Rick Riordan has copied J.K. Rowling greatly in his novel The Lightning Thief. I know I have written about this before, but it is something that I think should be pointed out. Percy, like Harry, is taken from normal life to a magical fantasy world, where he goes to a training camp, like Hogwarts is a school of magic. Harry goes in the school year to this place, and Percy goes to Camp Half-Blood in the summer. Riordan has twisted his character's term at Half-Blood Hill to the summer, trying to make it different enough.
Camp Half-Blood has part of the sixth Harry Potter book's, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, name in it. He could have called it, Camp Demigod or Double-Blood Camp, but not half-blood. Yes, Percy does have two bloods in him, mortal and Olympian, but their are many different ways to describe someone with two differences in their blood. Also, Grover and Annabeth, are like Ron and Hermione--boy and girl who are partners with a hero of the male gender, Harry. The Cap of Invisibility is a major slander to Harry's Cloak of Invisibility--I think that is so similar that it testifies against Riordan's work.
His defense against all of this was, "They both come from two different worlds." So? England or America, he borrowed her idea. If Rowling has read the book she may spy the large similarities: Boarding School/Camp, Cloak/Cap, Harry, Ron, and Hermione/Percy, Grover, and Annabeth, Half-Blood Prince/Half-Blood Camp. I can only sigh. Even though I enjoyed the book, I thought it was a little unoriginal.
I hate talking about these things; it makes me feel guilty.
Please tell me what you thought about the book; I want to hear what you think. :)
3 comments:
Coleman, very astute observations. It does seem pretty unoriginal--and to think he's made so much money on an unoriginal idea! O well.
Dad
Very persuasive argument, however I'd just like to point out a few things as an avid Percy Jackson supporter.
First, that a cloak of invisibility has been in many fairy-tales before(see A fighting Man of Mars, by Edgar Burroughs for just one example--published 1931). And in old Greek mythology there really is a cap, or helm, of invisibility, that Hades owns, noted several times. Rick Riordan just made it modern by turning it into a cap.
In addition, triplets, (Ron, Hermione, Harry,) are featured quiet commenly. For reference, take a look at Loyd Alexander's Black Couldren series.
If you examine almost any book, you can spot elements from others in them. You might even say J.K. Rowling was copying the evil-ring of Frodo's-from Lord of the Rings-for making one of the horcruxes(seventh book) a ring.
As for camp half-blood, The Half-Blood Prince came out in 2005, whereas Rick Riordan finished writing the final draft of The Lightning Thief in 1994.------- (Sorry!! I'm a big fan!!! I like Harry Potter too!!)
ARGHHHH!!!!!
jk.
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