Rick Riordan, is encountering crowds of more than a thousand school children these days now that he has released the fifth and final book in the Percy Jackson sequence, entitled The Last Olympian. At one of these events, one of the kids in the audience asked him a delightful question. In his words:
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!
Actually, I think you missed an opportunity there, Mr. Riordan. All you needed to do was give Annabeth a handful of olives and a straw, and you can well imagine the mayhem that she’d have made. It’d be like: pitooie! and Atlas shouts, “Ow! My eye!”
The crowds that Riordan has been getting certainly help him challenge Stephanie Meyer for the crown of “the next J.K. Rowling” and, personally, I think Riordan is a better writer, with a better finger on the pulse of what children like to read. I know who I’m rooting for.
More Night Girl
The rewrite is at 49,000 words and counting. Here’s a sample of what I’ve drafted lately:
(Perpetua has gone to Fergus’ thesis advisor with a plan to reveal the goblin and trolls’ presence to humanity)
“It should be an interesting experience,” said Dr. Bulmer.
Perpetua frowned at the clinical way Dr. Bulmer used the word ‘interesting’. “How do you mean?”
“Well, have you given any thought to the human reaction to this discovery.”
“Yes,” she said. “A lot. It’s going to be tricky. That’s why Fergus wants as much information about the goblins circulated widely—”
“Not about the goblins or trolls, Miss Collins,” said Dr. Bulmer. “About the faeries.”
“What about the faeries?”
“Oh, dear,” said Dr. Bulmer kindly. “You have been busy. No, think on this: think of what will happen when you tell people that there’s a chance that somewhere in their family history they might be descended from a member of the magical race of faeries. Think of what will people do, particularly those with red hair.”
Perpetua froze. She hadn’t thought about that. It didn’t make her feel good thinking about it now.
“To say that the appreciation of faeries would probably become a fad is likely understating matters.” Dr. Bulmer chuckled. “I must call my stockbroker in the morning. Pick up some shares of Disney.”