Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

It's always weird reading books from almost 20 years ago and realizing how much things have changed. I know that this is a kids book from the early 2000s, but oh man, some of the words used to describe the characters. Anyone that Percy didn't really care for got a heafty heaping of harsh critiques on physical appearances.

Overall, though, found this to be enjoyable. The story moved along at a good pace and nothing really slogged. It became a little predictable, but it was written for children and not adults, so I didn't hold that against it.

Overall, I think my kiddos would enjoy this as they are both very much into Greek gods at this time, and I wanted a fun series that they could dive into that's not Harry Potter because I can't let them think it's ok to support the atrocity that is JK Rowling. This should be a good replacement for that niche and I'll be continuing with the rest of the series to see how things go.

This middle grade book would have been one of my absolute favorites in my youth, and I loved it now too. I love Greek mythology, and this is basically Greek mythology meets modern urban fantasy.

Perseus Jackson, short Percy, is a problem student who can never settle down anywhere. His mother lives with his detestable step-father in New York, and he gets moved from boarding school to boarding school. But one day something changes, when his math teacher turns into a Fury and tries to attack him. He eventually finds out that he is actually a demi-god, the offspring of Poseidon with his mortal mother, and that there's a whole camp full of children like him.

But war is brewing amongst the three major gods Zeus, Poseidon and Hades because Zeus' bolt was stolen, and Percy is sent on a quest with Grover the Satyr, and Athena's daughter Annabeth, to retrieve said bolt before the summer solstice.

The story is fast-paced, pretty fun, lots of monsters, and I read a beautifully illustrated edition. Would recommend for any child that shows a hint of interest in mythology. I'm not a child, but I'll keep reading too. :-)