I recently read an article on the New Yorker’s website entitled “The Percy Jackson Problem.” The premise of the article is that children seem to be reading the wrong things. It argues that perhaps Percy Jackson is not the best place for a student to read because of its tired concept and questionable writing style. It presents both sides of the argument for and against the reading of some of the most popular books of modern times. The author presents Neil Gaiman’s “gateway drug” argument and Tim Parks argument that this is complete slop. In the end she does not concede to either argument but admits that there is merit to both.

Admittedly the Percy Jackson stories are not literary masterpieces, not even close. The language is elementary at best and there is not much literary value to them. That being said, I enjoy the stories. They are fun and they take an interesting spin on ancient mythology. They are entertaining and they are among my list of other young adult books that I like to read because they are simply amusing. On the other hand I also count The Fountainhead, 1984, and Fahrenheit 451 among my favorite books of all time.

I can say that I probably would not have enjoyed reading except for The Boxcar Children or Nate the Great in Elementary school. If it weren’t for books like the Percy Jackson saga or Eragon in middle school I probably would not have moved on to more complex books.  “I seriously doubt if E.L. James is the first step toward Shakespeare,” Tim Parks argued. “Better to start with Romeo and Juliet.” And it is not to say that he does not have a point. The problem is if people do not start reading somewhere then why would they even pick up Shakespeare in the first place? There is nothing that will push someone away from enjoying something, as my parents are so apt to remind me, than forcing them to do something they do not want to do. I can honestly say that in high school and middle school I read some very good works of literature that I hated solely because we were forced to read them in school.

So, the question is: do I believe that books like Percy Jackson and the Olympians are a “gateway drug?” For some people I do think that they can be and for others I think they will remain stuck in that type of book. The truth is that many people hate reading and the only things they enjoy are Fifty Shades of Grey or Twilight. No amount of forced re-education is going to change their minds to believing The Great Gatsby is a book with much more worth than either of those previously mentioned. If we are assuming that reading middle reader books stunts the growth of a reader where would we prefer they begin?

There are also some positive aspects of books like Percy Jackson as was acknowledged in the article. I know more about Greek Mythology and Egyptian Mythology than I would have known if I had not read those books. Percy Jackson made me personally want to read The Iliad and The Kane Chronicles inspired a speech on Ancient Egyptian Mythology. The imagery and the slang style are not going to improve a child’s reading level but it could attract them to books that might.

This article also reminded me of another argument that I hear all the time and that I hate: that only some mediums are worthy of being viewed. You should read but you should only read these books. You should not watch TV or movies or play video games. I had two friends that would not read The Hunger Games on principle. One of them ended up submitting and finally picking up the book because he had to for a class. He ended up really enjoying it and read the next two even though it was not required. Even after he admitted to the other friend that it was not like most other popular books the other friend still would not read it.

It does not really make sense that we should condemn someone for how they get their entertainment. As I have already pointed out I read fairly often and I read a variety of books. I also watch television and movies and play video games. I would argue that some of the best and most complex stories come out of all three mediums and to a point I would even argue that some of the most interesting and complex stories come out of video games. I am tired of hearing someone condemned because they would rather play a video game than read a book. Video games are interactive stories and some of them are phenomenal The Last of Us and Bioshock Infinite come to mind. There is an English professor at the university I attend who actually writes books about the complexities of video games. So, there is the best of both worlds.

The point I am trying to make is that it does not really matter where the stories come from. It does not really matter whether someone is reading Harry Potter or Ender’s Game or watching Schindler’s List. The point of a book is so that someone reads it and enjoys it. You should not write going in and expecting to change the world with your words. I write because I love it and if my book is passed up from someone else’s that is the prerogative of the reader. The overemphasis on pushing literature that is “cultured” will more likely push readers away from those stories than draw them to the stories. Let people come to great stories on their own. In the end it really doesn’t matter what the story is, all that matters is that stories keep getting told.