Nico's first romantic kiss

Well as RR is done with the Percy Jackson world we have to leave the rest to our imaginations.

I like this bit of fan fiction.  This is how I imagine things would go.
http://archiveofourown.org/works/2493254

More to say on the final book itself soon....

National Coming Out Day October 11th, just a few days after Nico Comes Out in Blood of Olympus

What is National Coming Out Day about?

It is NOT about making Gay people come out.
It IS about raising awareness of the issue of Coming Out...

Our society still mostly assumes people are Heterosexual unless there is some big obvious sign to say they are not.
If you are Queer, in any sense of the word, you never stop facing the issue of coming out.  When you meet new people or are in new situations, should you tell people from the start so as to avoid problems in the future? It is not fair, straight people don't have to worry about this over and over again but that is how it is.

Some think gay people shouldn't come out because who they have sex with is is private.  They are trying to be liberal - as in everyone is equal, its OK to be gay these days, they've got gay friends, etc. etc..  I think they have no appreciation of the problem.

I have children in school. Homophobic comments in schools are common place.  I also hear that for many L&G&Bi teenagers this is a particularly difficult time.  The reasons are obvious, surely.  Being a teenage is difficult anyway, plus pressures to conform, to fit in, to get a girl/boyfriend, as well as really having a crush on someone that perhaps you shouldn't fancy.  Do they fancy you or will they find the very idea repulsive?
The issues are well covered in House of Hades and Blood of Olympus, in addition to other books.

Coming Out Day may be an opportunity to raise awareness I would be interested to know what more can be done to help and support queer identifying people in our communities.  Myself, I have always taught my children about diversity, that includes Lesbian and Gay families, even from a very young age.

Nico Di Angelo Coming Out Day

In the Hero's of Olympus books Nico struggles with feelings of isolation and a fear that no one could like him, common feelings that teenagers can identify with.  Nico comes out in the last two books, he is lucky that he meets no hostility - but lets face it who would be brave enough or foolish enough to mock one of the most powerful demi-Gods, a demi-god who can summon a Zombie army, the son of Hades.
Instead Nico is surprised to realise people like him.

What happens to Nico in Blood of Olympus?

So many questions - is Nico Gay in this book? Does he tell Percy how he feels about him?
Do other people find out?
Does Nico find romantic interest with someone else?
There will be no Blood of Olympus spoilers on my website in the very month the book is published so I am going to tell you that I enjoyed the way RR wrote about Nico and how things ended for him.

Blood of Olympus is a good book.
To fully appreciate Nico's story you really need to go back to when his character first appeared, in the Percy Jackson books.  By the time the Hero's of Olympus series begins Nico is already established as a great hero in the Greek camp, as important as Percy.
He is a son of one of the big three God's and just as powerful as Percy& Jason (perhaps the most powerful of all).
As readers we like him.

The story about growing up and feelings changing.  This book is also totally suitable for the age group of children who have read the other books, age 9+.

The House of Hades and now the Blood of Olympus are ground breaking books.

Less than 24 Hours to Go

then I will be reading my new copy of the latest and final installment.
Blood of Olympus

I have been rereading the earlier books to remind myself of the back story to the many main characters.
I am so excited.

The Final Installment

Less than one month to go before I get my hands on the final book in the series, The Blood of Olympus. I still recall reading the very first Percy Jackson book and I do hope there will be more.

The books have fueled my interest in Greek Mythology, which is still relevant and influential today.  I can most highly recommend the book Percy Jackson's Greek Gods, it was as good and as funny as the other books by Rick Riordan.

James Howe and the 4 Misfits Books

At last another book in the series from James Howe.

My 12 year old son greatly enjoyed the Misfits (as did I).  Interestingly he doesn't identify with their group - he's quite popular and e goes to a selective school - so all the kids are bright.  He has just read Totally Joe and is about to start on Addie on the Inside.  Several times he has asked me if there is or will be a book from Skeezies point of view.
And now there is.

Personally I was Addie when I was at school so I know how well her character was written.

Also Know As Elvis by James Howe was published recently but I've not read it yet.
http://parents.simonandschuster.com/9781442445109

Alec & Magnus Bane a gay love story within main stream Young Adult Fiction

I have been enjoying the Immortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare (but I might not admit it to anyone I wanted to impress).

In my honest opinion this is romantic trash fiction for teenagers (age 14+) and no where near as good as the Percy Jackson books — but books do not have to be that good to still be enjoyable. I am enjoying the writing of Ms Clare but it is a bit too racy and too romantic for younger readers.

I wanted to tell readers of this blog that gay/bi sexuality is really marvellously handled in these novels, it is all just normal, as it should be.  Alec is scared of coming out, which is understandable.  There is homophobia is the world but such views are held by the minority.

If you want to tuck into a series similar to the Percy Jackson books with a gay story thread throughout then I would recommend the Immortal Instruments, starting with City of Bones.

I was delighted to find online that the author has a treat for fans of Magnus & Alec, their first kiss.  It would have taken place within the City of Bones (book 1) story but it is not in that book, you can read it on her website here:
http://www.cassandraclare.com/my-writing/excerpts-extras/kissed/

By the way, there are a series of films based on the books, I've not seen the films so can't comment on those.

A good source for "gay-friendly" children's books

I just discovered that the British website of the campaigning organisation Stonewall has an excellent comprehensive list of books to recommend for all ages.
Type books into the search box of the home page.
http://www.stonewall.org.uk/what_we_do/at_school/3730.asp

Some of the books for younger children are not about sexuality as such but celebrate diversity.

And
This article lists a load of new books that I've not seen:
http://www.theguardian.com/childrens-books-site/2014/may/15/top-ten-lgbt-books-for-pre-teens-susie-day

Counting down the months unitl the next installment

Just over six months to go until we read the final book in this series - I have days blanked out in my diary so I can sit and enjoy the book and then engage online with people who want to discuss it. I hope the author will eventually write more as we love these characters and they are still so young. I am, however, also looking forward to meeting the new characters in his new books about Norse mythology. I am hoping for gay/bi characters to be written in the same way as Nico was developed: I have been reading many other styles and genres lately. I am a gown-up of course, so I have been reading grown up books too. I have come across nothing new that I could recommend to readers of this blog though I feel sure writers out there somewhere must be inspired and encouraged by House of Hades.

Gay teenagers Know or Suspect by the time they are 13

It is important that gay characters show up in modern literature for kids because kids themselves are aware of sexuality and recent research supports what many already were saying: Most kids know they are gay or are questioning their sexuality by the time they enter the teenage years. Unfortunately, the research also shows what a difficult time kids have: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/mental-health-crisis-looms-for-gay-teenagers-9053688.html

Banned Books & Gay Characters

I've been reading some books for older people just lately (perhaps more my own age) but on my list of books to read soon I am including something by Tim Federle after reading his interesting article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tim-federle/book-for-kids-raises-eyebrows-over-young-gay-character_b_3976264.html Tim Federle has written Better Nate than Ever. Now I like musicals as much as the next woman, and I grew up with them as people my age did (there was only 3 TV channels and two of them were probably showing sport of war films so I call that no choice). Books about people who love musicals would not be my first choice but I'll give this a go.

How Many kids got Percy Jackson & Heroes of Olympus Books For Christmas?

I have no idea but one would think that more kids will discover these books after seeing the films. I spoke to a ten year old boy today who has just read the Sea of Monsters and he thought it was much better than the film.