I know what you’re thinking, and yes, of course this post is timed for the new Percy Jackson tv series. The series has just finished, and at least in this household it was well-received. I’m pleased they already announced a second season, too.
I have only read half a dozen of the books (which are in multiple series, and I might want to put the word series in quotes, because they’re all related). I have seen a couple of movies (not sure how many were made), and the touring stage show.
On the other hand, I have a son who was absolutely obsessed with the books, so much so they were possibly the only books he ever wanted to read again and again. He liked the movies but would complain about the differences between them and the books. He’s in college, by the way, which might tell you how interested he is. We had to take breaks from watching the show until he came home so we could all watch it together.
The books are good. I enjoy them. They are light reading, and I usually like my fantasy darker and more epic, but I often dip into lighter fare like this. I have some problems with it, mostly my own confusion, but I’ll also admit I don’t like the way things wrap up so quickly. In the first book, for example, it feels like we’re halfway across the country (St. Louis to be exact) with ninety percent of the book gone, and all of a sudden it’s bing bang boom and everything is over. I would have liked a lot more time in the Underworld.
But that’s just me and my preferences. It obviously works well for others, especially the target group of teens. After all, there’s a new book every year so it’s very successful.
What’s it all about?
Kid discovers he’s a god, basically. Or demi-god, I guess. Then follows all sorts of journeys and hijinks. Really the problem is in giving the new kid so much responsibility and power even though he has no idea what to expect. Could someone sit him down and explain how it all works before he gets blamed for everything?
The books are an enjoyable introduction to the ancient gods though. I very much like the history part of things, and Rick Riordan has done an excellent job of giving each god their own personality. I keep wanting to steal it and use it somehow, but of course without using Greek gods as the characters. Perhaps it’s been done to death though, since with the success of these books we’ve seen a number of other series based on similar concepts.
What are the themes?
Lots of themes floating around, as you would expect in a YA book series. If you’re going to write YA, you should hit theme as well as Riordan does.
Identity and Belonging
Every kid is an outcast, but every one belongs somewhere. Percy battles his own heritage, trying to weave between being a person and a god. His struggles to fit in mirror everyone’s attempt to do the same thing in the real world.
Friendship and loyalty
Percy quickly finds himself with two close friends, Annabeth and Grover. Despite everything thrown at them, they prove their loyalty to each other in many ways, and it is their friendship which gets them through the challenges they face.
Adversity
On the other hand, adversity is thrown in Percy’s face at every step. We see him persevere through it all, teaching the vital lesson of not giving up, even when all seems lost.
Acceptance and Diversity
You may or may not agree, depending on which side of the political divide you find yourself, but diversity is a good thing. We are all better by bringing different perspectives together. Riordan shows this by bringing in characters with diverse backgrounds, and showing their different experiences helping the group in different ways.
A Character of Great Interest
The obvious character to discuss is Percy Jackson himself. The star of the stories, we see most everything through his eyes. He is in turn bewildered and empowered by the things he discovers about himself.
On the other hand, he also veers wildly between being incredibly brave and incredibly scared. In any given encounter he’s going to be terrified about what will happen, then suddenly he’ll be all like, okay, whatever, blasé about what he’s in the middle of. I’m not sure how to explain it. Perhaps everything is a threat, but he quickly figures out he can handle it all.
I like to think of my character Vedi as a little braver than Percy, but she’s also not thrown into the same situations he is. She starts out as an outsider, bewildered by everything around her. By the end of the story she has realized a few things about herself, and the threats she faced don’t seem to be as bad as she thought they would.
In many ways the two of them take the same journey, just on different pathways. They both end up knowing more about their worlds and themselves once they reach their destination though. I think this is a common theme of the young adult, growing into yourself type of story (although Vedi might be a little bit older than most of those stories).
What to read next
Once you’ve finished the first Percy Jackson story, the Lightning Thief, you’ll want to finish the series, then read the other Riordan books. After that, there are plenty of imitations, many of which are worthy of attention. Then you might even end up enjoying more adult fantasy fare.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan. Is it cheating to recommend this? Basically, read the first book, and if you like it, go on and read the rest of the series.
The Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan. Another cheat is to finish the Percy Jackson series and then read the follow-up. It really is just as good, in fact it might even be better as the universe expands.
Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi. One of the cool things Riordan did was take his money and create a publishing imprint to help other authors get launched. One of the first was the Aru Shah books, which you might describe as Percy Jackson in India. An excellent series and well worth your time.
Artemis Fowl by Eion Colfer. Ignore the movie and all you heard about it. The books are really good. Again we’re in YA territory, but too many people think that means children. There are a lot of good books in the genre, and these are some of them.
In Conclusion
Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson is a great introduction to the world of mythology. Especially aimed at teen readers, there is something in there for everyone. Ideally these books will hook readers and they will go on to enjoy a lifetime of fantasy stories.
