What's Marissa Reading? The Mark of Athena

My niece Marissa has finally checked in from sunny Florida where she has been out of school for weeks! Besides enjoying a bunch of fun outdoor activities, she's managed to read a lot of books. She's been reading the Heroes of Olympus series and she's going to tell us about The Mark of Athena, by Rick Riordan. Let's see what Marissa had to say about it.

 Here's what Marissa says the book is about.

This is the 3rd book in the Heroes of Olympus series, which ties in with the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.

After a long wait Annabeth and Percy are reunited after Hera stole Percy's memory and deposited him at the Roman camp (Camp Jupiter), far away from his home, Greek camp (Camp Half-Blood). Percy, Annabeth, and the rest of the seven of the prophecy, are demigods (meaning one of their parents is a god or goddess and one is mortal). These seven demigods were brought together because of a prophecy that will shape the fate of the world. They are trying to stop Gaea, the evil Earth goddess, from awakening. They are also trying to halt the coming Giant war between the Gods of Olympus and the Giants.  

These seven demigods, Annabeth, Percy, Hazel, Frank, Leo, Piper, and Jason, all have strengths that will help them upon this quest to the Ancient lands of Rome. But there are many hidden dangers that they find when they try to complete various tasks that lead to the success of their journey. But to find out about all of them you'll have to read the book. 

What did Marissa like best about the book?

I liked the battles and the humor that was thrown in. I like how the author, Rick Riordan, was able to incorporate the two and balance them. I'm in love with this series! 

Was there anything she didn't like about it?

The book was incredible all around but if I had to choose one thing I'd have to say the cliff hanger at the end. Even though it was a little bit MORE than a cliff hanger, but that just got me even more excited to read the next book that comes out. 

So, how did Marissa rate The Mark of Athena, by Rick Riordan?

She gave it five out of five baby giraffes. 

A Writer's Week: Making a Breakthrough

After last week's challenges, I was worried that this week would be more of the same. Happily, that wasn't the case. I had a great week. On Saturday, I came up with a solution to the sticking point that I'd run into on the new book. I was able to map out a solution, which led to an improvement in another area. That gave me a great outlook for the rest of the week.

I was concerned that I would not have enough time to put my solution down on paper. I had an evening meeting on Monday, and a school visit after work on Wednesday, so my time was at a premium. I had to scramble just to get some blog posts written. In spite of this, I was able to carve out a little bit of time to make a start. I was able to rewrite and edit one thread in the story. The really big change remains to be made, but I've got the road map, so that shouldn't be a problem as long as I have the time. Stay tuned.

The other great writing-related event that I was able to participate in this week happened on Wednesday night. Yes, you guessed it--another school visit. However, this visit was a little different from the others that I've made. Before I go any further, I'd like to thank Mrs. Pote, Mrs. Russell, Mrs. Magliaro, and everyone at Morris Street School for allowing me to come and be a part of such a great event.

I was able to participate in an after school event for students and parents where I was able to share what inspired me as a writer. I also got a chance to ask the kids what kind of writing they did, and what inspired them.

This was a new experience for me because the grades ranged from kindergarten to fifth grade. In addition, their parents were there, too. The kids were one thing, but would I be able to interest the parents? Well, I have to say that it was a challenge to engage such a wide age range, but I have to say that I think I managed to pull it off.

Most of the children were pretty excited, and they asked great questions, and had some great insights. The parents seemed to enjoy it, too. I even managed to give them a chuckle a time or two. I spoke to two groups for a little over 20 minutes each. Afterwards, I was able to sell a few books, which was the icing on the cake.

The school year is starting to wind down, but I have one more visit scheduled in June, and I'm looking forward to it. As I've said before, school visits are the best part of writing a book. I still remember the affect that having Christopher Collier visit our class when I was young to talk about writing My Brother Son is Dead and autographing my copy. It is humbling to think that I might be able to have the same affect, I some small way at least, to have the same sort of affect on the classes that I visit. Who knows, maybe I've already spoken with the next Rick Riordan. 

This young man had a couple of very interesting questions. He's definitely one of the youngest readers I've spoken with. It was pajama day, by the way. Wish I'd worn mine!

Anyway, I feel like I'm back on the right road with my writing, and getting some good feedback on The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel, so I'm expecting to make some good progress next week. Check back on Friday to learn how I made out.

What's Christian Reading? The Son of Neptune

Christian has been tackling a very long book this week, Rick Riordan's The Son of Neptune. I'm anxious to hear what he thinks about it. So, without further ado, here's Christian's take on it.

Here's what Christian says the book is about.

"It's about Percy Jackson. He's lost his memory and is trying to regain it. At first, he only remembers Annabeth. But, as time goes on he remembers more stuff. He finds out that Tyson is looking for him. Tyson  was sent by Camp Half -Blood to find Percy, because he's missing.

"Percy got switched with a boy named Jayson from the Roman Camp Jupiter by Hera to try to make peace between the two camps. Percy has two friends in Camp Jupiter, Hazel and Frank. They go on a quest up to Alaska to beat Alcyoneus, who is a son of Gea. 

"In order to beat him, they have to take him out of Alaska. They also have to free Thantos, the god of death, and assistant of Hades."

Here's what Christian liked best.

"The best part was when Frank was claimed by Ares the god of war. He thought he was going to be claimed by Apollo, and wasn't really that happy when he wasn't. I thought it was pretty interesting."

Was there anything he didn't like?

"Nah, I liked it all."

So, how did Christian rate The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan?

He gives it five out of five flaming monkey heads.

What's Christian Reading? The Sea of Monsters

Christian is an avid 4th grade reader. This post is about what he's reading. This is by no means an actual review, just his comments on whatever book he's reading at the time.

This week, Christian is reading The Sea of Monsters, by Rick Riordan, the second book in the Olympians series. A couple of weeks ago, Christian gave us his thoughts on The Last Olympian, the final book in the series. He jumped from the first book to the last book in the series because that's all the library had that week. This leads to our first question:

Don't you mind skipping around in a series instead of reading the books consecutively from first to last?

"No, because I get most of the books from the library and they're not always available in order. It doesn't really bother me to skip around as long as each book is good."

 Here's what Christian says The Sea of Monsters is about:

"The book is about Percy Jackson, again. He has to find his friend Grover and rescue him from the Cyclops. Percy has to fool the Cyclops and get the Golden Fleece, like in the Odyssey.

"They need the Golden Fleece to heal the magic borders of Camp Half-Blood. The magic borders keep out the monsters. At Camp Half-Blood they train Half-Bloods, otherwise known as demi-gods; half Greek god and half human.

"They have to face the evil sorceress, Circe. She wants to eliminate all men from the world by turning them into hamsters. But they manage to take care of her!"

Here's what Christian liked best:

"I liked the ending the best, but I can't tell you about that! The next best thing was when they battled Polyphemus. Polyphemus is the Cyclops that has the Golden Fleece. The battle was cool because Percy used his sword, Riptide. It's made of celestial bronze, which is supposed to defeat any monster."

Was there anything Christian didn't like?

"No, I really like this series, they're awesome books. This series is pretty cool."

So, how does Christian rate The Sea of Monsters, by Rick Riordan?

Christian gives it 4 1/2 out of 5 flaming monkey heads.

What's Christian Reading? The Last Olympian

   

Christian is an avid 4th grade reader. This post is about what he's reading. This is by no means an actual review, just his comments on whatever book he's reading at the time.

He does rate each book. He's decided to use what he calls flaming monkey heads as his unit of measure on a scale of 1 to 5. Why he chose that I'll never know. He's his father's son, I suppose.

Normally, Christian sits down with me to talk about one of the books he's read during the week. This week, he was right in the middle of the book he wanted to talk about, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riorden. So I didn't post on Wednesday. Trouble was, I wouldn't have an opening until Saturday. No problem, I figured, Christian would be done with the book by then.

Now it's Saturday, and I say to Christian, okay, let's talk about The Lightning Thief. Christian says, "Oh, I finished that Thursday, I want to talk about The Last Olympian." This gets me to thinking, he couldn't have read the other four books in the series in two days, could he? I mean, I know there was no school Thursday and Friday, but...really?

I ask Christian this, and he gives me this look, like geez dad, you're nuts, and says "No, this was the only other one they had left at the library, and I want to talk about this one because it's fresh in my mind."

Fair enough. So here's Christian's take on The Last Olympian, by Rick Riordan.

Here's what Christian says the book is about:

"It is about Percy Jackson who's a regular kid who found out that he's the son of Poseidon. He has a bunch of adventures. In this one he has to defeat Kronos, King of the Titans. A pegasus lands on the hood of his car. It's Percy's pegasus, Blackjack, who's come to take him on a really dangerous mission.

"Percy goes with Blackjack to the Princess Andromeda, the Titans' cruise ship. Percy has to stop them from getting to New York, and the Empire State Building, where Olympus is now located.

"He has a lot of exciting adventures which I can't really tell you about without giving the story away."

Here's what Christian liked best about the book:

"The battle for Olympus. It was very exciting. There was a lot of fighting, and many people were wounded. It kept me hooked. I wanted to see what happened next.

"I like Percy's ability to control the sea or any other water source, and use it to battle enemies. His powers are awesome! I also like that he has a pegasus for a friend. That would be cool."

Was there anything you didn't like about the book?

"I pretty much liked it all. It was an awesome book."

So, how many flaming monkey heads does Christian give The Last Olympian, by Rick Riordan?

Christian gives it 5 out of 5 flaming monkey heads.