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? For an overview of his other books, check out our Rick Riordan author page. And with several books published every year, the Rick Riordan Presents imprint is also a rich seam for young readers to mine.

Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup

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 before 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.