Unlocking Books discussion

Who is reading The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan with us this month? I'm ordering it from the library.

I've got it, but I can't remember if I read it right off or not. After this months slows down, I'll try to catch up on it!

I may not be reading it with you this month but I'll take pleasure in reminiscing with you.

I already read this book - loved it! I'm so glad he's going on with the demi-god world.

Me too! I can't wait for the sequel.

I got my audiobook copy from the library and started reading it today on my drive to work. I haven't read the previous series, so I'm a little lost.

But the beginning was fast paced, exciting, and full of mystery. With the whole amnesia thing, I was greatly reminded of The Maze Runner. However, The Lost Hero seems to have a lot less telling than Maze Runner did.

I got a question for those people who are more familiar with Riordan's demigod world. It seems to me that the number of teenage demigods is too many. Take for example the children of Aphrodite. She could really only have one a year.

Now a male god could possibly have two or three or more children a year, but from the Greek myths, I didn't think the number of children born from the gods was that rampant.

I don't know why but I've always got the feeling the pregnancy was shorter somehow for the female Olympians. I can't remember Riordan ever addressing the issue though... That's one thing I've never considered.

No, I don't think the Greek myths had that many either. If you think about it, there's only what, twenty heroes in the myths?

Well, they did say that the kids from Athena came from her brain rather than her body, just as she was born in Zeus's head. No nine-month gestations period for a brain-child, I'm guessing.

And then they labored and ...what? pop out their ear?

Some of my brain children (my writing) take a whole lot longer than 9 months. But then I'm not a goddess.

Lol.

After reading all the Percy Jackson books, Stephen and I spent an enjoyable hour typing everybody we knew as demi-gods. We decided I was a daughter of Athena and he was a son of Hermes, whereas my mother is a daughter of Demeter. We even had fun going over history to see where demi-gods fit in. According to the books, WWII had a lot of powerful demi-gods on both sides which was why the war was so huge: Hitler and Stalin obviously sons of Hades, Churchill and Roosevelt sons of Zeus, various admirals like Nimitz sons of Poseiden. A lot of Apollo sons would have been serving as snipers and medical corpsmen; sons of Ares would be soldiers like Audie Murphy who swashbuckled their way to Medals of Honor; Athena would have had a batch of sons working on the Manhattan Project and another batch in Bletchly Park . . .

I love pointless but entertaining discussions.

Hahaha. Yes! Me too! That's awesome! How'd you settle on being a daughter of Athena?

Hmm, sounds to me like the Percy Jackson books would make a good role playing game (the paper and dice kind, not the video game kind). It would be easy to create a story with yourself as a hero in the demi-god world.

And the adventures could even be relevant to the real world, if you wanted.

That's true. You could use it as a Dread scenario. Have you heard of the game Dread?

No, I haven't. Could you tell me more about it?

Let's see....well you know what jango blocks are right? So you have character sheets with questions on them. Each player fills on out and only they and the game master can see it. Then you play one of the scenarios the game master picked. They're mostly horror stories. I was game master for one story that featured a werewolf. It was the only successful game I ever ran...

I think roleplaying games are a good tool to becoming a writer. You have to play-act your character's reactions and to remember that some things you know your character doesn't. Prepares you for understanding the rules of POV.

Stephanie wrote: "Hahaha. Yes! Me too! That's awesome! How'd you settle on being a daughter of Athena?"

I have grey eyes and a cerebral disposition, so that put me as an Athena daughter. My mother can grow anything, so she's a Demeter daughter. And Stephen is a Hermes boy because he's a troublemaker and a terrible practical joker.

So, whose your guys' godly parent?

Oh, I have no idea. I'm bad at this type of stuff. I usually rely on other's opinions. Haha

Rita wrote: "I think roleplaying games are a good tool to becoming a writer. You have to play-act your character's reactions and to remember that some things you know your character doesn't. Prepares you for un..."

I totally agree. Not to mention it's fun.

So I ask how on earth the gods had so many children, especially ones around the same age, and then today I come across this line:

"...and how Aphrodite had so many children the same age--Never mind. She didn't want to know."

I thought that was hilarious. My hat is off to Riordan for figuring out what questions I would ask and addressing them without answering them. It means he thought it through, but he leaves some mysteries.

NOTE: I hope I got the quote right. I'm reading as an audiobook and I tried to memorize the words to share it with you.

Who is my godly parent? I'm going to have to think some more about that. I have always liked Athena and Artemis, but Artemis isn't possible.

Though, I will say that I once read that Artemis gives Sagittarians a blessing. Sags are fire signs, but they have a unique affinity to the magic of the earth. I've read that Sags can teach earth signs a few things about the earth.

But then Sags are teachers and philosophers.

I'm a Sag. About half of it applies - adventurousness, yes; athletic ability, no.

Rita wrote: "So I ask how on earth the gods had so many children, especially ones around the same age, and then today I come across this line:

"...and how Aphrodite had so many children the same age--Never m..."

Lol. That sounds so familiar now! That was in The Lost Hero?

Sags are double signs. That means we have two parts of our nature. Example we're honest to the point of bluntness but prone to exaggeration. We're graceful but trip over our own two feet.

There are actually three double signs: Gemini, Libra, and Sagittarians.

The way to understand our double nature is to compare us with Geminis. Geminis are like two different personalities in one body, but Sagittarians are one personality with two extremes.

I've seen some of your honest Sagittarian nature in how you talk about yourself. You're willing to admit your struggles with writing where some other people would sweep their faults under the rug.

That's something I really like about you.

Kate wrote: "I'm a Sag. About half of it applies - adventurousness, yes; athletic ability, no."

Ah, a fellow, Sagittarian!

Rita wrote: "Sags are double signs. That means we have two parts of our nature. Example we're honest to the point of bluntness but prone to exaggeration. We're graceful but trip over our own two feet.

There..."

Thanks! And I definitely see your Sag honesty, Rita. I never knew Sag was a double sign. I've also been told I've got Scorpio tendencies because I'm right on the cusp - a November Sag.

Stephanie, you are a Sag too? Wow, three of us in the same group. If Katrina and Kyle came around more, there'd be 5 of us.

Yes I am; I just learned it a couple of weeks ago. I'd been wondering what Zodiac signs were. Haha

I've studied a lot about the Zodiac signs because my husband was interested in it when we got married. If not for him, I'd know nothing about it.

Some Zodiac information I've read has been convoluted and strange, but one book Linda Goodman's Love Signs: A New Approach to the Human Heart by Linda Goodman explains how different signs interact. My husband is an Aquarian, and the possible conversations a female Sag and a male Aquarian may have were actual conversations my husband and I had prior to reading the book. It felt like the author had a camera in our house and had recorded our conversations, changing context slightly for the sake of anonymity.

I've believed that there is some truth to Zodiac signs ever since.

Huh, interesting...

But there's some things I don't believe--like I never check my daily horoscope. I don't believe the stars can give us advice or predict the future.

I thought it absolutely awesome when I found out who Piper's mother was. Not what I would have expected.



****Spoiler Alert****
Aphrodite has always been my least favorite, but I thought Riordan's depiction of Piper and the rest of the Aphrodite cabin was superb. Piper just might redeem Aphrodite in my eyes.

I had the exact same experiance when I found out about Piper! Aphrodite used to be one of my least favorites too, then Piper came along. Now Aphrodite doesn't seem so...wimpy.

** spoiler **

Piper will actually meet her mother later in the book, and I really liked how she was depicted. When Percy met her early in the Percy Jackson series, she was much more coiffed and untouchable - and frankly, kind of bitchy. But Piper sees the gentler, more loving side; a much more appealing Aphrodite. Of course the goddess of love and beauty can encompass both those sides and more.

You know, I've tried to figure out why I like Aphrodite better in The Lost Hero. Now I know. :)

I'm a cancer. July 2nd. And I'm the year of the snake, and my husband is the year of the ox. That's totally funny to me because he often is.

Who do you guys think would have been my godly parent?

I think you would definitely be a daughter of Demeter, goddess of the harvest.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demeter

Kate, the conversation between Cornelia and Lollia when they studied Uncle Paris's carved likenesses (pages 216-217 of Daughters of Rome) has a lot more meaning for me. I had liked how you incorporated the 4 goddesses into the story, but now I really love it.

Yep, everybody's a different goddess than they think they are. Well, except Diana. She IS Artemis. Except for the virgin part . . .

Sags....? It sounds so middle-aged. I'm glad I'm a Capri. Sounds much more sprightly!

I know very little about Capris because I haven't known many. Since you are a stone to break my teeth and someone who pours his beer on his friend, would you say a Capri is ornery?

Ouch! Mao tse Tung and Elvis Presley were capricorns - if that's any guide :)

Ouch? See, there I go again, putting my foot in my mouth. I thought I was complimenting you! Ornery is a good thing. It makes the world a more interesting place.

And about the stone and the beer, I was just quoting you.

So many fellow Sags! Of course, now some of us are the snake wielder, Ophiuchus, thing but I still claim Sagittarius. The two natures thing you were talking about Rita was really interesting.

And its probably because I am a Sag but I always felt like the sign was special. It's mixture between human and animal, its at the end of the year, its a double sign etc. I had a teacher in 9th grade who said he found the Sagittarius to be the most interesting of all the sings, he was a Leo. Sorry going on a tangent, haha!

I don't know who my god/goddess parent would be, any suggestions or thoughts?

**Sorry for inactivity but summer has officially started so I should definitely be more active!

Kyle wrote: "I don't know who my god/goddess parent would be, any suggestions or thoughts?"

I'm not sure. Maybe we should come up with a quiz:

Do you prefer to...

(a) create things with your hands?
(b) get your hands dirty in the garden?
(c) paint your fingernails?
(d) get into a fight?

When your friend is in trouble do you...

???

I think Riordan's great at memorable lines. Yesterday, as I was reading on my drive home, I came across this discussion between Jason & Leo. While sitting in a Chicago sewer, they are discussing the prophecy, wondering who the other 4 adventurers will be. Jason says, maybe they are also on a quest and the groups will meet up later.

Leo says: "I bet their sewer is better than ours."

I laughed out loud. I don't think I'll ever forget that line.

I'm more of a creator whether it be writing or a project that needs doing for school, an organization, my job, etc.

When my friend is in trouble...I do everything in my power to make it better...sometimes taking on the fight myself impulsively (need to stop this, haha!).