Books Like Percy Jackson

With sales of over 180 million copies worldwide, Percy Jackson is one of the most popular book series for children age 9+ to come out in the last 20 years. The first book is the The Lightning Thief, which introduces readers to Percy, a boy from New York City who finds out that he is a demigod: the child of a human and the god Poseidon. At a summer camp he meets other demigod kids, and together they embark on a series of adventures.

The book came from the bedtime stories the author told his son, who had been learning about Greek mythology in school. Like him, the character Percy has dyslexia and ADHD; in the story they are part of Percy’s demigod powers.

The Percy Jackson books are loved for their fast-paced plot, ancient mythology folded into the modern world, and their trademark humour. The characters age through the series, so although they are aimed at readers as young as nine, the books are also popular with children in their early teens. In our interview on the best Rick Riordan books, 13 year old Alex explains more about Percy Jackson and introduces some of Riordan’s other books.

Kids who haven’t yet come across Percy Jackson have a lot to look forward to. But what to recommend for those who have read all the books? The suggestions below are all set in folklore from around the world, so take your pick about which mythological universe to introduce to the children in your life. A few are single titles but most are series to get absorbed in for a while.

Other books by Rick Riordan

Let’s start with Rick Riordan’s other series. The Heroes of Olympus and The Trials of Apollo are based in Greco-Roman mythology; both are intertwined with Percy Jackson, as is The Sun and the Star which is co-written with Mark Oshiro. Magnus Chase is a separate book series inspired by Norse mythology, whereas The Kane Chronicles are based in Egyptian mythology. There are stories in a collection titled Demigods and Magicians where characters from the various series meet. And there is Daughter of the Deep, which made our best books for kids of 2021.

What else?

For readers who want to explore the ancient Mediterranean myths and legends behind the Americanised world of Percy Jackson, we recommend this interview with classicist and author Annelise Gray on the best Classics books for children.

In another interview, 10 year old Izzy recommends her favourite series for 10 year olds, including Goddess Girls by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams. This series is based on Greek mythology, in which Athena, Persephone, Aphrodite and Artemis attend Mount Olympus Academy where Zeus is the Principal.

Who Let the Gods Out is a  laugh-out-loud series set in contemporary England. In the first book, 12 year old Elliot witnesses a shooting star crash to Earth, and accidentally releases the demon Thanatos from under Stonehenge. Elliot needs to get the Olympian gods to save the world, and preferably help with his personal problems, too.

Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup

Leaving the Greeks and Romans behind, Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup by Lilya Kalaus and Zira Nauryzbai became a bestseller in Kazakhstan. For readers elsewhere, the setting is fresh whilst also relatable. After a surprise encounter with an epic young hero who has sprung to life after 2,000 years, Batu and his friends plunge into an adventure of Kazakh myths, monsters and dramatic battles with antagonists who will do anything to make the children fail in their quest. How safe are they even back in the normal world?

Thrones and Bones

Frostborn, the first book in the Thrones and Bones trilogy by Lou Anders, is a fast-paced and fun adventure novel packed full of Norse and Norse-inspired mythology. Our two main characters are Karn and Thianna. Karn is obsessed with playing a strategy board game and not remotely interested in learning the skills needed to take over the family farm. Thianna is a frost giant in denial about her human heritage. By force of circumstance they need to team up against trolls and a gigantic winged serpent, not to mention wyvern-mounted soldiers, undead draugs and other assorted adversaries. Perfect for fans of How to Train Your Dragon as well as Percy Jackson.

The Nsibidi Scripts

Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor has been recommended twice on Five Books, including by author Efua Traoré in her interview on the best West African fantasy books for teens. The villain in the first book in the trilogy (published in Nigeria as What Sunny Saw in the Flames) is a serial killer who draws power from the life and innocence of child victims, so this book is generally recommended for readers age 12 and early teens rather than younger middle grade readers.

Sunny, the protagonist, needs to figure out who she is and what powers she may have inherited from her grandmother, and stop the villain from increasing his magic. Sunny is constantly striving to maintain balance in her life: between the USA and Nigeria, and between her love of football and her albinism (which means she can’t play in the sun). Hardest of all, having discovered that she is a powerful Leopard person she must keep her new world of magic secret from her family. In the magical world she needs to catch up with her new friends in juju, shape-shifting and spells at breakneck pace. This is an award-winning series, and the Akata Witch audio version, narrated by Yetide Badaki, was selected as an ‘Amazing Audiobook for Young Adults’ by the American Library Association.

Darkmouth

The Darkmouth series by Shane Hegarty, illustrated by James de la Rue, is very funny and perfect for younger middle grade readers. The first book is set in a small town in Ireland where no outsiders ever set foot. 12 year old Finn is the last in a long line of Legend Hunters and it is up to him to save the town’s population from the angry minotaurs, manticores and other monsters that break through from the Infested Side. Finn, who would much rather be training to be a vet than a monster hunter, is not a talented Legend fighter. It is unfortunate that this is exactly when the Legends happen to be planning an all-out invasion starting in Darkmouth.

The Academy for the Unbreakable Arts trilogy

More deeply embedded in Celtic mythology, Kelcie Murphy and the Academy for the Unbreakable Arts by Erika Lewis features a protagonist who — during a school trip to a museum — is transported to the Otherworld. There, Kelcie unexpectedly finds herself at a cliffside boarding school where the pupils train to become warriors. More than anything, Kelcie wants to find out who her parents are and why they abandoned her in Boston Harbour as a young child. But when she finds out that she is a Saiga and that her father is in prison for treason, how certain can she really feel about her allegiances?

The author, who herself struggled with learning to read, is a children’s literacy advocate. That is reflected in The Academy for the Unbreakable Arts, which is fast-paced and clearly written to engage young readers, including reluctant ones. This series is perfect for fans of Harry Potter as well as Percy Jackson.

Other books based on myths from around the world

In Charlie Hernández & the League of Shadows, the first book in the Charlie Hernández series, Charlie starts to grow horns and — at the very worst moment, in the middle of a lesson at school — feathers. In these adventures inspired by Hispanic folklore, Charlie is recruited by a secret society of mythical beings to protect the human world from evil spirits.

In Momo Arashima Steals the Sword of the Wind, we meet Momo, whose habit of mixing reality and magical stories tends to get her in trouble. But when Momo’s mother falls ill and a death hag straight out of those stories attacks Momo, it turns out reality is far from ordinary. Momo’s mother is a banished Shinto goddess who is no longer able to protect the passageway to Yomi, the land of the dead of Japanese lore. Momo must embrace her demigod powers to save her mother and the world.

In The Jumbies, 11 year old Corinne accidentally awakens a malevolent spirit in the forest and must learn to use magic to subdue it and — with her friends — save Trinidad. This story is inspired by the traditional Haitian tale of ‘The Magic Orange Tree’. There are three books in this series so far.

The protagonist of Cameron Battle and the Hidden Kingdoms grew up reading about the fabled West African kingdom of Chidani that cut itself off from the world. When Cameron and his friends are magically transported there, instead of reaching the imagined land of beauty they find a kingdom in danger. Could Cameron be the hero people are waiting for?

In Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit, a Chinese American boy learns to embrace his heritage in order to solve the mystery of his brother’s death. He also needs to learn to get along with his brother’s grieving fox spirit.

In Pilar Ramirez and the Escape from Zafa, Pilar gets sucked into an adventure in a world of Dominican myths and legends while investigating a family mystery—the disappearance years ago of a cousin.

In The Serpent’s Secret, the first book in the Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond series, Kiranmala leads a normal life in New Jersey until her parents mysteriously disappear. Kiran is transported into a world of Bengali magic, where she has to solve riddles and fight demons to find her parents and save the world.

In Lalani of the Distant Sea, 12 year old Lalani Sarita sets out on a perilous mission to save her village on the island of Sanlagita. Readers meet magical creatures of Philippine lore, such as the enormous birdwoman Bai-Vinca, soul-eating trees and Ditasa Ulod who is part woman part eel.

In Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor, it’s up to Zack to seal the leaking portal to the Chinese underworld before Ghost Month. The quest doesn’t start well when the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, instead of possessing Zack’s body binds to his gaming headset. If Zack fails to learn to wield water dragon powers and defeat mythical and historical figures, spirits will invade the mortal world and his mother’s soul will be lost forever.

Books published by Rick Riordan Presents

We also need to mention Rick Riordan Presents. Like Riordan’s own books, the titles published by this imprint are fantasy adventures aimed at readers age eight or nine and up (they have also started to bring out Young Adult titles). Fans of Riordan’s books had been asking him when he would write a series based in another culture. Instead, he chose to support authors drawing on their own cultural backgrounds. With several books published every year, this imprint is a rich seam for young readers to mine.

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky is the first book in a trilogy that starts in contemporary Alabama. It is rooted in African-American folklore and history and infused with West African mythology. There are also important messages about coping with grief and the power of storytelling.

Aru Shah and the End of Time is the first in the Pandava series, which follows Arundhati Shah, an Indian American girl from Atlanta, who happens to be the reincarnation of Arjuna. She must unite the avatars of the five Pandavas (demigod warrior princes) of the Mahābhārata and prevent a demon from ending time.

Thousand Worlds are science fiction novels infused with Korean mythology. In Dragon Pearl, Min, who comes from a family of fox spirits, sets out to solve the mystery of her brother’s disappearance and ends up in a space adventure.

Sal & Gabi Break the Universe is a Cuban-influenced novel of science fiction and magic which won the 2020 Pura Belpré Award.

The Storm Runner series is about 13 year old Zane, who lives in New Mexico next to a dormant volcano. What should he make of the prophecy that he will release the Mayan god of death and destruction from the volcano and that he must be the Storm Runner, when even walking is a challenge and he walks with a cane?

Race to the Sun is an adventure featuring some of the original American gods and the legend of the Hero Twins. Dine (Navajo) girl Nizhoni needs to survive trials, get to the House of the Sun and battle to rescue her father from shape-shifting monsters.

Paola Santiago and the River of Tears is a fantasy adventure based on the Mexican legend of the weeping La Llorona — a vengeful ghost who wanders the riverbanks. The protagonist is 12 year old Paola, a scientifically minded girl from Arizona who is embarrassed by her mother’s superstitions. But when her friend Emma goes missing, Paola has to enter a world of nightmares to retrieve her.

City of the Plague God is the first book about The Adventures of Sik Aziz.  Sikander Aziz is a Muslim boy from New York City who teams up with Gilgamesh and other epic heroes and deities to defeat Nergal, the Mesopotamian god of war and plague, before Manhattan is wiped out.

In The Last Fallen Star, the first of the Gifted Clans series, 12 year old Riley Oh is a Korean American girl from a witch family, who lacks the healing powers of her other family members. When her sister is banished to the spirit realm, Riley must embark on a perilous journey to find the last fallen star in order to discover her own powers and save her sister.

In Pahua and the Soul Stealer, Pahua is an 11 year old Hmong girl who worries about making friends in her adopted hometown in Wisconsin. She has a secret: she can see spirits all around her. A series of events forces her to learn to be a true shaman warrior, braving a world of dragons, demons, gods and ghosts to save her brother.

In Serwa Boateng’s Guide to Vampire Hunting, 12 year old Serwa has grown up learning to slay vampires and is looking forward to joining the Abomofuo, the ancient Ghanaian order of slayers. Instead she gets sent to Rocky Gorge Middle School to live as a normal child, where vampires aren’t the only monsters she has to contend with: there are also her fellow school children!

Winston Chu vs. the Whimsies, a story about Winston and his family and friends, is based on the ancient Chinese tale of the cowherd and the weaver girl. It is set in contemporary San Francisco and filled with Chinese folklore.

The Cursed Carnival and Other Calamities is a collection of ten short stories by various writers imagining beloved heroes.