The Last Olympian facts for kids
Cover of first edition
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| Author | Rick Riordan |
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| Cover artist | John Rocco |
| Country | United States |
| Series | Percy Jackson & the Olympians (bk 5) |
| Genre | Fantasy, Greek mythology, young-adult novel |
| Publisher | Disney Hyperion |
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Publication date
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May 5, 2009 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover), audiobook |
| Pages | 381 |
| ISBN | 978-1-4231-0147-5 |
| OCLC | 299578184 |
| LC Class | PZ7.R4829 Las 2009b |
| Preceded by | The Battle of the Labyrinth |
| Followed by | The Lost Hero (from The Heroes of Olympus) |
The Last Olympian is an exciting fantasy and adventure story. It's based on Greek mythology and was written by Rick Riordan. The book came out on May 5, 2009. It is the fifth and final book in the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. This story picks up right after The Battle of the Labyrinth. In The Last Olympian, the main character, demigod Percy Jackson, leads his friends. They make a brave last stand to protect Mount Olympus.
When the book was released, many critics gave it great reviews. It quickly became a number one bestseller. It topped the USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Los Angeles Times bestseller lists.
Story Summary
The story begins with Percy Jackson and Rachel Dare driving. Suddenly, Charles Beckendorf appears. Percy and Beckendorf leave to attack The Princess Andromeda. This is the ship of Kronos. Kronos is the evil Titan king. He is using Luke's body. Kronos already knows about the attack. A spy at Camp Half-Blood warned him. Sadly, Beckendorf is killed during the attack.
Percy wakes up later in his father Poseidon's underwater palace. The palace is under attack by the Titan Oceanus. Percy wants to help fight. But Poseidon sends him back to Camp Half-Blood. Percy needs to hear the "Great Prophecy." At camp, Percy tells everyone about the spy. He also learns that the Olympians (the gods) are fighting Typhon. Typhon is a giant monster.
That night, Percy leaves with Nico di Angelo. Nico is the son of Hades. They are looking for a way to defeat Kronos. They visit Luke's mother in Westport, Connecticut. They also talk with Hestia, the goddess of the hearth. Percy gets a special blessing from his mother. Then, he goes down into the Underworld. He bathes in the River Styx. This gives him the curse of Achilles, making him almost invincible. Nico betrays Percy for information about his mother. But Percy still succeeds. He uses his new invulnerability to defeat many of Hades's monsters.
Percy comes out of the Underworld in New York City. He leaves Nico behind. Nico's job is to convince Hades to join the fight. Percy calls the campers to help defend Olympus. The gods are still busy fighting Typhon. Just before the big battle, a powerful sleeping spell hits New York City. It comes from Morpheus (god of dreams), Hecate (goddess of magic), and Kronos.
The Olympian army struggles to fight Kronos's forces. They are joined by Thalia's Hunters of Artemis. Also, the Party Ponies and other allies help. Camp Half-Blood loses about 16 campers out of 40. Annabeth gets badly hurt. She saves Percy from an attack by Ethan Nakamura. The attack would have hit Percy's weak spot. Even after these problems, Percy refuses to give up. Prometheus offers him a chance to surrender. Percy gives Prometheus's gift, Pandora's pithos, to Hestia.
The campers successfully defeat Hyperion, another Titan. This makes Kronos even angrier. Rachel Dare arrives. She has been having strange moments of prophecy. She warns Percy about a drakon. This monster can only be killed by a child of Ares. The campers struggle against the drakon. Then, Silena Beauregard shows up. She is disguised as Clarisse, Ares's head counselor. She breaks the Ares cabin's boycott of the war. Silena gets badly hurt. The real Clarisse arrives, furious. She kills the drakon by herself. As Silena is dying, the campers learn she was the spy. But she chose to fix her mistakes after Beckendorf's death.
Percy contacts his father, Poseidon. He asks Poseidon to join the fight against Typhon. Poseidon agrees, even though he doesn't want to. Percy and his friends are pushed back to the Empire State Building. They make their last stand to protect Mount Olympus. Even when Hades arrives with Nico and an army, Kronos still gets into Olympus. Percy attacks Kronos. Neither side gains a clear advantage. In an Iris message (a magical vision), they see Typhon approaching New York. Poseidon and his cyclopes defeat Typhon. Ethan Nakamura also turns against Kronos but is killed. Kronos attacks Annabeth. Luke is able to take back control of his body. With Percy's help, Luke hurts himself at his mortal point. This successfully banishes Kronos to a void. As he dies, Luke tells Percy that Ethan was right. The war happened because unrecognized gods and unclaimed demigods felt angry. Luke dies peacefully. The Fates carry his body away.
The gods give rewards to the heroes who helped defeat the Titans. These heroes include Thalia, Grover, Annabeth, Tyson, Clarisse, and Nico. Finally, Percy is called forward. Zeus offers him the greatest gift: immortal godhood. To everyone's surprise, Percy refuses. Instead, he asks the gods to make a promise on the River Styx. They must claim all demigods by age thirteen. They must build cabins for the children of all minor gods and Hades. They also need to give mercy to innocent Titans and their former allies. Percy also frees Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades from their oath. This oath said they would not have demigod children.
After the meeting, Percy finds out Rachel plans to become the new Oracle. He rushes to camp with Annabeth and Nico. With Apollo's help, Rachel safely becomes the new Oracle. She speaks the next Great Prophecy. The book ends shortly after Annabeth celebrates Percy's birthday. The two start dating. The gods are keeping their new promises. Camp Half-Blood is slowly returning to normal. The many fallen demigods are honored with the end-of-summer bead.
Main Characters
- Percy Jackson - He is the main hero and narrator of the Percy Jackson & the Olympians books. Percy is fifteen years old in The Last Olympian. He is the son of Poseidon, the sea god. Like Luke and Achilles, he bathes in the River Styx. This makes him invincible, except for one small spot. He starts dating Annabeth Chase on his sixteenth birthday. They even share an underwater kiss!
- Luke Castellan - A 23-year-old demigod. He is the son of Hermes. Luke willingly let Kronos use his body. He hated the Olympian gods. Even though he was an enemy throughout the series, he sacrifices himself. He destroys Kronos at the end of the book. In a way, he becomes the true hero of the Great Prophecy.
- Kronos - The powerful former king of the Titans. He wants to rule again. He also wants revenge on the gods who defeated him long ago.
- Annabeth Chase - She is the daughter of Athena, the goddess of wisdom. Annabeth is Percy's close friend. She is also an aspiring architect, someone who designs buildings.
- Ethan Nakamura - An ally of Kronos. He is the son of Nemesis, the goddess of revenge. Without him, Kronos might not have become so powerful. Like Luke, he feels betrayed by the Greek gods. They don't give his mother the same respect as the twelve main Olympians.
- Grover Underwood - Percy's best friend. He is a satyr, a creature that is half-human, half-goat. Grover is a new member of the Council of Cloven Elders. He also represents the power of the god Pan in the world.
- Thalia Grace - A daughter of Zeus, the king of the gods. She leads a group of Artemis's followers, called the Hunters. People once thought she might be the demigod of the Great Prophecy. She is immortal but looks nearly sixteen years old.
- Nico di Angelo - A son of Hades, the god of the Underworld. Nico plays a key role in convincing his father, Demeter, and Persephone to fight against the Titans.
- Charles Beckendorf and Silena Beauregard - They are a couple who both die defending Olympus. Beckendorf is the son of Hephaestus. Silena is the daughter of Aphrodite. Beckendorf's death by Luke's hand makes Silena decide to stop being Kronos's spy.
- Clarisse La Rue - A daughter of Ares, the god of war. At first, she and her cabin refuse to fight in the war. This is because of a disagreement with Apollo's cabin. But her friend Silena Beauregard dies, partly because Clarisse refused to fight. This changes Clarisse's mind.
What Happens Next
Another series about Camp Half-Blood has been released. It is called The Heroes of Olympus. The Lost Hero is the first book in this new series by Rick Riordan. It came out on October 12, 2010. This series is not directly about Percy and his friends. But it has many references to them. Some of the original characters also appear. So, it still acts as a sequel. The next book, The Son of Neptune, features Percy as one of the main heroes. The Son of Neptune is followed by The Mark of Athena, The House of Hades, and The Blood of Olympus.
See also
In Spanish: El último héroe del Olimpo para niños
