This document provides background information and context for the Percy Jackson book series. It summarizes key events and characters from the first book, Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief. It also references and summarizes some classic Greek myths featured in the book. The document is meant to help guide readers and support classroom discussion of the novels.

1. Percy Jackson
And The Sea of Monsters

2. Target Audience
 This book is a good book for students in grades 4-8.
Still, try a 5-finger test before you read it to make
sure it won’t be too difficult.
 Riordan, Rick. Percy Jackson and the Lightning
Thief. London: Penguin Books, Ltd., 2005.
 Lexile: 740L

3. The First
Quest
You shall go west, and face
the god who has turned.
You shall find what was
stolen, and see it safely
returned.
You Shall be betrayed by one
who calls you a friend.
And you shall fail to save
what matters most, in the
end.
- Page 141

4. Where All Journeys Begin
Perseus “Percy” Jackson is by no means a model student.
He is dyslexic—words seem to move around and get
jumbled when he reads--he has been labeled as having
A.D.H.D. (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), and,
to make matters worse, sometimes he sees stuff that no one
else can see or remember. If that wasn’t bad enough, his
history teacher, Mr. Brummer, is always on his case about
learning about ancient Greek culture…
All of this begins to make sense soon after Percy is attacked
by a flying monster that used to be his maths teacher.

5. The Going Gets Tough
After being attacked, Percy finds out that his maths teacher
never existed. Everyone remembers a different teacher;
Percy’s friend, Grover, seems to be the only one who even
flinches when Percy asks.
Months later, while Percy is home for the summer, his
mother takes him on their annual trip out to the cabin
where she met Percy’s father. Grover shows up out of
nowhere and warns him that he needs to get to Half-Blood
Hill; his life is in danger!
Just then, all three are attacked by…the Minotaur?
How will Percy get out of this one?

6. The Truth Comes Out
After the Minotaur attack, Percy finds himself with his
world turned upside down. It turns out everything has
been happening to him because his father is an
Olympian god.
The king of the Greek gods, Zeus, is out to get Percy
because his lightning bolt has been stolen. Now Percy
must go out on a quest with his friend Grover and a
new friend, Anabeth, so that he can clear his name and
prevent a global catastrophe.

7. Understand
 The Percy Jackson books bring the world of heroes
and gods from myth to reality.
 The “Heroe” archetype has been present in
literature since the beginning. Often, in order to
become a heroe, a character will have to go on a
quest or overcome great obstacles to save the day.
 The Olympians were not the first gods on the scene;
in fact, they are the fourth generation of gods in the
Greek universe.

8. Understand
 The Olympians often interacted with and caused
disruption in the lives of mortals; their behaviour
was not always model. In fact, many of the myths
about the Greek gods are lessons on how humans
should not behave.

9. Understand
“Besides, even if the other gods suspect Hades—and I
imagine Poseiden does—they couldn’t retrieve the bolt
themselves. Gods cannot cross each other’s territories
except by invitation. That is another ancient rue.
Heroes, on the other hand, have certain privileges.
They can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as
they’re bold enough and strong enough to do it. No
god can be held responsible for a hero’s actions. Why
do you think the gods always operate through
Humans?” – 145

10. Connect
 Much of Percy Jackson plays on classic myths—The Lotus
Eaters, the story of Medusa, the Minotaur, Persephone and the
seasons.
 To find out more about these myths and stories, why not check
out some of our other titles?
 Bowman, Laurel et al. Heroes and Heroines of Greece and
Rome. Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Corportation, 2012.
(398.2 BOW)
 Blake, Chris. Time Hunters: Greek Warriors. London:
HarperCollins Children's Books, 2013. (FIC BLA)
 Deary, Terry. The Groovy Greeks. New York: Scholastic, 1996.
(938 DEA)
 Fact Monster. Mythology. 6 2015. 18 11 2015
<http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0777436.html>.

11. Interact
Use the following questions to help guide your pre-
and post-reading. Add your answers to the
GoogleForm about the Percy Jackson series. (A link would
usually be here, but I’m in China and can’t access Google).
1. As you read, analyze which two learner profiles best
describe Percy at the beginning of the novel? Are these
the same by the end of the novel? Use examples from
the text to justify.

12. Interact
2. Percy, Anabeth, and the other half-bloods have trouble
fitting in because of ADHD and dyslexia. Do you think
people with these issues should get special academic
privileges and exemptions/modifications? Explain.
3. After reading the book, which god or goddess would you want
to emulate? Why? Create a short description and evaluation of the
god and their special qualities. Include how they carry
themselves in both the Percy Jackson universe and in a myth
related to the deity. Take a look at the follow-up non-fiction text
to take your analysis to the next level of critical thinking.
Bowman, Laurel et al. Heroes and Heroines of Greece and Rome.
Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Corportation, 2012. (398.2 BOW)

13. Percy Jackson
Extension
Below you will find just a few
of the myths hinted at in
Percy Jackson. After reading
The Lightning Thief and some
of these myths, critique the
way that Rick Riordan chose
to modify the myths to fit his
series about Percy.
Arachne Page 42
Harpies 109
Heracles 127
Perseus 246
Satyrs 278
Sisyphus 287

14. Credits

15. Credits