Is Harry Potter and Percy Jackson really that alike?

[mit'sademigodm]

I hear this all the time, but I don't get why people say they alike. Sure we can list loads of similarities but also I can list some differences

(Same)
Two boys, one girl
Lead character has black hair, green eyes
Both lead characters have never met a family member, Harry was both his parents, Percy his father
Both go off to save the world
Both have a 3 headed dog
Both have a teacher who hates them
Both have a teacher that is old and wise
Both have a prophecy
Both have a young villain with blonde hair
Both noticed at a young age they are not like normal people and they get sent to a place where others are like them, and the lead character mets the smart friend who is female

(Differences)
Potter -Magic /Jackson-Greek Mythology
Potter- Wizards / Jackson - gods and demigods
Potter- People are invented / Jackson- People in this book are all over Greek Mythology
Potter- two words are apart / Jackson- All words are under the gods
Potter- takes place over the school year/ Jackson- Just the summer

so do you think they really alike? People who have read the books(like me) don't think they are alike, yes people may say they are the same nearly as the Percy Jackson and the Lighting Thief and the first two potter films were don't by the same person but apart from that I think both books are very different
D - Percy jackson is about the Greek Gods, theys 5 books in all, a new book out in October.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Percy-Jackson-Lightning-Thief-Riordan/dp/0141319135/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1275403392&sr=8-1

that's the 1st book

 

[CookieDough1]

I never thought about the similarities, so now that you mention them, I guess they are a little alike in details, like the 2 enemies being blonde. The stories however, yes they both go to save the world, but they are completely different stories. I hope I make sense.

 

[D]

I never have even heard of Percy Jackson but it sounds really interesting. Sorry to not answer the question. But thanks for giving me the heads up on a new book to read.

 

[madeline]

You know what Rick Riordan probably did (and this is actually an educated guess because in interviews he mentions Harry Potter)? He probably wrote down the key themes to Harry Potter and changed them up. I've done that before and the plot I came up with ended up looking like your list up there ^^^^

But it's just a thought. I like them both and think they're both very original though!