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The Lightning Thief

(Percy Jackson and the Olympians #1)

Rick Riordan (Goodreads Author)

4.24 · Rating details · 1,747,044 ratings · 54,084 reviews

Alternate cover for this ISBN can be found here

Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can't seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse - Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy's mom finds out, she knows it's time that he knew the truth ab ...more

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Paperback, First edition, 377 pages

Published March 1st 2006 by Disney Hyperion Books (first published June 28th 2005)

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Popular Answered Questions

I really didn't like the movies, should I read the books? :s

Juli Brom Yeah, pretty much everyone here is 100000000% correct, and by now you should have already read the book, but add to everyone here DUDE THE MOVIES…moreYeah, pretty much everyone here is 100000000% correct, and by now you should have already read the book, but add to everyone here DUDE THE MOVIES BRING SHAME TO EVERYONE'S RICE FEILDS AND COWS THAT MADE NO SENSE BUT STILL THE BOOK IS LIKE *AHHH FLOATS DOWN FROM OLYMPUS*(less)

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I have seen the movies and have been thinking about reading the books too, but I'm afraid that it'll be boring and childish. I love Greek mythology, though. Should I start reading these books or not?

Makenzie First off, the movies do not do the books justice :)

But yes, definitely read the books! I'm a teenager and I read the books a few years ago, but to…moreFirst off, the movies do not do the books justice :)

But yes, definitely read the books! I'm a teenager and I read the books a few years ago, but to this day it's one of my all-time favorite series. Riordan is an amazing writer, and once you start his books, you can't put them down! He does a great job with combining mythology with the modern day, so the stories seem all the more realistic.

While the first book is projected towards a younger audience, it's still action-packed and captivating. As the series progresses, Percy, the main character, grows and gets older so by the final book in the series he's 16, so as he matures, the books get older as well.

I also recommend these books because Rick has a follow-up series, called the Heroes of Olympus Series, which is for an older audience. Some of the characters from the Percy Jackson series carry over, so I recommend reading the first series to better understand the second (and I definitely recommend reading the follow-up series because it's just as good, if not better than the first).

Hope this helped!(less)

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Apr 24, 2014 Wulan Murti rated it liked it

Memulai petualangan baru.

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Teen Readers: Favorite Percy Jackson Character	16	55	8 hours, 44 min ago
Who is your favorite Character?	17	52	10 hours, 11 min ago
Why do people hate Percy Jackson?	651	2265	10 hours, 29 min ago
everything percy jackson	1	1	Sep 15, 2019 09:09AM
PERCY JACKSON HATERS!	17	64	Sep 11, 2019 02:40PM
Should I give this book another chance?	5	20	Sep 03, 2019 01:23PM

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About Rick Riordan

Rick Riordan

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Rick Riordan is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of many books, including the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. Please follow him on Twitter and via his official blog.