Book Review: "The Lightning Thief"

In preparation for the movie, "Percy Jackson and The Olympians, The Lightning Thief", I decided to read the book. I don't want to be one of those obnoxious "the book is better" people, but usually the book is better. After reading "The Lightning Thief", I think the movie has to go a long way to top the book.

"The Lightning Thief" is the story of 12 year old Percy Jackson, who finds out that he is the son of the Greek Sea God, Poseidon. The Greek gods are alive and well, and living in, and around, the United States. Percy is rare, because he is a child of one of the "The Big 3" (Zeus, Poseidon or Hades). Just as soon as he finds out about his heritage, Percy ends up at a summer camp for other half-blood kids (kids who are half human, half god...think Hercules). But, after only 2 weeks, Percy gets what all heroes in training want...a quest. Something has been stolen from Zeus, and he's not happy. Percy and his friends Annabeth (daughter of Athena) and Grover (a satyr) head off to recover the missing object and stop an all out war between the gods.

This book is great. I've always been fascinated by Greek mythology (yes, I know they are just stories). I loved the original "Clash of the Titans" movie and even enjoyed the syndicated TV Series, "Hercules, the Legendary Journeys." I think this is why I liked "The Lightning Thief" so much. It's a modern day take on the Hercules story (though Hercules was the son of Zeus). The story is a fast paced adventure with lots of humor. Percy, Annabeth and Grover are terrific characters. They actually remind me a lot of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. Percy is the hero (Harry), Annabeth is the smart one (Hermione) and Grover is the comic relief (Ron).

If you liked the Harry Potter series, you'll like "The Lightning Thief." So far there are 5 books in this "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" series. I started the 2nd book last night, so look for another review soon.