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Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief [Paperback]

Rick Riordan
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (174 customer reviews)
RRP: £6.99
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Book Description

4 May 2006 Percy Jackson

The Lightning Thief: the First book in Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series.

The first bestselling book in Rick Riordan's phenomenally successful Percy Jackson series.

Look, I didn't want to be a half-blood. I never asked to be the son of a Greek God. I was just a normal kid, going to school, playing basketball, skateboarding. The usual. Until I accidentally vaporized my maths teacher. That's when things started really going wrong. Now I spend my time fighting with swords, battling monsters with my friends, and generally trying to stay alive.

This is the one where Zeus, God of the Sky, thinks I've stolen his lightning bolt - and making Zeus angry is a very bad idea.

Can Percy find the lightning bolt before a fully-fledged war of the Gods erupts?

Praise for the Percy Jackson series:

'Witty and inspired. Gripping, touching and deliciously satirical...This is most likely to succeed Rowling. Puffin is on to a winner' - Amanda Craig, The Times

'Puns, jokes and subtle wit, alongside a gripping storyline' - Telegraph

'Perfectly paced, with electrifying moments chasing each other like heartbeats' - New York Times

Rick Riordan is an award-winning mystery writer. For the past fifteen years he has taught at middle schools in the San Francisco Bay area and in Texas. Rick lives in San Antonio, Texas, with his wife and two sons. Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, the overall winner of the Red House Children's Book Award, was Rick's first novel featuring the heroic young demigod.

The Percy Jackson series:

The Lightning Thief; The Sea of Monsters; The Battle of the Labyrinth; The Titan's Curse; The Last Olympian

Heroes of Olympus:

The Lost Hero; The Son of Neptune; The Mark of Athena

The Kane Chronicles:

The Red Pyramid; The Throne of Fire; The Serpent's Shadow


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Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief + Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters + Percy Jackson and the Titan's Curse
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Product details

  • Paperback: 384 pages
  • Publisher: Puffin (4 May 2006)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0141319135
  • ISBN-13: 978-0141319131
  • Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 2.3 x 19.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (174 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 821 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

Review

The Chris Columbus directed movie, based on the book, is due out on Feb 12, but this is a fabulous entertainment in its own right. (Kati Nicholl Daily Express ) --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

About the Author

Rick Riordan is an award-winning mystery writer. For the past fifteen years he has taught at middle schools in the San Francisco Bay area and in Texas. Rick lives in San Antonio, Texas, with his wife and two sons.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
82 of 86 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars En-Lightning!!! 10 Sep 2006
By Chrestomanci VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
When this book arrived, I placed it on my bookshelf thinking I'd get around to reading it when I had nothing better to read. To put it bluntly, I really didn't think I'd like a slick American High school version of the Legends of ancient Greece (sort of Buffy meets Hercules) - but I was wrong. As soon as I started reading it I was hooked.

The pacing is dazzlingly fast; it starts at a run and ends at a gallop without ever once pausing for breath! Younger readers who might be unfamiliar with the heroes of Greek legend will probably enjoy the twists of the plot - however, adult readers might see these coming, (ie the identity Aunty "M" - owner of the Garden Statue Emporium), but somehow, this only adds to the enjoyment!

The other thing that had put me off this book ever so slightly was setting it in a school for halfbloods (children of the Greek gods); coming so close to "Harry Potter and the Halfblood Prince" it felt uncomfortably derivative ... like yet another Harry Potter wannabe. However, knowing how slowly things move in the world of publishing, I realised the whole half-blood concept would have been imagined by the author at least a couple of years before HP 6 appeared.

Okay, so it's set in a boarding school for kids with magical/supernatural abilities - but don't let this put you off. So far, the Percy Jackson series has captured the efficient and succinct plotting of the first three Harry Potter books; likewise, it is something of a whodunit, in that one of the teachers or pupils at Camp Halfblood is really a baddie. The clues are subtle but entirely fair.

I liked that Percy's dyslexia and Attention Deficit Disorder were put down to his subconscious familiarity with ancient Greek and his need to be ever ready to fight off hoards of deadly monsters. I usually find the current trend of giving the hero such contemporary "issues" irritatingly contrived - but in this case it works fine.

In short, I can't imagine anyone NOT enjoying this book!
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61 of 66 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Who's yo' Daddy? 4 July 2006
By Amanda Richards VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
Percy Jackson has always been different from other kids. He's dyslexic and suffers from ADHD, and is always getting into trouble. He's been expelled several times, and the only thing that holds his interest is Greek mythology.

We soon learn that Percy has close ties with Mount Olympus, and when monsters from mythology start popping up looking for his blood, he ends up at a very special school for kids like himself, where he starts to put things together to find out who he really is.

Before he knows it, he's off on a quest with his two friends, Grover and Annabeth, to recover a powerful lightning bolt, property of Zeus, which has been stolen, supposedly by Percy himself. Zeus, Poseidon and Hades are having a little disagreement about the theft of the said lightning bolt, and unless Percy can retrieve it and return it in time, the resulting fallout will have earth-shattering consequences.

This great (albeit relatively unknown) first book of the series is an easy read, and is sure to encourage young readers to improve their knowledge of Greek mythology, especially the stories of the Minotaur, Medusa and the gods Poseidon, Ares, Zeus, Hades, Kronos, Athena and so on. Highly recommended for young readers in search of an original and imaginative adventure series.

Amanda Richards
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant for kids 17 Mar 2011
Format:Paperback
My 8 year old son got this book for xmas, now we are on book 3.
It really is a brilliant read and I find myself allowing him to stay up an extra half an hour every night so we can read another chapter.
It does have a few similarities to the Harry Potter books but it is still a worthwhile read, I am really enjoying all the books, they are quick paced, funny and easy to read, my son laughs out loud every night.
We even watched the film, which is sadly nothing like the book.
As well as being a good read it is also educational, teaching kids about greek and roman mythology, most of the names and some of the 'monsters' are all true and historial (not that im suggesting a Minotaur or Zeus is real but you know what I mean)
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars one of the best books ive ever read!!!
this is an abdolutely brilliant book… i have raced through most of the books planning to read all of this seiries. Read more
Published 16 hours ago by J101
5.0 out of 5 stars Really good
It was an amazing book and I am looking forward to the next books only 1 problem hair Annabeths is honey blonde not Brown but I'll have to talk to the director about that but I... Read more
Published 3 days ago by Potchen
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing
Have read all the books and this is by far the best one of the whole set! Love Percy Jackson!
Published 4 days ago by J. Lord
5.0 out of 5 stars awesome!!!!!!!!!!
I love it! It was action packed, funny and full of adventure. I'm going to love the rest of the series! I would recommend it to adventure lovers.
Published 11 days ago by Aaron
5.0 out of 5 stars awsome!
this book is fantastic. if u like action/adventure u need this book!
i'm reading third one now and its awsome aswell.
the second one is short but incredible. Read more
Published 20 days ago by angela lupton
5.0 out of 5 stars Homework or fighting monsters? Tough choice...
Rick Riordan has produced something so exceptional and astonishingly outstanding, that it completely blew me away by its originality and flair. Read more
Published 24 days ago by Lucinda
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing
I would recommend this book to any lovers of history, fantasy, or anybody who is new to reading. Rick Riordan is an amazing author and this book makes great references to Ancient... Read more
Published 27 days ago by P. Merrell
5.0 out of 5 stars Percy Jackson and the lightning thief
I think this book was brilliant because of all the activities and actions that the author made up and I was also really excited to read the book because of what the author wrote... Read more
Published 28 days ago by Emma
4.0 out of 5 stars Exciting, funny derring-do.
Witty, action packed adventures based on Greek Myths. Great fun, with broad appeal, my kids (8, 11 and 16) all love it.
Published 29 days ago by Eva Schonveld (evaschonveld@yahoo.co.uk)
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
I read this to my year five class. They all absolutely loved it and have gone on to read the rest of the series. If you want to inspire children to read... Get this!
Published 1 month ago by N. Collins
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