I'll admit it, I was skeptical of this book. I must have picked The Lightning Thief up 20 times before I finally bought it a few weeks back. I thought it might be "too young" or another rip off from Harry Potter, so I always put it back down and wandered on to something else. I was wrong. This book is fun! Truly, that is the first word that comes to mind when I think of Percy Jackson.
Basically, our hero, Percy Jackson, is failing out of yet another boarding school and starts to notice some strange things going on around him. He ultimately learns that his his father is a god. A Greek god, no less. Through a series of events, he learns who his father is and accepts a quest that leads him to the gates of hell and beyond. Literally. I mean he goes to the underworld and faces Hades.
The best part of this book, for me, is the idea that the gods are still out there, walking amongst the mortals. It reminded me of Neil Gaiman's American Gods, but a much lighter (and obviously more PG) version. I loved seeing characters such as Ares, the god of war, show up in this book, complete with bad-ass biker attitude- and the bike to go with it.
I did feel like the story could have been more developed, but this is a book about a 12 year-old boy, and so probably targeted more toward that age group than my own. I'm looking forward to reading the next books and seeing how the story evolves. If you're looking for a light, easy read, this book will fit the bill and then some.
While I haven't seen the movie yet, I've heard good things and am looking forward to it. If you've seen it, feel free to let me know how it compares!
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