I first read the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series in middle school. My brother read it first, and I gobbled up the latest book as soon as he finished it. By the time I read The Last Olympian, I acted practically addicted. All I wanted to do was finish that book. Now, over ten years later, I wanted to reread the series and find out what had so captivated me.
An Immersive World
Even if you haven’t read the books, the volume and popularity of Rick Riordan’s writing speaks to his talent. My local library’s catalog system still shows a perpetual holds list as the books transfer from branch to branch. My English teacher freshman year of high school even taught The Lightning Thief before jumping into Antigone.
Characterization
One of the strengths of Percy Jackson and the Olympians lies in its premise. How would the Greek gods, goddesses, and monsters of mythology appear in the world today? Clearly, Riordan did his research. Not only does he crank out vivid descriptions of new monsters in nearly every chapter, but he plucks out the dominant characteristics of each god or goddess and makes them sound like a real person walking down the street.
Then we have the hero himself, Percy Jackson. Percy is spastic and naive, but he’s also loyal and brave to a fault. When trouble comes knocking, he’ll do whatever stupid thing it takes to protect the ones he loves. (It doesn’t help Percy that trouble comes knocking every five minutes, but it does make for an excellent book.) Plus, his best friends and sidekicks grapple with their own strengths and complex pasts. The stubborn heroes butt heads, tension mounts, and I, the reader, wind up squealing ridiculously on the couch at the perfectly timed phrasing.
Setting
While I could ramble on and on about how dearly I love the characters in the series, Riordan also makes magic happen with the settings. (Sometimes he does this quite literally.) Riordan perfectly blends contemporary settings with fantastical, mythical elements. Plus, he introduces each new setting with punchy, pungent descriptions. Riordan excels at using all five senses in his writing. Readers taste, see, feel, smell, and hear everything the characters do in exactly the right order to build mood and suspense. Every detail matters.
Faith in Percy Jackson and the Olympians
Obviously, the Percy Jackson series centers on Greek mythology, whose standards of behavior and practice often flew in the face of Christian beliefs. (I mean, read just about anything Paul wrote, especially the books to Corinth or Ephesus or Galatia. The Roman interpretation of Greek worship didn’t jive with the life and teachings of Jesus.) However, I really appreciated that in the first book, The Lightning Thief, Riordan addresses readers of the Christian faith. He doesn’t deny or discredit the Christian God. Instead, he explicitly puts God into a different category of truth for the sake of building the world at the center of the book. That put my mind at ease and let me jump headfirst into the story.
However, Riordan’s immersive and vivid writing has sometimes made me forget the reality I live and believe. In short, after a few chapters in the book, I start to forget the book isn’t real. While I don’t think that means Christians must avoid the books (and certainly not all Christians will have this same problem I do,) I do think we should read them with caution. I often have to ground myself in prayer and God’s Word so I don’t forget myself in the world Riordan has built. Perhaps that risk accompanies all fiction. Regardless, enjoy the tales of courage and compassion because we know the Holy Spirit emboldens us to be that in the real world.