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

by Rick Riordan

Twelve-year-old Percy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school . . . again. No matter how hard he tries, he can't seem to stay out of trouble. But can he really be expected to stand by and watch while a bully picks on his scrawny best friend? Or not defend himself against his pre-algebra teacher when she turns into a monster and tries to kill him? Of course, no one believes Percy about the monster incident; he's not even sure he believes himself.

Until the Minotaur chases him to summer camp.

Suddenly, mythical creatures seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy's Greek mythology textbook and into his life. The gods of Mount Olympus, he's coming to realize, are very much alive in the twenty-first century. And worse, he's angered a few of them: Zeus's master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect.

Now Percy has just ten days to find and return Zeus's stolen property, and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. On a daring road trip from their summer camp in New York to the gates of the Underworld in Los Angeles, Percy and his friends–one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena–will face a host of enemies determined to stop them. To succeed on his quest, Percy will have to do more than catch the true thief: he must come to terms with the father who abandoned him; solve the riddle of the Oracle, which warns him of failure and betrayal by a friend; and unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.

• ISBN10: 142313494X
• ISBN13: 9781423134947
• Publish Date: 1 January 2010 (first published 14 June 2005)
• Publish Status: Transferred
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Disney-Hyperion
• Edition: Movie Tie-In Edition
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 400
• Language: English

Reviews

[Charli G.]

I wasn't sure if I was going to review this one being that it is technically 10 years old (the copyright date is for 2005 although the listed publication date on Goodreads is 2006) but then I decided I had to. Why? Because there has to be someone out there, like me, who hasn't read this book yet. And that, my friends, is a travesty.

I admit I'm late to the Percy Jackson game. I saw the trailers for the Lightning Thief movie and I was mildly interested but didn't pay much attention because at the time I wasn't reading (the dreaded reading slump) and because I actually didn't know it was based on a book at that time. I learned that later, but still didn't watch the movie or read the book.

But as I was perusing the library shelves at my college, The Lightning Thief was sitting there in all it's glory and I decided I might as well see what the fuss was about. I saw - so much so that I actually finished the book (devoured it) the same day I checked it out, which was actually yesterday (Oct. 12, 2015).

I'm a Greek Mythology nut. I absolutely love it. Yet I found characters from the Greek myths that I hadn't heard of before in this book. Which is a good thing because it wasn't boring to me when the Greek myth characters were in the mix. I loved how the gods were portrayed - especially Artemis, who is included even though she's chosen to remain a maiden and therefore wouldn't have children. At first Ares was a bit of a shock but then I could see where a biker would be a good fit for him. And I'm still laughing about the fact that Poseidon looks like a beach bum/tourist when Percy meets him.

I won't tell you, if you don't know, who Percy's father is, but I will say it didn't take me long to figure it out. But then again, that's not a bad thing. It's actually quite helpful.

It's hard not to give away the entire story - you just have to read the book for yourself if you haven't already. Trust me, this book is amazing.

[KitsuneBae]

Reread

[vagasker]

I loved it! This book is amazing. Percy is a great character, funny and witty. I'm glad I have all 5 books on my shelf, because im gonna start reading the 2nd one immediately!

[Kelly]

4½ Stars.
http://www.divabooknerd.com/2014/10/the-lightning-thief-by-rick-riordan.html
Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief was fantastic. It completely surprised me, delighted me and I simply loved it. It follows the story of Percy Jackson, troubled student who's not only dyslexic, but suffers from attention deficit disorder. In the past six years, he's moved from several different schools and each ending in Percy being asked to leave. He's not intentionally difficult by any means, but strange and unexplained predicaments seem to find him. Percy is a Demigod and the only place the offspring of the Gods can find sanctuary is at Camp Half Blood, and finds himself thrown into a world of mythology. Considering he's only twelve years old, Percy's voice seemed mature beyond his years. He's overwhelmed, needs answers and rightly so. He's not a strong character, but a reliable narrator who's nativity only endeared me further.

Annabeth was troubled. She covered her insecurities with awkward humour which almost always fell flat. Thank goodness for Grover. The Satyr and tin can eating boy who is using the quest to prove his own worth as a protector. He was simply delightful. Although the series falls under the middle grade genre, the Greek mythology was brilliant and it was delivered with humour and sarcasm. It was nothing short of incredible. I'm an instant fan and luckily already have the next two books waiting for me on my bookshelf.

[rakesandrogues]

It's not that often that I like a book by the first ten pages, so immediately, The Lightning Thief scores major points by hooking me into the story by the eighth page. They tell you not to judge a book by its cover. I usually tell myself not to judge a book by the first fifty pages. I try, but sometimes it is extremely difficult to let go of first impressions. To me, first impressions of a book can usually tell me how much I will end up enjoying a book. From the first eight pages alone, I knew that I was going to enjoy The Lightning Thief tremendously. I was not wrong with that judgement.

One of the reasons why I probably liked The Lightning Thief so much is my fascination of Greek mythology. It was something I have always had an interest in. I thought I knew a lot (especially since we covered a few tales in Latin class...) but apparently not. I learned a handful of things about Greek mythology while reading the book.

I'm always hesitant about reading a book geared towards younger readers. I read a lot of middle grade fiction at internship, and I find that sometimes, they just aren't as enjoyable to an older audience. I was proved wrong with this book, however. Though the protagonist, Percy Jackson, is only twelve years old, I think his story is great for all ages. While reading, it was so easy to forget just how old he is. Rick Riordan's writing doesn't make you feel like you're reading your kid sister's book.

Throughout the whole book, I found myself at the edge of the seat. I couldn't stop reading, and I was constantly trying to guess the ending (I couldn't do it). I loved reading about how Percy uncovered the secrets about his birth and Camp Half-Blood. I loved meeting Gods and other creatures throughout their travels. I loved the modern day descriptions because I thought that it reflected the Gods and creatures so well. Riordan flawlessly incorporates these myths from the past, and in this story, it feels like the Gods and Goddesses have always lived amongst us. Also, living so close to New York City, I found myself constantly wondering the existence of the 600th floor on the Empire State Building. I know the book is fiction, (though the first page of the book suggests otherwise) but I so want to believe in Mount Olympus.

After reading the book and enjoying it immensely, my fingers are itching to get a signed copy of the book from Books of Wonder. Oh, the temptation!!! I'm definitely going to read more of this series.

[Chelsea]

Clearly it's taken me a while to jump on this ship. I'm glad I read this though. I wish I had read it when I was a little younger because I probably would have liked it more but it was still good. I loved that this book is about the Gods and Goddesses, as I say in every review about them. I just love it when people incorporate them into stories. It's so much fun! I like that in this book the characters are the sons and daughters of the gods so they all have some god like qualities. I was surprised that the main character Percy was the son of Poseidon because I figured the obvious choice was the son of Zeus right? It was still really cool.

I really liked all the characters. I found Percy a little unrealistic though because he accepted who he was without question and goes on a quest right away. I don't exactly think that's the way it would happen but it made for a good story. I really liked Grover, who wouldn't though, and Annabelle was pretty cool too. I think that this was a good read and everyone should probably read it. It's being compared a lot to Harry Potter but so far with this one book I don't think it's up with Harry Potter yet. Harry Potter can be read at any age and loved but I find this book hits a slightly younger audience.

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This is a great start to an amazing series! One of my friends (older friend might i add) told me about the series and told me to read it. I went looking for it and was surprised to find it in the kids section. But did that stop me? heck no! Loved it! I absolutely love Greek mythology and was really psyched to have it given a modern twist. Rick Riordan did an excellent job! its a simple read but a really good one at that. I definitely recommend it!

[mrs_mander_reads]

Really loved this, way more than I thought it would. I'm extremely glad I bought the first three! It's well written and the content is solid.

[nitzan_schwarz]

TO READ A DETAILED RECAP OF PERCY JACKSON AND THE LIGHTNING THIEF GO HERE!! ENJOY


After Re-Read
I had to take down a star, from 4 to three. The reason was that it took me months to finish this book a second time, and any book I have to force myself to read a second time, deserves one stars fewer.
Don't get me wrong - I love Riordan's writing style, and his wit, and I finished this book in a day the first time I read it (the entire series in a week).
I don't know why it was so hard to read it a second time, but, I mean, I got to the last chapter--than just stopped reading and put the book aside for months. How does that make sense? One chapter, and it was so easy to drop the second time I've read it. Much too easy. Not to mention that I had to re-start this book twice because the first time I stopped after three chapters or so. The second time stretched over months.
So, yeah. I love Percy. I love Rick. I just had too much trouble re-reading this for my liking, which is why this became 3-stars.
Sorry Percy! I still love you, and can't wait to read Son of Neptune!

This is the first book in the start of a great series. I really love Mythology books, especially Greek, and this book was really easy to read. It has great characters, especially Percy and Annabeth and it was very action packed and kept you entertained.