Friday, December 31, 2010
Book Review
Title: Percy Jackson and the Olympians
Author: Rick Riordan
Genre: YA fantasy
Summary: After finding out that he is the son of Poseidon, this series follows the adventures of Percy Jackson and his demigod friends.
Thoughts: My first experience with Percy Jackson was the movie. My husband and I decided to head over to the cheap seats and watch something fun. I knew that it was based off of a book, but I never bothered to pick it up. While spending Thanksgiving with my brother, he sent me home with the whole five book series. They sat on my shelf for awhile while I read other books. For some reason, I just kept avoiding them. However, last week, I finally started reading them. I couldn't put the series down!
After finding out that he is the son of Poseidon, Percy is taken to Camp Half-Blood where he meets and befriends several demigods -- the children of a union between a god and a human. However, Percy is different. He finds out that he is a child of the big 3 -- Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades. For various reasons, this is a very big deal. Without giving anything away, the series follows Percy and his friends on many adventures that lead them from places like Hades to the 600th floor of the Empire State's Building.
Riordan did an excellent job with this series. Using the Greek mythology as a basis for the series, I was a little apprehensive about his interpretation of the myths. However, he does an amazing job. I had to keep my BlackBerry next to me in order to look things up while I read. Not only does he have rather obscure figures from Greek mythology (i.e., Kampe and the Hundred-Handed Ones), he was able to imagine the gods' role in modern day culture. For example, Hermes created the internet. The world he creates is colourful, rich, and fun.
The author also spent a lot of time fleshing his characters out. I felt that, even though they may not have been the main characters, everyone in the books were given a lot thought. Furthermore, the characters matured over the course of the series. They start out with Percy being found at 12 and end when he is 16. Riordan was able to show this maturity in a believable way.
The only thing I can liken these books to is the Harry Potter series. However, unlike Harry, I felt that Percy was a likable character. While he was the main character, he did not dominate the books the way Harry did. During the off-season of Camp Half-Blood, each character was shaped by their own experiences and not by Percy. To put it another way, they all had a life outside of Percy. In addition, Percy accepted his fate and position as Poseidon's son.
Not only were these books and quick and entertaining read, I feel that young adults would be introduced to the rich history of Greek mythology in a very accessible and fun way. Putting the myths into modern day society, children would be able to relate at a different level.
Overall, the Percy Jackson series has become one of my favorites. I look forward to picking up The Heroes of Olympus.
Rating: 4/5
Complete 2010 book list
Currently: Ghost Story by Peter Straub
Author: Rick Riordan
Genre: YA fantasy
Summary: After finding out that he is the son of Poseidon, this series follows the adventures of Percy Jackson and his demigod friends.
Thoughts: My first experience with Percy Jackson was the movie. My husband and I decided to head over to the cheap seats and watch something fun. I knew that it was based off of a book, but I never bothered to pick it up. While spending Thanksgiving with my brother, he sent me home with the whole five book series. They sat on my shelf for awhile while I read other books. For some reason, I just kept avoiding them. However, last week, I finally started reading them. I couldn't put the series down!
After finding out that he is the son of Poseidon, Percy is taken to Camp Half-Blood where he meets and befriends several demigods -- the children of a union between a god and a human. However, Percy is different. He finds out that he is a child of the big 3 -- Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades. For various reasons, this is a very big deal. Without giving anything away, the series follows Percy and his friends on many adventures that lead them from places like Hades to the 600th floor of the Empire State's Building.
Riordan did an excellent job with this series. Using the Greek mythology as a basis for the series, I was a little apprehensive about his interpretation of the myths. However, he does an amazing job. I had to keep my BlackBerry next to me in order to look things up while I read. Not only does he have rather obscure figures from Greek mythology (i.e., Kampe and the Hundred-Handed Ones), he was able to imagine the gods' role in modern day culture. For example, Hermes created the internet. The world he creates is colourful, rich, and fun.
The author also spent a lot of time fleshing his characters out. I felt that, even though they may not have been the main characters, everyone in the books were given a lot thought. Furthermore, the characters matured over the course of the series. They start out with Percy being found at 12 and end when he is 16. Riordan was able to show this maturity in a believable way.
The only thing I can liken these books to is the Harry Potter series. However, unlike Harry, I felt that Percy was a likable character. While he was the main character, he did not dominate the books the way Harry did. During the off-season of Camp Half-Blood, each character was shaped by their own experiences and not by Percy. To put it another way, they all had a life outside of Percy. In addition, Percy accepted his fate and position as Poseidon's son.
Not only were these books and quick and entertaining read, I feel that young adults would be introduced to the rich history of Greek mythology in a very accessible and fun way. Putting the myths into modern day society, children would be able to relate at a different level.
Overall, the Percy Jackson series has become one of my favorites. I look forward to picking up The Heroes of Olympus.
Rating: 4/5
Complete 2010 book list
Currently: Ghost Story by Peter Straub
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Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Book Challenge 2011
The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven- John Milton, Paradise Lost
That quote really strikes me. How many times do we do this to ourselves?
It may not be public knowledge, but urban fantasy is one of my favorite genres. For awhile, I pulled away from fantasy, urban fantasy, sci-fi, etc. to explore other genres. Being an English major, I felt I needed to broaden my reading horizons. I found that I do like general fiction, mystery, horror, and historical fiction. And, after taking a young adult book class, I discovered a deep love for YA fiction! Broadening my reading horizons seems rather strange considering my degree. During the course of my degree, I read some amazing things; however, in my person reading life, I always return to my favored fall-backs.
Every year, I make a point of trying to read 50+ books a year. In 2011, I decided to join Book Chick City's urban fantasy reading challenge. I am really excited to dig deeper into the genre. I already have several books waiting on my shelves to be part of the challenge!
If you're interested in join, the link is on the right sidebar. And, if you want suggestions, let me know in comment, and I'll post a list of some of my favorites. This may surprise you, but I love recommending books ^___^
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Snow Clouds and Eclipse
The snow started coming down this morning. However, just yesterday, it was raining all night long. It wasn't cold enough to freeze, so the snow is rather interesting. When Juneau woke me up this morning, I stepped out of the sliding door and was greeted by snow coming into my shoe. Walking out of the garage, another surprise was waiting for me: Mid-calf deep snow. Sadly, the cloud cover for this system was over us all evening, and I missed the full lunar eclipse. The next time one is to take place on the winter solstice will be around 2400!
Snow clung until June, our summer lasted maybe a month, and fall extended into the beginning of November. A few snow showers and ground cover showed up around Halloween, but it didn't stay until mid-November. The last several weeks have been promising snow, but we've been "blessed" with mid-40s or so. I say "blessed" because the lateness of the winter could either cause serious forest first this summer, or it will extend our snow like this past Jan-June.
Most of the day I have been surfing around the internet. I stumbled across some awesome tutorials to make vector graphics in Adobe Illustrator and PhotoShop. In between getting excited and pumped to try it, I have been reading the 3rd book in the Percy Jackson series. Since this is a kick-back-and-relax week, I have decided to finish the series this week. I admit, that is a lot of cozy time curled in warm blankets. You will never see me complain about that, especially looking outside!
Snow clung until June, our summer lasted maybe a month, and fall extended into the beginning of November. A few snow showers and ground cover showed up around Halloween, but it didn't stay until mid-November. The last several weeks have been promising snow, but we've been "blessed" with mid-40s or so. I say "blessed" because the lateness of the winter could either cause serious forest first this summer, or it will extend our snow like this past Jan-June.
Most of the day I have been surfing around the internet. I stumbled across some awesome tutorials to make vector graphics in Adobe Illustrator and PhotoShop. In between getting excited and pumped to try it, I have been reading the 3rd book in the Percy Jackson series. Since this is a kick-back-and-relax week, I have decided to finish the series this week. I admit, that is a lot of cozy time curled in warm blankets. You will never see me complain about that, especially looking outside!
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About Me
- sinn
- "If you’re a freak like me, Wave your flag! If you’re a freak like me, Get off your ass! It’s our time now, To let it all hang out!" I am a recovering English major, closet bibliophile, breve addicted, zombie lover with a rockabilly and heavy metal fetish.