt like teachers tried to ram it down my throat too much when I was little. I feel like it was brought up almost every year in some form or another each and every year at school. So instead of learning it (like you should through repetition), I came to resent it.

Well, this book threw that all out the window. Now I want to research all of the Greek mythology that was talked about in this book. I want to better know who the Gods and Goddess were and the demi-gods and everything like that.

Percy Jackson was an intriguing hero. He was sort of reminiscent of Harry Potter (including the "Golden Trio" comprising of one female and two males). And I thought that that would perhaps annoy me. After all, there can only be one Harry Potter series... And I did love it so much. Well, that was wrong.

While Percy Jackson does resemble Harry Potter (hello, black hair and green eyes), he is a lot more likable than Harry Potter. I know that a lot of people will disagree with me about this, but I found the character of Harry Potter to be extremely self-involved. He had a whole "poor me, pity me" thing going on that I found really annoying.

Percy Jackson, on the other hand, is never self-pitying. He is a true hero, even taking into account what the person he is rescuing would want. He isn't willing to sacrifice everything to get what he wants (including himself) and he seems to have a good head on his shoulders. In addition, I found his two companions (Annabeth and Grover) to be amazing. They added so much to the story (whether through their wisdom, idiocy, humor, etc) they were great. It is so nice to have heroes that aren't always perfect, make a few mistakes, but end up coming out ahead in the end.

Outside of the characters, the whole idea of this quest was brilliant. The idea that someone stole Zeus' master lightning bolt and it has to be restored before World War III breaks out was amazingly clever. And then the journey to get there was great as well. Whether it was the random run-ins with monsters or the settings they encounter, the whole thing had me laughing all the way through.

One final thing to look at in the book is the settings. Can I just say that Rick Riordan is a genius! It is great. To thing that Mount Olympus is in New York or Hades is in L.A. is amazing. The whole concept that Mount Olympus and Hades moves over the years based off of what country is in power is so original. And then you have a camp that is entirely for demi-gods??? Brilliant. Pure genius.

Honestly, I have nothing negative to say about this book. I am left with only two questions at the end... Why in the heck did I wait so long to read this (it has been on my bookshelf for over four years) and When can I get my hands on the next one??? I cannot wait to read the next book. ...more

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Feb 12, 2010 Ashley rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-themed, series, ya

After all of the hype I just didn't love this book. It was an interesting premise but I felt it was just a watered down imitation of other young adult books. There was little beauty in prose and I didn't ever get to a moment where I truly cared for these characters. The story was there it just wasn't executed well. I can't think of anything extremely memorable and the pace of the book was just too quick. I understand Mr. Riordan was writing for middle school age children, but I'm a fierce propon ...more

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Feb 15, 2013 Marla Cosner rated it really liked it

Wonderful start to a series, recommended to me by my fourth grade son :) The story is one you will find yourself thinking about and wondering what happens next while you are reading; and that makes up for the sometimes-awkward writing style. Overall, a good and fast read--even for adults!

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Apr 24, 2013 Andrea rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-fantasy, read-sorted, fiction-juvenile

- More like a 3 from an adult point of view, but quite a successful middle grade book
- A bit predictable, yet the ability to guess the outcome does not spoil the enjoyment of adventure
- If you read this to your kid, perhaps introduce them to Greek mythology adopted for children first It would make the book even more enjoyable
- Too much action sometimes. The book, like its protagonist, seems to have ADHD. Every five minutes there is a fresh monster or something
- I appreciated all the references ...more

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