Review: Percy Jackson & the Olympians: Part 1

Percy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school...again. And that's the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy's Greek mythology textbook and into his life. And worse, he's angered a few of them. Zeus's master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect.

After a summer spent trying to prevent a catastrophic war among the Greek gods, Percy Jackson is finding his seventh-grade school year unnervingly quiet. His biggest problem is dealing with his new friend, Tyson, a six-foot-three, mentally challenged homeless kid who follows Percy everywhere, making it hard for Percy to have any normal friends. But things don't stay quiet for long.

When the goddess Artemis goes missing, she is believed to have been kidnapped.And now it's up to Percy and his friends to find out what happened. Who is powerful enough to kidnap a goddess? They must find Artemis before the winter solstice, when her influence on the Olympian Council could swing an important vote on the war with the titans. Not only that, but first Percy will have to solve the mystery of a rare monster that Artemis was hunting when she disappeared -- a monster rumored to be so powerful it could destroy Olympus forever.

I actually started reading this series a few months ago, after I saw the trailer for the movie (no, I haven't seen it yet.) and I'm really glad I did. I've always liked books that use old mythology like the Gods in new ways, and Riordan brought the Greek Gods and their legends to the modern world in a way that just fit.

I had a couple problems with the character development--Eisley Jacobs said, in her review of the first book that it's far fetched to believe that these kids are so lacking in common sense that they continue to make the choices they make. I actually have the opposite reaction. I felt that Percy seemed a bit too mature for a 12 year old. He came across (to me) as mentally a 15-16 year old in the first 3 books. Their choices could definitely have been better advised, but...I had the feeling that even New York raised kids at 12 wouldn't have been able to handle all of the things that were happening.

Regardless of that, though, these books catch you from the first pages and don't let go until you've finished them. And then you're left going, "I need the next one. Now."

I really do love how integral all of the characters are to the storyline--from the less than pleasant Daughter of Ares (who has always been one my favorite Greek Gods, if only because of Xena. *heehee*) to the drunken lout, Dionysus.

While reading, you forget that these books are for kids and all you can think about is what happens next.

Rating: 4 Stars

Part 2: Coming soon...

Review: Fire

Title: Fire

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Author: Kristin Cashore

Synopsis

Beautiful creatures called monsters live in the Dells. Monsters have the shape of normal animals: mountain lions, dragonflies, horses, fish. But the hair or scales or feathers of monsters are gorgeously colored-- fuchsia, turquoise, sparkly bronze, iridescent green-- and their minds have the power to control the minds of humans.

Seventeen-year-old Fire is the last remaining human-shaped monster in the Dells. Gorgeously monstrous in body and mind but with a human appreciation of right and wrong, she is hated and mistrusted by just about everyone, and this book is her story.

The concept of "monsters" was confusing at first, probably because preconceived notions of monsters are ugly whereas these are so beautiful they muddle your head--making you easy prey. After a couple of chapters, it grew on me, and I think Ms. Cashore did a really good job with it. I really liked the fact that her interaction with Prince Brigan started off on probably the worst foot it could, and that their relationship slowly grew--it didn't just pop out of nowhere. I didn't start off the story thinking, "Well that relationship is pretty much set. " Particularly since she was already involved with someone, albeit in a more casual way than you'd expect.

This installment of the Seven Kingdoms books is actually set 30 years prior to GRACELING, and has a single crossover character, which anyone who has read the first book will recognize easily.

There were quite a few shocking moments later in the book, and the questions steadily piled up as the story progressed.

It wasn't an amazing book, but I did enjoy this book and I do recommend it, so this rating is...

4 Stars

Review: Graceling

Title: Graceling

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Author: Kristin Cashore

Synopsis:

In a world where some people are born with extreme and often-feared skills called Graces, Katsa struggles for redemption from her own horrifying Grace, the Grace of killing, and teams up with another young fighter to save their land from a corrupt king.

Katsa never really had a chance in what she did with her life. I was immediately aware of this, from beginning to end. From the moment her Grace, her ability, manifested, she was doomed to be used as a tool as long as she remained with her uncle, the King of Middluns. It took her years to begin to rebel, by building the Council and going "undercover" in a roundabout way, but she remained the King's "lady killer" to everyone else.

It was only when she met Prince Po of Lienid--and I couldn't help but think of Kung-Fu Panda every time I read his name--that she began to realize how much power she really had.

This was a very enjoyable read. Katsa grew over the course of the story, and each step in the plot made sense. At one point, I was on the verge of tears, and when that area, for lack of a better term, was revisited, I was right back to nearly crying.

I think I would've liked more interaction between Katsa and some of the other minor characters, such as her cousin, Prince Raffin. One thing in the later part of the book that really bothered me was Princess Bitterblue. She was described as very young, but her speech and ability to comprehend seemed far older--closer to Katsa's late teens than a small child.

I liked the fact that this book didn't shy away from the "issue" of pre-marital sex. I thought the author did a very good job of incorporating it into the relationship between Po and Katsa without it becoming a major plot point or something that the story obsessed over. I was oddly glad to see that the author didn't reveal Po's secret to his family--I had half expected there to be a tearful family moment involving it. The ending was surprising but in a good way.

This was about changing circumstances, owning yourself and your actions, adapting to situations. It's a whole new kind of coming of age story, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Rating: 4 Stars

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Review: Coraline

Title: Coraline

Author: Neil Gaiman

Genre: Horror / YA

Synopsis:

When Coraline steps through a door to find another house similar to her own (only better), things seem marvelous. But there's another mother there, and another father, and they want her to stay and be their little girl. They want to change her and never let her go. Coraline will have to fight with all her wits and courage if she is to save herself and return to her ordinary life.

I picked this up from the library yesterday because I had seen the movie last year, and realized it was a book. I tend to read books before I see the movies, so I had to get it. I only opened it briefly when I got home. Today, I sat down to read it.

It took me two hours.

Even for me, that's fast. I don't generally read horror because it's hard to find a story that truly creeps me out through written word. I've found a few short stories that have done it (example: Skin by Ceridwen Swift) and Coraline did not disappoint after watching the movie, which had me closing my eyes several times.

The simple act of sewing buttons over their eyes has the ability to creep me out, but add in the rhymes such as:

We have teeth and we have tails

We have tails we have eyes

We were here before you fell

You will be here when we rise

from the rats, and Neil Gaiman had me hooked. The "Other Mother" was truly spooky. I loved the illustrations even though they, to be repetitive, creeped me out.

I liked Coraline the character--a very curious girl, and not one to shy away from something that scared her. I really liked the story about her and her father, it added a much needed depth to the parental characters, which had been in danger of simply being extras in the story.

But I have to say, the cat was my absolute favorite character. I loved him in the movie and I adore him in the book. Kudos to Neil Gaiman for capturing the attitude of a cat perfectly.

Rating: 5 Stars

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