Review: The Lightning Thief: The Graphic Novel

Title: The Lightning Thief: The Graphic Novel
Author: Rick Riordan, Robert Venditti
Genre: Young Adult, Graphic Novel
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Source: Library
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 12, 2010
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

You’ve read the book. You’ve seen the movie. Now submerge yourself in the thrilling, stunning, and action-packed graphic novel. 
Mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking out of the pages of twelve-year-old Percy Jackson’s textbooks 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. Now, he and his friends have just ten days to find and return Zeus’s stolen property and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. 
Series creator Rick Riordan joins forces with some of the biggest names in the comic book industry to tell the story of a boy who must unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.

Review:

This is a great graphic novel adaptation of The Lightning Thief. I read the first two books in the Percy Jackson series a couple of years ago, so I wanted to read the graphic novels to refresh myself before I continue with the rest of the series.

This graphic novel is a great way for kids to read the stories. I studied Greek mythology in university, so I was already familiar with the characters before I read The Lightning Thief. It could be confusing for kids who are just being introduced to these characters, because they have detailed histories that were created thousands of years ago. Being able to see the story take place in the images could make the story easier for reluctant readers to understand.

Some of the smaller battles were cut out of the book, which made it a pretty short graphic novel. This was great for me, since I just wanted to read through it to remind myself of the stories. However, this adaptation doesn’t replace the novel because some parts were summarized or left out for the graphic novel.

What to read next:

Have you read The Lightning Thief: The Graphic Novel? What did you think of it?