From the Bookshelf of Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy…

Ready Player One (Ready Player One, #1)

Ernest Cline

Start date: November 21, 2017

Finish date: December 20, 2013

Discussion: Book Discussions

Discussion leader: Andrea

Why we're reading this: Group Contemporary Novel Discussion December 2017
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What Members Thought

Apr 10, 2013 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 1audio, 2fiction, scifi

Will Wheaton was the perfect reader & is actually mentioned by his real name in the story. If you don't know who I'm talking about, then don't bother reading the book or this review. I don't think anyone who isn't into video games or a bit of an SF nerd will get much out of this. It's probably best if you grew up in the 80's, too. Those of us who are a bit older (OK, quite a bit. My kids grew up in the 80's.) but somewhat geeky will also love it.

This had it all - a dystopian world of the near fu Will Wheaton was the perfect reader & is actually mentioned by his real name in the story. If you don't know who I'm talking about, then don't bother reading the book or this review. I don't think anyone who isn't into video games or a bit of an SF nerd will get much out of this. It's probably best if you grew up in the 80's, too. Those of us who are a bit older (OK, quite a bit. My kids grew up in the 80's.) but somewhat geeky will also love it.

This had it all - a dystopian world of the near future, social issues, a romance, & fantastic adventure, all set to a backdrop of an 80's geekfest. Early video games figure in prominently along with the music & movies of the decade; War Games, Rush, Star Wars, Zork, Joust, and Blade Runner.

My biggest complaint with the book was redundancy. Cline was too thorough about explaining everything & if there was any chance the idiot reader might not have grasped it the first time, he told me a second time. Drove me a little crazy at times. C'mon! This was a book for nerds. Anyone who can't remember how Joust works needs to play a game again. There's an online version here:
http://www.1980-games.com/us/old-game...
Seriously, that's just one of the sites that comes up. Most of these old games are free online, simply google it.

The book wasn't perfect. It had some issues with a variety of items & pulled off a few cheap shots in the story line. I didn't care much for the way his big infiltration was handled, for instance. Nor (view spoiler) or some of the other tech details, but it was a fun romp. I just went with it & enjoyed. I actually kind of got several of the clues, like Captain Crunch, which made it even more fun.

Overall, it had a great message, too. It is easy to get lost online & ignore the real world even today.

That's just sad, but true. If I was raising a teen today, I'd probably break their phone. Thankfully for my kids, I only stomped one calculator & occasionally took away their computers. Much cheaper.

Anyway, it was great fun & I highly recommend letting Will read it for you. ...more

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Dec 19, 2016 Netanella rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, dystopian, 2016-rrrc-challenge-addicts-reading, cyberpunk, 2016-december-reading-challenge

I loved this book for the first 100 or so pages, then I got a little bit bored with the monotony of the hunt for the Easter egg and the game within the game. I felt like I needed to fast forward VH1's Decade of the 80's to get to the resolution. I really wanted to really fall in love with this book, but I just couldn't, even though I am a Child of the 80's and still have my collection of Dungeons & Dragons rulebooks on one of the many bookshelves. Ultimately, I was annoyed at the length of the b ...more

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Aug 01, 2016 Kivrin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

A quick, fun read. I'm not a gamer but I was around in the 80's so I got a lot of the references (and there are a LOT of references). Early on, I found a lot of the long portions of gamer speak pretty boring, and I skimmed a few paragraphs. Once things really got rolling though, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.

The world was fascinating (both in and out of the Oasis), and I found myself forgetting sometimes that they were avatars in an online universe rather than people in the real world (o ...more

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Dec 14, 2014 mina rated it liked it · review of another edition

Please do not be discouraged by my 3 stars rating. The older I am, the more picky I have become.
But this book is definitely worth-to-read, not only by those who have had their teenage years in the 80s, but also by the current generation; not only by the geeks who will definitely dig the virtual reality life in OASIS, but also by those who'd never even played any games before, due to this book's fast-paced, fun-all-the-way, fuck-em-all attitude.

The background story, the real life, is (our own) 2 Please do not be discouraged by my 3 stars rating. The older I am, the more picky I have become.
But this book is definitely worth-to-read, not only by those who have had their teenage years in the 80s, but also by the current generation; not only by the geeks who will definitely dig the virtual reality life in OASIS, but also by those who'd never even played any games before, due to this book's fast-paced, fun-all-the-way, fuck-em-all attitude.

The background story, the real life, is (our own) 2040 dystopian world. Everyone in the world tries to escape (in such an ignorant, not-responsible way, I would say) to a virtual reality world, OASIS, a VR so much larger and more real and "ideal" compared to the real world.
The owner and designer of OASIS (Halliday) dies that year, and leaves all his immense wealth to anyone who can solve his 80s-pop-culture-related riddles set in OASIS. Then and there, the largest treasure hunt begins.

Enter Wade, the protagonist, a 13 years-old poor boy. He's everything I wish for in a boy: smart, sarcastic, avid (SF/F) reader, skillful gamer, movie buff, good personal hygiene :D He is kind-hearted and ambitious to win, too. An adorable geek. So, he's too good to be true.
Other protagonists are also interesting: Aech, I root on him even more. Art3mis, the "only" female geek in the group. Daito and Shoto, the Japanase geeks. (view spoiler).
Anyway, the story in this book occurs 5 years after Halliday's death.

Up to 50% of this book, I looooove it. I wish I can taste this VR world in the near future.
The things holding me back from giving a 4 star-rating is, first of all, the love story. Seriously. I hate it. Don't get me wrong, I like this Art3mis character. She picks my favourite username back in the day I was first introduced to internet. She's as geeky as Wade in every way. I just DO NOT like love story inserted in this kind of story.
Secondly, the story was sloppy in several parts. (view spoiler)

But, again, I think this is such a fun and easy-read book. Even Warner Bros has bought the licence to film this. Go read the book before the movie is released!

...more

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Jan 31, 2014 Tom rated it it was amazing

Really liked it.

The story is that in the near future, a billionaire child of the 80s dies and leaves his entire fortune, as well as the control keys to an immersive on-line game/universe called the "Oasis"; to the first person who can complete his final game challenge. Of course, there's an evil Comcast-like corporation that wants to win too, so an epic race ensues.

There are some believability issues here in that some "darn meddling kids" figure out clues (to 80s trivia) before an entire army o ...more

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Oct 08, 2016 Wende rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fiction-favorites

Wil Wheaton narrator on audiobook

1 like · Like · see review

Jun 18, 2013 Jenelle Compton rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, apocalyptic-dystopian

A fun read! I really liked all of the 80's references. The random hacker lore was all true and added to the story.
The main character starts out as a nerdy fat kid and totally follows a heroes path to save the day in the end.

This book was interesting and fun to read. The idea of the entire world being obsessed with a video game and an "egg hunt", while the actual world is a terrible dystopia made for a fun story!

...more

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