Percy: The Importance of Family

In the book The Lightning Thief, Percy has many problems. One problem is that he has a Greek God as a parent. This means that instead of being a normal kid with a normal life, he is an abnormal kid with no dad, except for his ugly fat step-dad Gabe. Gabe has no love for Percy, which means that Percy's life is absolutely terrible. Being the only one that cares for him, his mom is forced to take care of him which is a near impossible task because he has gotten expelled from every school he's gone to. Having a very hard life is nothing new for Percy, but he still would not be able to survive without his mom. The importance of a good mom is huge in Percy's life, and it is the only reason he has been able to keep it together.

Some things that Percy's mom has done to really help Percy was to marry Gabe. It may seem crazy, but Gabe is what has kept the monsters away from him all this time. His horrific smell and lack of hygiene has kept the monsters unaware of Percy's existence. If Gabe had not been around, then Percy would never have been kept alive long enough to go to Camp Half Blood. If he hadn't gone to Camp Half Blood, then he never would have been able to return Zeus's master Bolt. If he couldn’t have done that, then the world would be at nuclear war with itself, and the Gods would turn against one another.

Although it seems that Percy's mom went through you know what and back by marrying Gabe, she has had to go through far worse for him. After Percy's real dad (the Greek God) left them, his mom has had to deal with a heartbreaking experience. She was forced to come to the realization that marrying a god wasn't going to work out, even though they loved each other. In the book, the author writes this like it is the worse experience ever to go through for Percy's mom. Driving Percy all the way to Camp Half Blood where he could be safe was also no problem right? Not exactly. She was being chased by the minotaur, which is a giant bull like monster. The minotaur took her and sent her to Hades. She didn't exactly die, but the experience was no different. Without her going through both of these, Percy would be dead and the world would be at war.

Even though Percy's mom may not seem as powerful as a Greek God or even Percy himself, they all have a huge thank you to give her. Percy saved the world, and his mom saved him. In other words, she saved the world. Once again, the only reason Percy is still alive is all because of his mom. All of the decisions she made has helped Percy stay safe, and out of the monsters hands. Percy could turn out to be the most famous Olympian in all of the world, and it will be his mom who is to thank. If there is a true hero in this book then it is definitely his mom. Percy was the one who got all the glory for returning from a quest, but he never could have gotten there without a great parent like his mom.

Letter to Percy

Dear Percy Jackson,

It has come to my attention that Zeus's Master Lightning Bolt has been stolen, and he thinks that it was you who committed the crime. Some possible reasons for him thinking this are that you are Poseidon's son. Him and Zeus don't get along very well at all, so he should have a good reason to think this. Another possible reason is that there was a treaty signed withing the gods that stated that they can have no more children. You became Poseidon's son after this treaty was made. Zeus may think that you were born only for the sole purpose of taking his bolt. I'm not saying that you are not important, because you obviously have proven yourself to be.

There are only a few possible resolutions to the problem that could end up destroying the world. One of the solutions, could be doing things the hard way. You could travel over the entire country to try and find the master Bolt and return it to Mt. Olympus in two weeks. This would probably save your life (if Zeus is feeling generous), and it could stop all the arguing going on between Zeus and your dad. One other possible resolution would be to try and find any sort of proof that you did not take the most powerful weapon in the world. This might be an easier task, but even if you can find proof, Zeus will probably kill you anyways as long as the Master Bolt isn't returned by the Summer Solstice.
This leaves you a choice. You can either go out and search for the Master Bolt, or find proof that neither you or Poseidon didn't take it. It is your choice, but you need to act quickly seeing as the Solstice is in only 14 days time. The fate of the world may be resting on your soldiers, and chances are fifty fifty that you will be killed. Good luck, and no pressure!!!!

Signed,
Unknown writer

The Patriot Movie Essay

Bang! The shot fired by Gabriel hit a redcoat square in the chest. Being his father, Benjamin sat watching from a short distance. Picking up another blood stained rusty musket, he took aim and fired, connecting with his target. What would you do if your oldest son decided to go fight in the revolutionary war, with your side having barely a slim chance at winning? During both the movie The Patriot and the book My Brother Sam is Dead that is exactly what happens. Many similarities, and many differences occur between the two, but there are more similarities.

There are many similarities between both the book and the movie. For example, the main character Tim from My Brother Sam is Dead, has to watch his older brother walk off to the war to fight for the colonists, even though his family is loyal to England. Benjamin, who is the main character from The Patriot, has to watch his son walk off to war not knowing if he will ever see him again. Both of the kids that walked off to war were around 17-18 in age, and they both told their fathers the same thing before they left. They both said, “My duty to my country comes first before anything else.” When Sam did that from the book, his father got extremely angry, but when Gabriel said that, his father only tried desperately to talk him out of it. Should they both have listened to their fathers advice, or will they have made the right decision?

Although there are many similarities between the two, they also have many differences. For example, Sam from the book belongs to a Tory family, which means that when he went to fight for the colonists, it was almost treason to his family. Being a soldier has to be tough, because you almost leave everything your family had ever believed in, to go fight in some crazy war that no one thinks you can win. Gabriel on the other hand had a family loyal to the Colonies. When he walked out, his family did not think badly of him at all, they were just worried that he would be killed. Another difference is that in The Patriot, Gabriel’s father Benjamin came into the war with him after a while, just to get his revenge. Without the men, the family has to go into hiding which makes just staying alive quite difficult.Life (Sams Dad) from the book My Brother Sam is Dead however,does not want any part of the war. The two fathers’ are completely different except for the fact that they both hated the idea of their sons going into war.

Even though there are many differences between the book and the movie, there were definitely more similarities. Although Benjamin and Sam’s father thought differently, they both wanted the same thing, which was to have their sons out of the war. In the end, Gabriel and Sam made the wrong decision. Gabriel was stabbed and died in Benjamin’s arms, while Sam was shot for treason to his troops. Even though the movie and the book end a little differently, the end result is that same. The Patriot and My Brother Sam is Dead had a lot in common, and not much different.

The frog named Jim's Life

Along the waterline, Jim the fat dark green frog sat perched upon an even darker green lily pad overlooking the crystal clear lake. The lake was a glass window, unmoving, and transparent. Jim often wondered what secrets the deepest depths of the giant lake held. Jim continued to scan the horizon that had the bright sun just breaking out over the tops of the trees that looked as if they had been set on fire. Jim was not interested in watching the sun rise today though. He hopped onto another smaller lily pad, which almost sank under his massive weight. He continued to hop until he reached the uninhabited shore which was filled with dead leaves that had fallen from the trees. He hopped some more until he sat upon a hollowed out log which was the ideal spot for catching flies. Spotting one immediately, he waited for the precise moment to attack. His dark black eyes darted from side to side as if dancing to a beat. Then suddenly, he lunged forward with his long sticky pink tongue until it reached the fly. His tongue was a fleshy boomerang. It would go out, catch the pray and come right back. The fresh taste of blood and garbage filled his taste buds as the fat and juicy fly was swallowed up. Jim took satisfaction in the kill, mainly because he was so hungry. For quite some time, he sat staring around at his surroundings. His eyes moved from the thick oak trees filled with color on his left to the clear sky and water on his right. Jim really was just a tiny creature who craved flies and nothing else. All of a sudden a black missile flew straight in front of him, and Jim instantly recognized the 3D eyes and transparent wings. Once again his pitch black eyes darted from side to side, and then suddenly, he attacked.

How Phillip's Life Ended

On the coldest winter day in the history of the world, Phillip had the worst possible job in the history of the world with the worst possible boss in the history of the world. It was not that he hated his job, but it was freezing out, his boss was a lunatic, and he might freeze to death. It was -39 degrees outside, and the wind was blowing at 13 miles an hour. Phillip had watched the news previously in the morning on his 12 inch TV, and the weather guys were saying that it could be suicide to go out in the cold for any longer than 10 minutes. Phillip took this news as an excellent sign that work was canceled, but boy was he poorly mistaken. While he was walking back toward his white lump of a bed, Phillip heard the phone ring. His boss would not tolerate that his employees take one day of rest during the year, which included Christmas and today. Days of rest would mean less money for him, and less money for him meant less donuts and McDonald’s trips. With no work, Phillip could have done whatever his heart intended. Now he got to look forward to a freezing day of pushing shopping carts. As Phillip hung up on his outraged boss, he slipped on his coat and walked out the door.


Whoever the weather man was had not been lying. Right when Phillip walked in his garage the wind almost threw him off his feet and back into the garage door. Slowly steadying himself, he reached for the handle on his 1991 minivan. Phillip was able to avoid the wind, but when he got in, the wind slammed the car door so hard that it knocked Phillip into the passenger seat. Phillip loudly grunted as he turned the keys in the ignition. car would not start. This could not be happening to him, not now. Trying to control himself was hard. Slamming on the wheel as hard as he could, did not make the anger leave him. Before he did the action, he knew he would regret it. His hands smashed into the horn causing not only an annoying sound to follow, but also lots of pain shooting up his arms. Yet still, the car would not start. Without his car, Phillip would have to walk to work. Seeing that there was no point in trying to start the rusty old vehicle anymore, Phillip just rested his head on the seat for a few seconds before deciding what to do. Until the weather cleared up, or his car got fixed Phillip was stuck with walking to work.


Phillip flung the door open as hard as he could, and to his amazement, it came off its hinges. Great now he had lost his car completely. All of a sudden, caprice came over him. What used to be anger had turned to a terrible sense of loss. Memories of his old job, his wife, his kids and his whole life went flashing through his mind in seconds. Phillip had lost everything. He had lost his job. He had lost his wife and kids to a car accident. He had lost his whole life in a matter of 48 hours. Without his family, his life was ruined. Suddenly Phillip turned, and started walking to work. As if a light switch had been turned from on to off, the memories faded, and vanished.


Walking to work was very difficult, and when Phillip had gotten to the nearby Wal-Mart, his hands were so cold that when he tried to grab the first set of shopping carts, his hand could not grasp the handle. With no hands, Phillip could not work. Feeling as though he were paralyzed, Phillip sulked into the bathroom to try and warm up some. After his hands could move some, he marched out of the stinky old bathroom that needed a new paint job, and walked outside straight to the first line of carts that needed to be brought back in. As of now it was the worst job anyone could ever imagine, but he was proud of being able to do something so thrilling and make some money doing so. For some people, they got to sit in a boring office that smells of coffee and stare at a computer screen. Phillip decided this was better. Throughout the day, Phillip would take breaks, and before he knew it, it was lunchtime. It had been half a work day with not many problems, but would the second half be just as easy?


Even though the first part of the day had been epic and flawless, Phillip was having doubts about the second half. For starters, the first think that went wrong, was that Phillip slipped on some ice. Following this, the next thing that went terribly wrong was that he could not stabilize himself properly on the pavement, so he landed on his head. He felt something pop in his back, and then the world spun, and Phillip was on the ground. Without any customers around to see the fall, he was alone.

Even though there were no customers around, Phillip was feeling embarrassed. As he tried to get up, he noticed he could not move his entire body. There was no pain at any part of his body at all. With no pain, Phillip was utterly confused at what was going on. Suddenly out of nowhere, a sense of dread came over him. Whatever the popping in his back had been , the no pain, and the fact that he could not move gave him one conclusion. This time, Phillip literally was paralyzed. Phillip then realized that the only thing he could move was his head, and only a slight rotation was possible. Then a sound of absolute terror filled his ears. The honk of a truck and the squeaking of its breaks and tires as it were backing out made him want to get up and run, but he could not do that. Phillip had been in lot 30, the one closest to where the trucks came and went to drop off or pick up supplies. Tilting his head as far as it could go, Phillip saw a large pitch black tire slowly inching its way toward his limp body.

The Lightning Thief Prediction

The book The Lightning Thief is about a 12 year old boy named Percy Jackson. Percy isn't a normal human being, because his dad is a Greek god. As soon as Percy figures out about this, his life begins to change. He gets run down by a minotaur in his first day knowing that he is a half blood. Then after defeating the minotaur, he runs straight into Camp Half Blood which is were all of the half bloods live and train. This book follows a comedy plotline, because Percy's world is not in peril or distraught, and is not perfect either. At this point in the story it is hard to tell exactly what will happen to Percy, seeing as he does not know his godly parent yet, and has not proven himself to be good at anything at the Camp. I think that when Percy does find out who his godly parent is, that he will become a very powerful half blood. I also think that when he finds who his godly parent is, that he will find himself in the world and realize his purpose. Also I think that by the end of the book, he will solve the main conflict, which is that Zeus's lightning bolt has been stolen. Since the book follows a comedy plotline, something good will happen at the end of the book. I think that this is why Percy will solve the main conflict. Percy from this book can be related to the main character Matt from the book Gone. They have many differences, but they are both looking for their purpose in the world, and they both have a dad they have never seen before. They also both have to solve a huge problem that could make or break the world.