The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson & the Olympians #1)

Reader reviewed by Crimin

. . .then this is the book for you!! (Review may have spoilers.)

Percy Jackson, the troubled, misunderstood boy with below-average grades and horrible dyslexia. Sure, the kid tries to do the right thing but is mostly punished whenever he throws a punch in the name of his friend Grover or tells on the girls picking on them. If that isnt bad enough, he has to go home to a horrible step-father that treats him and his mother like dirt.

Can a kid get a break?

He sure does.

After a rampaging Minotaur (but, shhh! Dont speak its name!) wrecks his step-fathers car and murders his mother, Percy finds himself, his best friend Grover by his side, at the Half-Blood Camp grounds. And he finds that he isnt so bad after all, just misunderstood. Turns out, every child there is a the son or daughter of a God or Goddess of Olympus. Including Percy.

This story of a boy finding out about his heritage and learn, above all else, that nothing is impossible should be dubbed the next best think to Harry Potter. I enjoyed each minute of it and I cannot wait to purchase and read the second, third, fourth, and fifth books in the series.

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The Lightning thief is about Percy Jackson having to save his mother after the god Hades takes her.Hades thinks that Percy has Zeus lightning bolt. And he wants it. Now to save her his friends Annabeth and Grover are going on a journey to save Percy s mother and they will save have to avoid many obstacles to get to her. I have thought that the characters were well detailed and the plot very well explained.

Reader reviewed by Harry


The bull-man charged to fast, his arms out to grab me whichever way I tried to dodge For my book report I read The Lightning Thief. The books genre was fantasy, and was told in the 1st person. The book was about a troubled boy, Percy, who discovered his father was a god, making him a half blood. He was sent off to a half blood camp where other half bloods like himself had a place to stay in the summer. While Percy is at camp he is given a quest to find Zeus stolen lightning bolt to prevent a major conflict or war between the gods. Percy, his satyr guardian Grover, and his fellow half blood Annabeth will have to fight mythological monsters and unravel a treachery more powerful then the gods themselves. His quest will reveal ancient Greek powers, and a betrayal from a friend. The Lightning Thief was by far one of my most favorite books I have ever read.
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan is a great recommendation for middle school readers. For starters, the book was never boring, and always was packed with suspense on every page. When reading the book I could never put it down always anxious to find out what would happen next. Usually when I read books it is hard for me to concentrate on the plot with so much going on in the book. The Lightning Thiefs plot was smooth and simple, action packed with monsters, gods, and heroes. My favorite part of Rick Riordans book was his writing style. The book was the most suspenseful page turners I have ever read, because of all of the battles and wacky twists he put in the book. I recommend The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan to any one looking for a suspenseful page turner, and a good read.
Overall, I think Rick Riordan did an awesome job with The Lightning Thief. His book is a great recommendation for a middle school student looking for a suspenseful read. The Lightning Thief was one of my favorite books, and I am looking forward to reading the sequel, The Sea of Monsters

Reader reviewed by Victoria Morris

After several months of not reading, as I was head deep in a story of my own, I picked this up at the bookstore in preparation for the movie coming out this month.

Reader reviewed by Nikki aka SpunkiiReader

The first time I head about this series I wrote it off as a childrens book.  I didnt think I would enjoy it because it was targeted for the younger reader, but I finally convinced myself to read it and I loved it. Even though Percy is only 12, I still found myself interested in his struggles and choices. I didnt know much about the Greek gods before I read this, but that wasnt a problem Riordan does a great job of explaining each myth as it comes along. I find myself extremely anxious to read the next book in the series and find out what happens next.

Reader reviewed by librariane

Percy has been kicked out of yet another private school, but this time, something strange has happened to facilitate this event: his math
teacher turned into a scary monster! Eventually, Percy learns that his life is a little more complicated than he thought--he's the son of a
Greek god, making him a half-blood. His mother takes him to a camp especially for his kind, but she gets captured by the god of Hades, giving Percy a secret ambition to get her back. He learns which god is his father, gets a quest and saves the world.

This is a clever book, with a lot of humor, history and wonderful characters. Riordan has created a multidimensional cast, the main
character especially, and quite often you forget he's only 12. Everything is believable within the context of Greek gods. Riordan has also done a nice job of setting the scene for the next book (this is the first of a trilogy) with the friend who betrays taking off into the world.

This is a brilliant read. I love mythology, so I was excited to read this one. In honesty, I only knew about it because I heard about the film, so I wanted to read it before the film came out as I can't watch a movie and then read the book. Just doesn't work that way. Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down. It was a non-stop adrenalin rush. I went out and got the other four books. This is a must read.

Greek mythology is fascinating but Rick Riordan made it fun and up-to-date in this story. I had to read it several times to catch all the inside jokes about the mythological characters. But that kind of richly layered detailing makes for a fantastic book that works on multiple levels for all ages. Bravo!

Reader reviewed by aria

percy has been kicked out of every school he's been too. he caused a flood. he shot the scoolbus with a cannon. he's perfectly used to getting expelled.

but this time his math teacher turns into a monster and tries to kill him.

imagine having a minotaur chase you down in the middle of the night.
imagine your mother being taken from you in front of your eyes.
imagine being told....

that you are the son of the sea god poisiedon.

percy is claimed by poisiedon, and immiadeatly blamed for a theft he did not do. so to stop the gods from creating world war 3, percy must set out on a quest across the US, with only a beautiful 12-year-old girl and an satyr in 6th grade to help him.

will he suceed? come on people read it and find out. hint: he will fail to save what matters most in the end.

uh-oh.....