Things end, but memories last forever.

Hey you guys, I know I haven’t posted on here for a while, but I haven’t died yet. You’re stuck with me. There are pretty much 2 (or 3 depending on how you look at it) things I want to talk about.

1) The first chapter of House of Hades came out today

2) The ending of the Sammy Keyes series

 HOUSE OF HADES FIRST CHAPTER SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!!

-The link to the sneak peak is here: http://tibbitoo.tumblr.com/post/53276098285/god-alert-hoh-preview-your-welcome-

Okay, so first, the House of Hades. I really liked this first chapter (which was in Hazel’s point of view by the way) because although it didn’t give away how Annabeth and Percy are in Tartarus besides them still being alive, it established a lot of character development. I know, I know, only 3 out of the 7 were actually conscious but still. You get to see a side of Leo that you’ve ever seen before; he blames himself for what happened back in Rome and is working himself to death so that he can rescue Percy and Annabeth in Greece. It’s more of the bitter side of him, which we don’t really get to see, which was nice. I’m really interested in seeing how his character develops. Then there’s Nico. Nico’s healing and getting back to the way he was before Tartarus and he actually isn’t acting that crazy, so I figure Percy and Annabeth won’t be as bad as I was thinking after they get out of Tartarus (if they get out). And then there’s Hazel. I can’t wait for some sibling bonding/connection between Nico and Hazel; they’re the only siblings on the quest and it’s nice seeing Nico have a sister, a family, again. He trusts her more than anyone, which can be determined based on the fact that Nico told Hazel about a special job/task that needs to be done at the House of Hades in order to close the doors and tells her to keep it on the down-low.  I’m really happy with her POV for the first chapter; it gives a lot of insight into her character and some others. Especially Percy.

It’s always so interesting to see other’s POV’s of Percy. In the last book (MoA), we got to see inside Percy’s head; all his doubts and criticisms against himself, but then Hazel comes along in the first chapter of HoH saying that he’s what kept the 7 together, the GLUE as Juno put it. It’s like while we saw him face all these internal challenges and hardships, the others saw someone who was confident. I think it really reflects the characterization of Percy from the first series. In Percy Jackson and the Olympians, we saw Percy as quirky, fun and having self doubt, but all the campers at Camp Half Blood saw him as some kind of hero who had these awesome powers. It’s the same concept; while Percy doesn’t think highly of himself, the others put him on some pedestal to be praised and admired. Percy really must be good at pretending everything’s fine because he’s got most people fooled. I wonder what the others would think if they saw him as he was-his self doubts and the challenges Gaia gives him on the emotional level.

I mean, Percy knows a lot about his fate and what’s to come (he’s been given many hints by Juno, Phineas and Gaia), yet he still pretends everything’s fine. It’s like the other characters are too memorized with the IDEA of who Percy Jackson is-this great hero with awesome powers who will save the day-that they don’t see the tired, self doubting, sad REAL Percy. It was such a huge difference in perspectives, and what Hazel said really stood out to me. Compared to Percy being “useless” and “doubtful” in MoA (his perspective), Hazel responding to those same actions in HoH by saying how he was confident and lead the group forward is very opposite. Percy just has this eternal sadness that has always interested me. I can see how his character is the same when compared to the first series, to Lightning Thief even. He was the son of one of the Big Three and he was considered very powerful, but he always doubted that power. It makes me sad when I reread the part in MoA where Percy says “You’re wrong. I’m not as good as you think I am” (paraphrased). His fear of suffocation in all these expectations people give him while he feels weak and helpless is going to eat him away. I hope Rick Riordan writes a scene or addresses this in more depth in the future; everyone believes in Percy, but he doesn’t believe in himself.

And then Hazel goes on and tells herself that she needs to do her best so that Percy and Annabeth can be proud of her. It’s just really cool to see Hazel’s perspective of the duo; they seem so vulnerable in their own perspectives but so confident in others’; it’s a huge contrast.

In other news, Wendelin wrote the last sentence of the last chapter in the last book of the Sammy Keyes series last Saturday (I think it was). It really made me sad because I grew up with these books, and I will cry my eyes out when it comes to a close. What Mark said on Wendelin’s blog about the books is so true:

 “To me the core of the books wasn’t the mystery at all. It was the whole ‘fitting in’ thing. You know, when you’re twelve or thirteen and suddenly you leave the K-thru-6^th land of‘children only’ and you’re thrown into this weird menagerie of half-grown semi adult creatures… of several sub-species. The spoiled rich kids. The jocks. The popular ones. The nerdy outcasts. And all of those (all of us?) who don’t fit neatly into one of the above boxes, but are somewhere on the continuum between them, just trying to fit in. Who just want a good friend or two who understands them and makes them feel like they’re not facing the universe alone.” -Mark

 

 I first started reading the books when I first entered 6^th grade and became obsessed with them in 7^th grade. They’re what helped me find my groove in middle school (heck, even high school) and they taught me a LOT. I don’t have a huge group of friends (just 3 really close ones), but I love them dearly and Sammy taught me that that was okay. She taught me it was okay to be spunky and be who I am. So what if she wanted to wear high-tops? She was gonna. She didn’t let people tell her who she was or what she should be. She surrounded herself with friends that understood her and was who she was without being ashamed. She showed me it was okay to be me and to mess up. She really helped me throughout middle school and now high school, and now the books are closing in as I’m closing in on my child hood.

The last heroes of Olympus book and the last Sammy Keyes book are coming out the fall of my senior year of high school, before I turn 18 in May. I’ve grown up with these books and they’ve shaped me who I am today and have helped me not to abandon who I am. I’m not saying I’ll give up being a fan of these series (they’ll always be in my heart and I’ll reread them), but their stories of growing up will come to a close as a I face the world as an adult. And as my favorite characters (friends, family) grow up to become something bigger than they are to reach a destiny that is unknown to them, I will face a destiny that is uncertain. It truly is as if the books and I grew up together, and now we have to part ways. And the thing is? I’ve always been terrible at saying goodbye.