There is another controversy in the book world. Yes, it involves a child's book again. Yes, it involves fantasy again. This kind of genre for the younger set always set people off. First, there was Harry Potter, then the Twilight series, now it is the Percy Jackson and the Olympians. I have just read the first book in the series, The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan. I really liked it and was looking forward to reading it to my kids this summer. I guess, though, that some people have problems with it because it deals with Greek Mythology.
The fact that it is about Greek Mythology is what drew me to the book in the beginning. Mia loves Greek Myths, so I thought this would excite her to read these books on her own. I did want to pre-read, though, to be on the safe side. My mommy radar saw no problems with this book. Yes, it is dark. Yes, it is about monsters. Yes, it is about gods (plural.) Yes, there is fighting. But, as with all good literature, there is a clear line between good and evil (at least in my opinion.) In the end, good overcomes evil. This is what I have been taught about fantasy literature. If good overcomes evil in the end, then it is okay for your children to be exposed to these kinds of books. There is evil in real life, but good (God) will overcome. The problem comes about when the lines between good and evil get murky and you cannot differentiate between the two. This is when red lights should flash for the parents. I did not have those red flashing lighits when I read The Lightening Thief.
Now that I have debated its content let me tell you about the content. Percy Jackson finds out in the beginning of the book that his father is Poseidon, the God of the Sea, and his mother is human. This makes Percy a demi-god or a half-blood. Percy does not know his father at all. He goes on a quest to prove his bravery and to find out more about his father. His friends go with him on his quest and it is full of adventure.
I really liked this book and I am going to let my kids read it, but if you have problems with teaching Greek Myths to your kids then stay away from this book. It is as simple as that. End of controversy.