Battle of the Labyrinth Event Kit [PDF] - Percy Jackson and the ...

Humans are mucking up the environment. Grover is desperate to find Pan, and when he learns the
truth about the god’s long absence, he has to do some serious soul-searching. I think we can all relate
to Grover’s desire to find Pan. We look around the world; we read headlines about global warming
and ecological disasters. Wouldn’t it be nice if Pan, the god of nature, could set everything right for
us? But of course in real life, as in mythology, the answers never come easily.
Do heroes ever prove themselves, or is it a never-ending process? Is there ever a happy ending, or is
it just delayed doom?
In Greek mythology, heroes hardly ever have a happy ending. They struggle ceaselessly. They prove
their bravery and ingenuity over and over, but in the end, they succumb to their fatal flaws or they
are brought low by fate. Still, we remember them for their efforts. They become immortal because
they struggled against impossible odds. Will Percy have a happy ending? I can’t tell you! His mother
named him Perseus because the original Perseus was an exception to the rule. He lived happily ever
after. Book five will tell if Percy is able to live up to his namesake.
What’s your favorite monster in The Battle of the Labyrinth and why?
So many great monsters! It’s hard to choose, but I would have to say Mrs. O’Leary, the friendly
hellhound. She’s a little intimidating, being the size of a tank and chewing the heads off warrior mannequins,
but she proves a very important helper in Percy’s quest.
Daedalus is such a fascinating figure—was it hard to wait for the fourth book before you gave him
flesh, so to speak?
The inventor Daedalus has always been one of my favorite figures in mythology. He’s really the precursor
to every great mortal thinker, from da Vinci to Einstein. It was great fun imagining what his
workshop would be like, and what he would’ve been inventing over the last few thousand years if
he were still alive. He’s a troubled person. He has a lot of anger and bitterness, but he’s also brilliant.
The big question for me was: Will he be an enemy or a friend for Percy? The Battle of the labyrinth
hinges on the answer.
Question: What’s next for Percy and the Olympians?
Book five —the big finale! I’m writing the conclusion for the series right now, and I’m having so
much fun. Will Olympus fall? Is Percy really the hero of the prophecy? Will Annabeth and Percy
ever get together? Will Luke escape the clutches of Kronos? Will Grover ever learn to play something
besides Hilary Duff on his wooden pipes? All of the big questions are finally answered. I can
promise quite a few surprises, and a battle of . . . well, Olympic proportions. It will be the final
chapter of Percy’s story, though I’m not closing the door on Camp Half-Blood forever. There are
many other possible stories there, and it’s a place I would love to return some day. We’ll just have
to see what the future holds!
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