Customer Reviews

The Demigod Files (A Percy Jackson and the Olympians Guide)

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

All right. I will admit that I actually forgot that THE DEMIGOD FILES was coming out in February. I had added it to my wish list some time ago, and since I was in the bookstore today poking around, I was insanely happy and surprised to find it on the shelf. And of course I snatched it up. And then finished reading it a couple hours later. At first, reading the back, and then flipping through I thought that the book was going to contain stuff that I had already read from the previous PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS books, but I was even happier to discover that everything in the book was new: everything from maps, to "interviews" with the characters, to profiles of main characters, a sneak peek at the last PERCY JACKSON book: THE LAST OLYMPIAN, and the three wonderful short stories about Percy Jackson & Co. that really end up being the highlight of this offering from Rick Riordan.

The interviews are somewhat funny and have some interesting little tidbits -- and I'm sure Riordan had a blast working out the different questions to go along with each character interviewed: the Stoll Brothers, Annabeth, Percy, and a couple others. And the map was great to analyze to -- It was interesting to see where Riordan puts things versus the image in my own mind. Also of interest are the full color pages that have sparsely-detailed profiles of the main characters. They're nice looking -- but stuck oddly in the middle of the last of the three shorts, which I'll get to those in a second. There's also a crossword puzzle and a word search, containing facts and tidbits from the books. (The answers to both are just a couple of pages later, so don't feel too frustrated if you can't figure them out.)

The three short stories are the definite highlight of this volume, which definitely should be read after THE BATTLE FOR THE LABYRINTH. There are a few small references to events that have happened in all four books that would be missed by a casual reader trying to jump into the middle of the series. The stories include: "Percy Jackson and the Stolen Chariot," "Percy Jackson and the Bronze Dragon," and my favorite of the three: "Percy Jackson and the Sword of Hades." The stories are brand new adventures in the life of Percy, and they definitely brought back wonderful memories of reading through the first four books. "Stolen Chariot" is the weakest of the three, an adventure with Percy and Clarisse going after a stolen chariot. The whole thing is exciting, but definitely not up to the par of the other two.

"Bronze Dragon" starts to get things really rolling -- centering on a story with Beckendorf from the Hephaestus cabin. This is where Riordan pulls out some more of what he does best: presenting small bits of mystery surrounded by action. He even throws in a clever twist near the end that definitely made me smirk. But as good as "Bronze Dragon" is, it doesn't hold a candle to the amazing short, "Sword of Hades." I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. It's the longest of the three, coming in around fifty pages, while the other two average about thirty each. And this story definitely starts to build on the overall story arch of the series, elements of which I'm sure will be included in the final Percy Jackson book. There are plenty of surprises and a few familiar faces that I was so excited to see again. And this one doesn't stop until the last second leaving some very interesting questions left to stew when it's done.

Finally, there's a short snippet from the final book, which really doesn't tell us anything except introduce another one of Riordan's signature moves: introduce a story or piece of information without giving us hardly any details, and then interrupting it suddenly with some plot event. But the little tidbit he does show us, makes me wonder what exactly he has up his sleeve for one of the characters... who never quite seemed what they appeared to be on the surface when first introduced.

Overall -- this is a great addition to the series for fans, and hopefully it might bring in some new readers. It's definitely worth picking up just for "Percy Jackson and the Sword of Hades," but the other selections make for fun reading too. (Definitely, this addendum will go down a lot better than Rowling's attempt at something similar with her TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD.)

My girls and I love the Percy Jackson books, and we purchased this one the first day it was released. It contains three short stories, interviews with some of the kids, a map of camp, an illustration of Annabeth's trunk (so that demigod readers will know what to pack), and an excerpt from the next book. The stories ring true to the books, but the interviews are poorly written - they just don't have the right voices for the kids. There are probably eight illustrations, which are lovely and in color, but inaccurate, which very much disappointed us. To check ourselves, we looked back to the first books where the characters' appearances are described. Annabeth has curly hair and grey eyes, but not in the illustration. Chiron is balding with a wispy beard; here he has twice the hair of most men. Of course I could be wrong, but the book looks to me like the author wrote the short stories, and someone else slapped the rest together. Still enjoyable for the Percy Jackson fan, but wait until you can pay half price.

If you're one of those people who has already visited a bookstore to pre-order your copy of THE LAST OLYMPIAN, you're probably also counting down the days until the release of the thrilling conclusion to Rick Riordan's series about Percy Jackson and the Olympians. What's an aspiring demigod to do while waiting for the final installment in their favorite series? The answer might be found inside the top-secret DEMIGOD FILES, a perfectly snack-sized portion of Percy Jackson's adventures that just might tide you over until the main course.

THE DEMIGOD FILES, a slim volume ideal for tucking into backpacks and pulling out during quiet reading time, is certainly aimed at the most dedicated Percy Jackson fans. They'll soak up details from the witty, candid interviews with Camp Half-Blood's most famous residents, including Clarisse La Rue, Annabeth Chase, Grover Underwood and Percy Jackson himself (sample question for Grover: "Who would you least like to meet in a dark alley --- a Cyclops or an angry Mr. D?"). They'll peruse the map of Camp Half-Blood, the illustration of Annabeth's fully loaded camp trunk, and the full-color portraits of Zeus, Poseidon, Athena, Ares, Percy, Annabeth, Grover and Chiron to see if the drawings match the world they've created in their imaginations. They'll challenge themselves with a crossword puzzle and word jumble, and reinforce their newfound knowledge of Greek mythology with a handy chart listing the primary Olympians who play key roles in Percy's life.

What these rabid fans will most appreciate, though, is the collection of three Percy Jackson original short stories that make up the bulk of THE DEMIGOD FILES. In "Percy Jackson and the Stolen Chariot," Percy has to help his sworn enemy, Clarissa, when her brothers Phobos and Deimos (the immortal sons of Clarissa's dad, Ares) hijack the war chariot she's been entrusted with. In "Percy Jackson and the Bronze Dragon," a game of Capture the Flag gets even more out of control than usual, when a horde of Myrmekes (those would-be giant armored ants) battle the kids over a bronze dragon automaton that might also threaten their lives. And in "Percy Jackson and the Sword of Hades," Percy's plans for Christmas don't involve a voyage to the Underworld, but that's exactly what he gets when he, Nico and Thalia pay a call on Persephone. Throughout these entertaining and well-developed short stories, Riordan's trademark mix of adventure, humor and solid mythology is at play.

Three short stories, two puzzles, plenty of interviews, pictures and lots of fun. Oh, and did I mention that there's a sneak peek of that concluding Percy Jackson novel? That in and of itself should make this slim volume, jam-packed with plenty of Olympian extras, a "must have" for any demigod wannabe.

--- Reviewed by Norah Piehl

My son, age 9, and I have been reading this series. This book is great fun. The questions for the interviews are funny as are the responses. It looked to us like someone had a fun time putting this together. The short stories are true to character of the other longer books.

This is a short read that adds to the series and expands on the information about the main characters in the longer books.

Well worth the money
Enjoy.

Thsi is a really good informational sidebook (side book meaning not actually part of the series but unraveling the story even farther than the actual stories go). All in all a funny book.

(Dictated by my 9-year old son). The Demigod Files is one of the best books about Greek Mythology. It has three exciting adventures and there are interviews with people like Percy and Grover. I thought it was better than the Titan's Curse, the Sea of Monsters, and Battle of the Labyrinth. However, the Lightening Thief and the Last Olympian are still better. I recommend people to buy this book especially if your Family member pays for it! It was a good value.

My sons are big fans of the series and insisted on having this books as well. I think it is necessary if you want a complete library of Percy Jackson.

Personally, I was excited to see something interesting while I waited for the 5th Percy Jackson book to come out, but I'm also fairly cynical about what to expect. This inexpensive volume was a pleasant surprise, with three decent short stories, goofy interviews with characters, a map of Camp Half-Blood, a color insert section with pictures and profiles of the main characters, a crossword puzzle, word search and chart of the Olympian gods. I thought this was a fun treasure trove of odd materials -- quite interesting and enjoyable.

Do you want to be a demigod expert? Well, this is the book for you! It tells you many amazing stories that you have never heard. It tells you many other intresting facts (for example, Percy's friend, Annabeth, thinks Percy is kind of cute). These facts are told through imaginary interviews. It gives you some pictures of the main characters, though I did not think many of them looked like that. It is an intresting book.

Some of this backstory is really necessary to the last book in the series. I recommend that everyone who has read the other four books keep this one in mind, And I thought the illustrations were great, except I pictured Poseidon more like Tom Selleck circa Magnum PI.