Myth & Mystery

News from Zeus House

2009-07-05T06:07:00.006-06:00

Happy July! Here in San Antonio, we're going on four straight weeks of 100+ temperatures and two months without rain, so I hope it's cooler where you are.

The Riordan family just spent its first week in our new house, which has come to be called Zeus House because we painted it in Sherwin-Williams 'Zeus' color, and also, of course, because of Percy and friends. When we first moved in, we found a metal silhouette of a Greek goddess in the atrium, so we knew we were meant to be here. We're keeping cool by spending a lot of time at the pool. Never had a swimming pool before, and the boys are loving it. We're also near a creek, so there is a lot more wildlife -- ducks, hawks, raccoons, bats, toads, pelicans (weird but true) and a group of vultures who sit on the roof of the house next door and look an awful lot like harpies. We've named the leader Steve.

The move, as you can imagine, has kept us very busy, but most of my time has been spent buried in the manuscript of my new book. The boys are getting impatient, because they know I'm near the end and they'll get to hear the story first. I announced the subject matter when I was on tour. If you haven't heard, the book is a modern-day fantasy about Egyptian mythology, and I am having so much fun with it! I can't give out any more details yet, but it is completely separate from the Camp Half-Blood series (the Greeks and Egyptians wouldn't play well together). Never fear, I'm still working on the next Camp Half-Blood series for release in late 2010, but the Egyptian book is an idea I've wanted to do for a long time. It will be released next spring, assuming all goes according to plan.

I'm under a time crunch too, because I want to finish the manuscript before we leave for the Mythology Bee trip to meet the grand prize winner Julia and her family in Greece. The Riordans will be making a short stop in London, then on to a Mediterranean cruise. Yeah, I know. Life is tough. I've never been to Greece before, so it seems ironic that I finally get to do it now that the Percy series has concluded. We'll sail into Athens for a day and spend the afternoon touring the Parthenon with Julia's family. They told me I don't have to be the tour guide, which is good, since I would probably lead us off a cliff or something. I will try to blog during the trip and let you know how things are going.

Despite all that's happening, I have had some time to read. Some of my favorite recent finds:

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, by Alan Bradley. This is an adult mystery which David at Murder by the Book in Houston recommended. When David recommends something, I take notice. At first I wasn't sure what to make of the title. It sounded like something Oprah and Alexander McCall Smith would come up with over tea. But the book is just fabulous. Set in England in the 1950s, it evokes the time and place with eerie precision -- if you've seen Mad Men on AMC, that's the sort of precise recreation I mean. The main character is eleven-year-old Flavia de Luce, who is so precocious she makes Mozart look like a slow learner. Flavia delights in studying the chemistry of poisons and torturing her older sisters (who of course torture her back). When Flavia finds a dying man in her garden, she pronounces it the most wonderful thing that has ever happened at Buckshaw Manor. She predicts, rightly, that it is the beginning of a fascinating mystery, which of course only Flavia can solve. She is an absolutely wonderful first person narrator with a strong will, a contrary streak, and a wicked sense of humor. This is one of those books where you know from chapter one you are in the hands of a master writer. You can sit back, relax, and enjoy the marvelous ride. I highly recommend it, and I hope we'll see more of Flavia in the future.

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey, by Trenton Lee Stewart. I usually only get to read the first book in a series, but I'm glad I had a chance to read the second volume of the Benedict Society's adventures. It was every bit as good as the first. This is a kinder, gentler sort of adventure novel which relies less on explosions and action and more on intrigue and puzzle-solving, and it works very well. I enjoyed the way the characters developed, especially Constance, and I'll be looking forward to their next adventure.

Un Lun Dun, by China Mieville. Okay, so it's another title that tripped me up, but the premise intrigued me. Un Lun Dun is another spelling for UnLondon, a shadowy mirror image of London. Zanna and Deeba fall into this alternate world, only to find that Zanna is the Schwazzy (the chosen one) and will save unLondon, according to a prophecy. Yes, I know, at this point you are rolling your eyes and thinking this sounds like every children's fantasy you've ever read, but keep reading. Mieville quickly turns the plot on its head and defies your expectations. Mieville's brand of fantasy has been described as "weird fiction," and certainly he is a literary descendant of Lewis Carroll. Un Lun Dun is every bit as fantastical, odd, and unpredictable as "Through the Looking Glass." The wonders almost become mind-numbing after a while, but Mieville keeps his wild menagerie of creations under control and creates a world I would love to visit. My favorite characters: Margarita the Extreme Librarian (has Mieville been visiting the Texas Library Association, perhaps?), Obaday Fing, who tailors suits out of books, and Curdle the friendly milk carton. This is Mieville's first book for young readers, and I'll definitely be checking out his adult work.

Well, that's it from Zeus House. Now it's back to the world of Egypt. When we last left our heroes . . . oh wait, can't tell you yet. Wait for spring 2010!

Another Great Picture

2009-07-03T07:31:00.002-06:00

Thanks to several people who alerted me to this picture from last week's news story about the Obamas doing community service. As I mentioned in my previous post, the First Family was helping load 15,000 backpacks with back-t0-school goodies (including The Lightning Thief) for the children of military families. In this picture, you can actually tell it's The Lightning Thief that President Obama and Malia are putting in the backpack. Woohoo! Okay, I'll stop acting like a fanboy now. Back to writing...

Demigods of the Week

2009-06-29T06:36:00.004-06:00

Thanks to Ms. Cartwright's class at M C Williams Elementary in Wilmington, NC, for sending me the photo above. Earlier in the spring I'd sent them a Percy poster as part of a contest. Before their end-of-grade testing, they held a "Camp Half Blood Day" to train for the tests. They held a pentathlon with arts and crafts, made their own T-shirts, and selected the cabins that they thought they belonged in. Cool idea!

How Cool is This?

2009-06-26T05:45:00.004-06:00

My day was made yesterday with this news piece about the Obamas doing community service. They were helping to fill 15,000 backpacks for children of military families, and the goodies included two books: The Penderwicks and The Lightning Thief. That's President Obama and Sasha in front of a stack of Lightning Thief. How cool! I'm sorry I didn't know about the project or I would've autographed the books. What an honor to have Percy given out to so many military families. I hope the kids enjoy the book, and thanks to the First Family!

39 Clues in Japan

2009-06-24T10:10:00.003-06:00

It's so fun to see how artists in different countries visualize a story. The 39 Clues is getting ready to launch in Japan, and the Japanese publisher was kind enough to let me share some of their sketches for the characters. Recognize them? All images are Copyright 2009 MEDIA FACTORY, INC. All Rights Reserved. Thank you to Scholastic Books and Media Factory for letting me post this sneak peek!

Your Barista Today is Hades

2009-06-20T07:40:00.002-06:00

Heading home from Phoenix after a fun signing last night at the Mesa Barnes & Noble. The event was part of the B&N Summer Reading program, and the store staff did a fantastic job organizing. Many of them dressed in costume. We had Demeter working crowd control, Hera helping put names on sticky notes, and Ares stood on my right all night as my bodyguard. Needless to say, we had no security problems. My favorite, though, was Hades in full armor working the cafe espresso machine. Ever try to order a venti latte from a guy wearing the Helmet of Terror? It isn't easy.

Donna the community relations manager estimated we had about 1800 people come through. Holy Schmokes! The weather cooperated beautifully. It was unseasonably cool and overcast. Everyone was very patient and enthusiastic, and although the signing line took a little over three hours, that was actually very fast for the size crowd we had. Thanks to Donna and the staff for running things so well.

My favorite comments: "What would a camper do if they needed a prophecy during the school year and Rachel wasn't there?" Good question. Probably wait! Another: "What does Olympus look like now that Annabeth has redesigned it?" Ah, you'll have to wait for the next series!

A special shout out to Wayne, a very dedicated dad who waited in line for his daughter, who was out of town. Becky happened across Wayne's blog of the event here, and you can see his videos, comments, etc. And for that conversation we didn't get to have, Wayne: That is so cool about your kids getting into the Percy series! The movie will just cover the Lightning Thief. It will not combine the books. I agree it's pretty cool to see such a big crowd of kids come out for an event about reading. Hope you have a great summer and get rested up for next school year. And thanks for waiting so long to get Sofia's book signed. You deserve a wonderful Father's Day!

Now I'm heading home to get back to work on writing! Thanks, Phoenix demigods, for a wonderful visit.

Off to Phoenix!

2009-06-18T18:44:00.003-06:00

I leave in the morning for a short visit to Phoenix. I'll be doing a signing at the Mesa Barnes & Noble tomorrow evening as part of the B&N Summer Reading program. If you're in the area, come on by! We're expecting a big crowd and we'll have a lot of fun.

And They're Outta Here!

2009-06-16T13:18:00.002-06:00

The T-shirt giveaway is now closed, as we have already received more requests than we have shirts. That was fast! We'll contact those teachers who will be receiving shirts as soon as we get them in the mail. Thanks to everyone who wrote.

Teachers and Librarians: A Summer T-shirt Giveaway

2009-06-16T06:07:00.004-06:00

Okay, educators . . . here's the deal. In my Garage of Infinite Wonders, I have several boxes of Battle of the Labyrinth T-shirts left over from last spring's tour. They are black, with the book logo in full color on one side, and the slogan 'Boy Meets Underworld' on the other. They are collector's items from the tour -- you can't buy them anywhere for any price, but they can be yours for free. THE HITCH: I only have adult small and youth large left. All the bigger sizes were snatched up long ago. But if you think those sizes would fit your students, send an email to my website and I will send you enough T-shirts for your entire class.

The rules:

1) This offer is only for teachers and librarians. We can't mail out single t-shirts to individual fans (no exceptions), though fans are welcome to encourage their teachers to submit an email for the whole class. You will need to provide a verifiable school mailing address or public library address so we can make sure the shirts go to the right place -- i.e. not eBay.

2) The shirts will be sent out first come, first serve until they are all gone.

3) We will ship out as few as 10 shirts, or as many as 30, to each individual teacher. You can specify adult S, youth L or ask for a mix. We'll do our best to accommodate.

4) We can only ship within the United States.

5) Please put 'T-shirt giveaway' in the subject line of the email so we can sort it to the right place.

Good luck, and have a great summer!

Does Age Appropriateness Still Have Meaning?

2009-06-15T09:50:00.003-06:00

A blog entry in Publisher Weekly got me thinking about this issue, and I thinks it's important enough to comment on, even though it's a contentious subject. I'd agree with Josie: the idea of nine-year-old girls reading Twilight makes me uncomfortable. No bookseller, teacher or parent ever wants to be in a position of telling a young reader not to read a book, but I think the writer of Ecclesiastes had a point: to everything there is a season. Call me a prude, but I'm not sure elementary school is the right season for hot and steamy undead romance novels. (And yes, I've read Twilight.)

Long before Twilight, I had trouble with the one-upmanship around Harry Potter. It was as if families were in a competition to see how soon their children could master those massive tomes. "My first grader read them!" "Oh yeah, well my kindergartner finished the whole series!" "Oh yeah, well my toddler . . ." It just seemed silly to me. Why the hurry? Growing up is not a race. For one thing, it's sad when kindergartners skip over kindergarten books, because they're missing an awful lot of good, age appropriate literature. For another thing, they won't appreciate the older books as much as they would when they're . . . well, older. Some of the content in the older books really is not designed for the very young. I totally understand kids wanting to be part of the newest cool thing. But those books will still be there in a few years, and if they're not as cool anymore, something else will be.

By the same token, I'll admit I have to bite my tongue when a parent comes up to me and says, "My six-year-old loves Percy Jackson." The author part of me says, "Hey, that's great!" The teacher part of me wants to scream, "A six-year-old has no business reading Percy Jackson!" I don't care if they can decode the words. The content simply is not appropriate, in my humble opinion as the guy who wrote the books (and designed them for the middle grades, roughly ages 9-14).

There's an old test we teachers use for determining whether a child is ready for a book. The child is instructed to read a random page in the novel, and put a finger down for every time they stumble on a word. If they stumble five times and make a fist, the book will probably be too frustrating. The problem with this system is that it only measures decoding skills. It does nothing to determine the appropriateness of content. Plenty of kids can read Percy Jackson, or Harry Potter, or Twilight. Should they read those books at their present age? That's another question entirely.

Having said that, I recognize that every child is different. Each reader is ready for different books at slightly different times, but there are developmental stages -- socially, emotionally, cognitively -- and they all have to be considered. I'm never for censorship, as long as book choice is the result of responsible decision-making and engaged parenting. Rather than the 'five finger' method, I usually suggest something much more time-consuming, but much more accurate. When in doubt, the parent should read the book. If it still seems good for your child, then go for it. Have a family discussion about the content. If it seems like a fine idea to you for your nine-year-old to read Twilight or your six-year-old to read Percy Jackson, well . . . I may still disagree with you, but at least I'll know you made an informed choice.

Demigod of the Week

2009-06-14T06:16:00.002-06:00

Renee G., who is going into eighth grade, recently sent me a link to a school project she created -- a website comparing traditional Greek mythology to the Percy Jackson series. It's very well done. Thanks for sharing your work, Renee. You are demigod of the week!

On the Set at Camp Half-Blood

2009-06-12T11:41:00.001-06:00

Interesting article about a Canadian school group that got a tour of the Lightning Thief movie set. There's a video, too, so you can see the set.

The Unstoppable Cahills

2009-06-10T19:26:00.004-06:00

The 39 Clues series continues to gain steam. Congratulations to Jude Watson, whose installment Beyond the Grave debuted at #11 in USA Today, the highest debut yet for the series. 39 Clues is also #3 on the New York Times children's series bestseller list. According to USA Today, Scholastic Books is reporting over 3 million copies of the books in print and 600,000 users on the 39 Clues site. That's a lot of Cahills!

NPR Interview

2009-06-06T06:25:00.001-06:00

Listen to "To the Best of Our Knowledge" today on NPR for an interview with me. The entire program is dedicated to the theme "How We Learn."

Pay Teachers Well? What a Concept!

2009-06-05T06:22:00.003-06:00

Interesting article in the New York Times yesterday about a charter school that is recruiting extremely talented teachers and paying them a (gasp!) professional salary of $125,000 (about 2 1/2 times the national average). The school opens next year. I hope the NYT does a follow-up article. I've often wondered what would happen if we valued education the same way we value, say, medicine. How would it transform our classrooms if we trained our teachers, compensated them, held them accountable, and held them in the same esteem as we do doctors? Not that I see such a seismic shift occurring, but I'll be curious to see how this charter school fares.

Fantasy Road Trip Contest

2009-06-03T12:07:00.002-06:00

Check out the Fantasy Road Trip Contest from Listening Library! Submit a video and you could win cool prizes.

The Fourth Adventure Begins!

2009-06-02T06:06:00.004-06:00

Happy Publication Day to Jude Watson, who launches the fourth 39 Clues adventure: Beyond the Grave, today! If you thought Amy and Dan Cahill were in trouble before, wait until you see what this book brings. The plot thickens. Much is revealed. More secrets are unearthed!

Gareth's Sketches

2009-05-26T08:20:00.004-06:00

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that illustrator Gareth Hinds had done some mythology drawing demonstrations at my Wellesley Booksmith event to entertain the kids while they waited to get books signed. Gareth was nice enough to send me copies, which you can see above. Thanks, Gareth!

Barnes & Noble Summer Reading

2009-05-25T18:40:00.002-06:00

As part of the Barnes & Noble Summer Reading program, I will be guest blogging all this week on BN.com's Letter Blocks book club. Stop by, sign in and say hi!

Home Court Advantage

2009-05-21T05:57:00.004-06:00

Home at last! Nothing like sleeping in my own bed. I never thought I’d miss waiting in the car pool line, but the highlight of my week was picking up Patrick from school!
Thanks to everyone who came out on the last leg of the tour. Mitch and the crew and Books & Books in Coral Gables put on a great event in a funky old church. Lots of Miami atmosphere, and an enthusiastic crowd. Thanks to Alyssa, who introduced me. As usual, my introducer was more organized than I was.

Little Shop of Stories hosted an event for about 1000 in Decatur at the local rec center. Always good to visit there. They gave me a cool Mythomagic card deck that they’ll be using this summer for Camp Half-Blood. I understand the Decatur branch has two sessions this year (both sold out) and they are cooperating with Camp Half-Blood Austin to do some of the same activities.

After Atlanta, I flew to Dayton, OH with a quick stop for stock signing at Joseph-Beth, Cincinnati (great children’s department). At the Books & Co. event, people came from all over Ohio and beyond.

Then, at last, I flew home yesterday morning, but my work wasn’t quite done yet. Last night I had a homecoming signing at San Antonio’s newest Barnes & Noble at La Cantera. This event was the official kick-off for the B&N Summer Reading program, for which I’m the national spokesperson this year. CRM extraordinaire Caren was well prepared as always, and it’s good thing, because the crowd was massive. Caren estimates over 3000 people came, making it the largest book signing event she can ever remember in San Antonio. What a nice way to come home. You can see pictures above, but even they don’t really capture just how large the crowd was, wrapped all the way around the upper level and completely filling the crowd floor of a giant store. I saw many former students in the audience, including the real-life Travis and Connor Stoll. Thanks for coming, guys! I stayed until everyone got his/her books signed, so we wrapped up after about three and a half hours of signing.

Once again, thank you to the booksellers who helped organize the events and worked so hard to make things run smoothly. Thanks to the parents and kids who waited in line for hours with patience and good humor. And thanks of course for all the great comments I heard from the road and the wonderful feedback on the Last Olympian. Now, I’ve got two books promised for 2010, and I’d better get back to work on them!

Heading South

2009-05-17T05:28:00.003-06:00

I think the Saint Louis crowd caught everyone by surprise.

The county library was prepared for 900 and could hold 1000, which seemed like plenty to me. When we arrived at the library, however, it had already filled to capacity and a line of five hundred more people snaked around the building. More than fifteen hundred people showed up in all – wow. Thanks to those who heard the presentation, and especially to the hundreds who couldn’t get it and could only do the signing line. On top of everything, the area was under a storm and tornado warning! Fortunately everyone got inside before the rain started.

Favorite moment from the night: A crowd of girls dressed in costume (Bianca, Thalia, Percy, Annabeth, etc.) asked me this question: “If Percy can talk to horses and control water, does that mean Annabeth can talk to owls and control olives?” LOL. Fear me. I control the mighty black olive! Another thought-provoking question I’d never had before: Would I rather be a god, demigod or mortal? Interesting. I’m still thinking about that one. I met more school groups than I could count. Librarians and teachers came from all over the state. Families had traveled from Jefferson City, Springfield, Indiana and even Chicago to attend the signing. Thanks to the Saint Louis County Library staff for managing the huge crowd so well, and thanks for everyone who waited through the three-hour signing line with such patience.

Here’s a blog from the Post-Dispatch about the event, which they are speculating might be the largest Saint Louis book signing ever for a single author.

Last night in Raleigh, we had another successful visit at Quail Ridge. Elizabeth Edwards had just left when I got there, so we didn’t have any overlapping crowds. Adultery and Greek mythology . . . Awkward. The bookstore was completely full, and it was hot and steamy in there! People came from Florida, Washington, D.C., and Richmond for the event. Wow, I’m causing an enormous carbon footprint these days. The satyrs are not going to be happy with me. I should plant some trees when I get home or something. Thanks to Carl from 'Boys Rule, Boys Read' for coming to the signing, and for all the teachers and librarians who brought books for their kids. Now that’s dedication: standing in line for two hours on a Saturday night for your students. We had more great costumes: Athena in full aluminum-foil armor, Hades in black robes, Artemis with her bow, and of course a ton of campers: Percy, Annabeth, Nico, Thalia, just about everyone. Most interesting question of the night: “Will Grover ever marry Clarisse?” My stunned answer: “Um . . . probably not.” Response: “Darn!” Where that idea came from, I have no idea, but wow – enough to give Grover nightmares.

Today, I don my Tommy Bahama shirt and we head to Miami for two events. It’s my first time doing public events in South Florida for the Percy series, and I look forward to meeting the kids. I’ve been watching the third season of Dexter on my iPod as I travel – I will try not to let that color my impressions of Miami!

Hello, Saint Louis

2009-05-15T16:19:00.002-06:00

This is the view from my hotel window at the Four Seasons Saint Louis. Okay, so you can't see the Arch, but it's just to the right. You can see it from the other side of the building, and it's pretty stunning. No sign of Echidna or demigods falling from the observation deck, but then again, I can't see through the Mist.

In a few minutes I'm heading to the Saint Louis Library for an event. We're expecting a huge crowd.

Thanks to everyone who came to the event last night in St. Paul, MN. The Red Balloon Bookshop did a great job organizing everything. We completely filled the St. Paul Church of Christ sanctuary next door. I'm told we had over 900 people. One young fan remarked on the irony of talking about Greek gods in the middle of a church (my signing table was right under the altar) but it seemed like a very cool and laid back church, so I don't think they minded. My green room was the bridal room, which made me feel all beautiful. Okay . . . maybe not, but least they didn't put me in the 'crying room.' Once again, tons of great comments from kids and parents. I was given artwork, letters, stories, even a CD of a school project. It was my first visit to Minnesota, and the people could not have been more welcoming. Thanks also to Rachel and her mom, who drove all the way from Duluth to interview me for Publisher's Weekly.

We're heading into the home stretch of the tour. After Saint Louis, it's Raleigh tomorrow. I hear I'm speaking at Quail Ridge Books only a few hours after Elizabeth Edwards. That should be interesting. I hope our crowds don't get switched. Then it's on to South Florida, Atlanta, Dayton, and finally home for an event in San Antonio. I'm in marathon mode, just taking it one day at a time. The enthusiasm of the fans sure makes it easier to stay energized. Thanks, everyone, and hope to see you on the road.

East Coast Wrap-up

2009-05-14T07:00:00.002-06:00

I’m sitting in the Fairmont Hotel at Copley Square in Boston -- a setting from 39 Clues: The Maze of Bones, by the way! Later today I’ll be flying to St. Paul for an event at the Red Balloon Bookshop.

The East Coast leg of the tour has been great. Monday I visited the Disney Publishing offices in Manhattan and set a land speed record, signing 1000 books in 45 minutes, though I couldn’t have done it without a lot of help from the staff. I felt like Lucille Ball in that chocolate factory conveyor belt sketch (yes, REALLY dating myself with that reference). We then took the Long Island Railroad to a signing at the Barnes & Noble in Huntington. This was my first event as part of the Barnes & Noble Summer Reading program – more on that later. The store had really done a great job decorating. We had volunteers in Camp Half-Blood T-shirts, great artwork by Hannah, and even specialty drinks in the cafeteria, which had been relabeled the Mount Olympus Café. I hear they did a brisk business in Mint Medusa, Pink Poseidon, and (wait for it) Zeus Juice. Thanks to the many hundreds of young demigods who came out. The biggest question of the night: Why did I put Camp Half-Blood on Long Island? The answer: my wife’s family is from Long Island, and the place made a big impression on me when I first visited many years ago on our honeymoon.

Tuesday I went the other direction from the city – out to New Jersey. I did a school event at Bogert Elementary in Upper Saddle River, sponsored by Books, Bytes, and Beyond. What a beautiful area of the state. We had an informal signing at the store (just me and a few hundred close friends) then I drove down south for a signing with Clinton Bookshop. They’d reserved the Raritan Community College auditorium, and we needed the space! Again, we had about 700 people show up. The bookstore staff was well-organized and the signing line went quickly. They also made Camp Half-Blood T-shirts, which I understand sold out almost immediately. Big question of the night as I was talking about future books: Will I ever do a Norse mythology book? Oh, believe me, I love Norse mythology and taught it just as often as Greek & Roman. It’s on my radar screen, but there are other projects to be done first.

Yesterday, I took the train to Boston, which is always a nice ride. I like watching the coastline go by, and I even got a little writing done -- amazing! The event last night for Wellesley Booksmith was even more enormous than usual. I’m told we had close to 1000 people, but Alison and the rest of the staff did their normal fantastic job and everything moved along smoothly. Thanks to everyone for being so patient, and to Gareth Hinds for keeping the kids entertained with monster-drawing lessons while they waited. I hope to show you some of the pictures he came up with when I get back home and get to my scanner. Gareth has an illustrated version of the Odyssey coming out next year that will blow you away, but more on that later.

As I’ve gone through my events, my media escorts keep making the same comment: “Look at all the girls in the audience!” I suppose this surprises people because my books are so often labeled as ‘book boys.’ Not that I mind that. I’m very happy they appeal to boys, because I’ve got two reluctant reader boys of my own, and I know how tricky it can be finding good books for them. But it’s true that at every single event, the audience has been almost exactly balanced between girls and boys. I love that. As I’ve said before, I always taught in co-ed schools, and I would hate to think my stories only worked for one gender. The girl fans range from elementary school through college, and they are so enthusiastic! Last night I lost count of the number of homemade Camp Half-Blood T-shirts and bead necklaces. We even had a dead ringer for Annabeth, complete with NY Yankees camp, and this was in Boston! I’ve also met quite a few fans with Greek mythology names on this tour – Rhea, Phoebe, Athena, and even an Annabeth! So thanks, girls, for showing your demigod pride.

In other news, the Last Olympian is ripping up the bestseller charts. It is #1 today out of all books in USA Today, part of a very small group of children’s books ever to debut at #1. It has also driven the series to #2 on the NYT bestseller list, second only to someone named Stephenie. Apparently she writes vampire books. Who knew?

Tonight, I’ll be in St. Paul, and tomorrow it’s on to St. Louis. Sorry if I haven’t visited your city. Believe me, we’ve crammed as much as we could into a fifteen day tour, but it’s a big big country! For the complete tour details, as always, check the web calendar.

More Pictures from the Road, and Other News

2009-05-12T06:07:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Deborah, my publicist, for making these photos available. At the top: me in the KLRN studio, San Antonio, on pub day. We did a satellite tour from the studio, and I talked to eighteen different radio and television shows across the country. I was tired afterward!

Next, you can see another shot of the crowd at BookPeople. Under that, we have Larry the centaur and Tommy leading a game of Mythomagic.

Picture five shows the crowd in Vancouver, and below that is me standing outside the amazing storefront display at Kidsbooks. The picture of me in the massage chair -- they had that thing in the green room for the local noon television news program. That's me doing my Dr. Evil impersonation, plotting to take over the world. Under that, me on Studio 4's morning show in Vancouver.

Last two pictures: You see me doing a signing at Amazon Headquarters, and you can tell that the average age of the employees has suddenly gotten a lot younger! Finally, a picture to give you a sense of the enormous crowd at Third Place Books in Seattle.

The Last Olympian has been out exactly one week, and the response has been tremendous. I am so gratified to hear that you guys have enjoyed the end of Percy's saga.

As I've been announcing on tour however, the end is not really the end. When you read the conclusion of The Last Olympian, you will probably get that sense. The more I write about Camp Half-Blood, the more I realize how much there is to tell -- gods and monsters I've never discussed, the life at camp (which Percy hardly ever gets to experience) and so many other characters who don't get their moment in the spotlight. In late 2010, I will be launching the second Camp Half-Blood series. I've already gotten a flood of emails from fans pleading for details, but I can't tell you much yet. It will feature a new generation of demigods, ready to take on a new prophecy. You may see Percy, Annabeth and the rest of the gang from the first series, but they will not be the main characters. Again, read the ending of the Last Olympian and you will get some clues what I mean. I'm afraid the rest of the details are secret for now -- no character names, no titles, no hints. Sorry! I will probably post more on my website in the fall.

*And* I've got another non-Greek-mythology project in the works for spring 2010, but more on that later... If you attend an event, you will get the inside scoop on it.

Today, I'm off the New Jersey, the land of Medusa! I hope to see some of you tonight at the event hosted by Clinton Bookshop.

Pictures from BookPeople

2009-05-11T07:01:00.003-06:00

Thank you to Topher for sending pictures of the BookPeople World Release Party for The Last Olympian. The top three photos give you a sense for the size of the crowd. Topher says their best estimate puts the attendance at 4200, and number of books signed 5300, including all the backlist titles. The signing line lasted five solid hours, so I can believe it! Everyone was so patient and understanding though, and the staff kept things running smoothly as usual.

Picture 4 shows the Greek chariot, which was available for pictures. This is a perfect example of Topher at his best: "Hey, I found a chariot in somebody's barn. Let's use it!" I swear, if you asked the guy to produce a living hydra, he would make a few calls and find one.

Picture five shows some young gladiators at work. Below that, we have the unbelievable Mythomagic game board crafted just for the event (and I understand they'll be using it at Camp Half-Blood, Austin this summer). Thanks to Tommy, our gamemaster, who taught us to play. Tommy had me inscribe his book this year 'to the son of Apollo and Ares' (Don't ask).

Picture seven shows me running the gauntlet to the stage through a line of young demigods. Behind me, you can see Topher on the left and my editor Jen Besser on the right. Finally, there's a picture of the youngest demigod, Grey, with his mom Ceci. (Proud papa Topher not pictured). Just about the cutest baby ever? Quite possibly.

A great event all the way around. Thanks, BookPeople, for a party of Herculean proportions! Today I'm in New York, off for an event on Long Island this evening. I'll keep you posted!