The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

A Brief Summary

The Lightning Thief follows the story of Percy Jackson, a kid who has all sorts of problems in school and at home. He suffers from dyslexia and ADHD, he constantly gets kicked out of the boarding schools that his mother is sending him to, he does not know his father, and his stepfather is a jerk. He is the most unlikely of heroes, at least until his history class takes a field trip to the local museum. The events in the museum soon make it apparent that Percy's world has a lot more to it than either Percy or the reader first guesses.

Following events that bring him to a place known as Camp Half-Blood, the home of children who are part human and part Greek God, Percy begins to discovery previously unknown powers and abilities. There is a whole world out there that he never recognized, filled with the monsters and legends of old, and some of them want to kill him; thankfully he is safe inside the Camp. He finds himself growing happier as he makes new friends and comes to find those who are accepting of him. Things will change as the secrets of his parentage are revealed and, soon enough, he is launched into a quest to save the world from a coming war.

Thematic Elements

There many of the classic themes of adventure inherent to Greek Myths and tales in The Lightning Thief. The book follows the heroes journey in a way that many experienced students of reading will recognize, as much of the stories that no doubt served as inspirations did. The themes of identity and coming to ones true power are also common throughout the narrative. The book is only the first in a series, however, so it should be noted that the other tales in the series are not necessarily the same as this one. I have not yet read the rest of the books and so it is impossible for me to give even a passing comment to each of them here.

Analysis

The Lightning Thief can serve wall as a dip into the realm of Greek myth, despite any small liberties the author may take with the source material, and is a perfect way of introducing middle school students to the genre. It has many of the classic elements, as I said before, and many allusions that can be used to connect the work to other stories that students might have already heard ot. Those who like the Harry Potter books would almost assuredly find something to like in these books, as it has a lot in common with the first three books in the series in terms of tone and the journies of the protagonists. The classic hallmarks of Greek myth, such as the monsters and the quest for identity, make this a good book for any reader however, so don't let the simplistic style give you away if you are above the age that you would be attending middle school.

A Little Something More

As I just said, this book is very traditional in the way it presents itself, so it makes a good first step on a reading ladder that will lead to books like The Odyssey or The Iliad. Teachers should consider this a must if they are going to be doing an extended unit, especially if they are like my teachers and will be using The Odyssey as part of their standard curriculum for sixth grade students. The reading level is much easier and it allows for students to draw connections between the two books, especially with the Lotus Hotel chapter, once they have completed both of them.