Yesterday, I completed the fourth of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series: “The Battle of the Labyrinth“, (2008©), and today I completed the fifth and final book in the series: “The Last Olympian“, (2009©), both written by Rick Riordan. The series is centered around a coming of age story for the title character. It is also a retelling of Greek Mythology and a classic story of the conflict between good and evil; temptation, human weakness, and redemption. | |
Despite the fact the series are obviously targeted for a younger audience (I’d say 8 to 15 year olds), I found the series to be a terrific and thoroughly enjoyable series. The story builds with each adventure and the ultimate resolution is both emotionally touching and dramatically satisfying. By this I mean over the series you’ve built up an emotional connection with the main characters and the heroism and sacrifice are quite touching. At least, they touched me. The drama is also played out well. There are a number of twists and turns which were not predictable (to me) and therefore – unlike many mythic tales – the ending was satisfying. I would say it is wrapped up almost too well. | |
My son, James, who recommended the series to me, says there are no new books in the series, but some of the characters appear as minor characters in off-shoot series. Anyway, I highly recommend the series! | |
I believe I will now go on to read more serious treatments of Greek mythology, in specific, and mythology, in general. I found the characters names and character types to be common themes in modern culture – which has surprised me. I am particularly amused by the heavy use of mythology in the “Matrix” trilogy and I will want to re-watch the series to see if the mythology was predictive of the movie / series action or if the movie makers were simply adopting names from Greek mythology. I’ve always simply viewed the movies as science-fiction, not as a re-working of classic Greek mythology. | |
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Posts Tagged ‘Greek Mythology’
The Last Two Olympians
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, Reading, tagged Family and Friends, Greek Mythology, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Reading, Recommended Reading, Rick Riordan on November 26, 2010| Leave a Comment »
On The Shoulders Of Titans
Posted in Reading, tagged Books, Greek Mythology, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Reading, Recommended Reading, Rick Riordan, The Titans Curse on November 20, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Today I finished Book Three of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series: “The Titan’s Curse“, by Rick Riordan (2007©). Percy finds out that sometimes growing up can feel like you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders. | |
I’m continuing to read through the series at a pretty good pace now. This is the third one in a little over a week. They are quite good. A fast read. Entertaining. Definitely a “youth” series, but still enjoyable for those of us who are young at heart. I still highly recommend the series to anyone trying to get their young to early-teen-sons to read. | |
I am going to look forward to seeing the movie based on the first book now… | |
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I See With My One Good Eye
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, Reading, tagged Books, Family and Friends, Greek Mythology, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Reading, Recommended Reading, Rick Riordan, The Sea Of Monsters on November 18, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Today, I finished Book Two of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series: “The Sea of Monsters“, written by Rick Riordan, (2006©). This is the second of five (so far) in the Greek mythology books my son has been reading and he’s asked me to read. | |
The series is intended for youth, I’d estimate 7 to 15 year olds. Having said this, I’m finding them very pleasurable reading. They are very fast reads. You can gain a great amount of knowledge about mythology, story telling, western civilization, and vocabulary by reading “children’s” books. | |
This second book is about saving a friend, meeting a relative and Cyclopes. Unfortunately, saying much more would be telling and spoil the fun of reading the book – so I won’t. I will say if you have a son (or daughter) who you would like to spend time with – reading a fast paced, child-focused, action-adventure, hero-good guy story to – this series (and this book) are excellent choices. Tantalizing… | |
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A Quick Sunday Morning Read
Posted in Reading, tagged Book Review, Books, Greek Mythology, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Reading, Recommended Reading, Rick Riordan, The Demigod Files on October 31, 2010| Leave a Comment »
This morning I read another of the Percy Jackson & the Olympians books. This wasn’t one of the series novels. It was only a filler of three short stories. The book is titled: “The Demigod Files” and is written by Rick Riordan (2009©). The three stories are background stories meant to add friends and further establish the “hero” status of Percy amongst his peers. | |
Again, the book is a very fast read and a fun read. I still feel the series is targeted for youth and therefore lacks a “gravitas” some coming of age stories have, but they are fun. And if you’re going to target the kids to youth market, fun will sell a lot better than gravitas. I continue to highly recommend the series. | |
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Greek Myths For Kids
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, Reading, tagged Book Review, Books, Greek Mythology, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Reading, Recommended Reading, Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief on October 30, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Today I completed a book recommended to me by my son. The book is: “Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief” by Rick Riordan (2005©). The book is a coming of age story for a young man who discovers he is actually the son of the Greek god Poseidon. As such, Percy has some super powers, mostly to do with water. As part of his growing up, Percy must choose to become a hero and in order to be a hero he must complete a quest. | |
The book is basically a children’s (young teens) book. But that doesn’t mean it won’t be enjoyed by others. I found it quite interesting to learn so much about Greek mythology while being entertained by a good story. I highly recommend this book to anyone who still reads kids or action books and to anyone who reads books to kids. They will enjoy it and learn from it too. It does contain scenes which may be too intense for very young (under 10 years of age) kids, particularly those with vivid imaginations, but I think most could handle it. | |
My son says the first book was turned into an unsuccessful movie. I look forward to reading the remaining 4 novels in the series and to seeing the movie. | |
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The Road To Recovery (And More Myths)
Posted in 2011 Book Review, Book Review, Faith Family and Friends, General Comments, Reading, Reviews, Walking, tagged 2011 Book Review, Demigods And Monsters, Greek Mythology, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Percy Jackson & the Olympians -- book review, Reading, Recommended Reading, Rick Riordan, Roman Mythology, The Lost Hero, Walking on January 15, 2011| Leave a Comment »
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