THE LIGHTNING THIEF

THE LIGHTING THIEF
By: Rick Riordan

SUMMARY

Percy Jackson is a 12-year-old boy with ADHD and dyslexia. Percy takes a beach vacation with his mother. While they are at the beach, Percy's friend, Grover, tells Percy's mother that Percy must attend Camp Half-Blood. The Minotaur is pursuing them and Percy's mother dissolves into golden light.

Percy arrives at Camp Half-Blood only to learn that it is training camp for demigods (half-human/half-God). While playing Capture the Flag, Percy is injured and the trident of Poseidon appears above his head. This means that Percy is the demigod child of Poseidon which is bad because Poseidon was not supposed to have any more children.

Percy is sent on a ten day quest to find Zeus' master bolt. Percy thinks that Hades has the master bolt. He travels to the Underworld of Los Angeles to find the master bolt. He takes two companions with him (Grover and Annabeth, a girl from camp). While traveling, Percy meets Ares (the war god) and several unpleasant monsters. Ares tells Percy that his mother is really still alive. While in the Underworld, Percy realizes that Hades does not have the master bolt because Hades has lost his Helm of Darkness. Percy must leave the Underworld, and his mother.

Percy realizes that he has been tricked by Ares when he notices the master bolt is in the backpack Ares gave him. Percy and Ares duel each other and Percy returns the Helm of Darkness to Hades. Percy also rescues his mother. He is finally able to complete his quest and give the master bolt to Zeus.

REVIEW

The Lightning Thief is a spectacular book! I loved everything about it and now I can't wait to see the movie. This is the first book I have read that blends Greek mythology with modern times. What a cool idea! I learned a lot about the Greek Gods from this book.

I liked that each character had their own individual style. Percy is confused about everything that is going on, Grover is scared, and their friend Annabeth is very smart. It was fun to see how each of them dealt with the situation and each other.

The ending was exciting and I did not know what to expect next. Although I couldn't wait to read the next book, I did not feel like this book left me hanging.

RATING

5 Plot
5 Characters
5 Attention-Grabbing
1 Girlie-Meter
5 Ending

21 TOTAL

5 STARS (great job!)

Reading specialist Melina - signing off!