I love MG: Percy & Pan

Satyr-cial character building: In Percy Jackson & the Olympians Book 1 The Lightning Thief, the action slows [Chapter 12] when Percy's satyr friend Grover reveals he's on a quest to find Pan, the God of Wild Places.

In a quiet conversation between friends, Grover shares with Percy that this could be a fatal undertaking, but he's committed to his task. More than anything, Grover wants to restore order in a world of environmental chaos. In that moment, Percy's goofball sidekick becomes a tragic protagonist worthy of his own journey and book series, and it's just one more reason why I love to read Middle Grade. 

Grover took his read pipes out of his pocket. "No searcher has ever come back. Once they set out, they disappear. They're never seen alive again."

"Not once in a thousand years?"

"No."

"And your dad? You have no idea what happened to him?"

"None."

"But you still want to go," I said, amazed. "I mean, you really think you'll be the one to find Pan?"

"I have to believe that, Percy. Every searcher does. It's the only thing that keeps us from despair when we look at what humans have done to the world. I have to believe that Pan can still be awakened."