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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

Feb 01, 2014 Michael rated it it was amazing

If you have read any other review about this book you know that even though it takes place in the near future, it is largely preoccupied with 1980's pop culture: movies, video games, board games, music, and television shows. This however doesn't speak much to the story or characters. What I haven't heard yet, is that it is actually very much like Willy Wonka and His Chocolate Factory. The plot is extremely similar, except that instead of a chocolate factory, it's a massive virtual world/game. It ...more

84 likes · Like · see review

May 02, 2017 Jason Koivu rated it liked it

Shelves: non-fiction, fantasy, fiction, history, sci-fi

All the kids are reading it! And here I am, late to the party as usual. Actually, I wasn't even invited...as usual.

Ready Player One has generated the kind of phenomenal interest few could have predicted. The book seems to appeal greatly to 80s nostalgics and romanticizers. There are a few people from my generation who wish they'd never left the 1980s. There are also a few millennials who wish they could've lived it. The former seem to be forgetting and later is apparently unaware of how shitty t ...more

45 likes · Like · see review

Aug 30, 2013 Danielle The Book Huntress rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2014-cover-to-cover-challenge, virgin-hero, library-checkout, 2014-challenge-factory-challenge, action-adventure-group-read, alternate-dimension-or-world, apocalyptic-postapocalyptic-dystopi, science-fiction, 2014-action-adventure-aficionados-c, nerd-prof-scientist-genius-geek

I'm really glad the Action/Adventure Aficionados group chose this as a monthly reading selection. It encouraged me to grab the audiobook from my library. And this was a book I am definitely glad I read.

I grew up in the 80s, so most of the pop culture references hit me right where I lived. I'm not much of a gamer, although we did have an Atari 2600 growing up, so I totally got some of the more obvious ancient gaming references, even though the more obscure gaming references passed me by. But tha I'm really glad the Action/Adventure Aficionados group chose this as a monthly reading selection. It encouraged me to grab the audiobook from my library. And this was a book I am definitely glad I read.

I grew up in the 80s, so most of the pop culture references hit me right where I lived. I'm not much of a gamer, although we did have an Atari 2600 growing up, so I totally got some of the more obvious ancient gaming references, even though the more obscure gaming references passed me by. But that was okay, because many of the references were explained over the course of this novel.

This book will tap into the reader's hidden or untapped geeky depths. Maybe you already know you're a geek of old. Or maybe you never realized how much of a geek you are. Either way, you will find some resonance in this novel.

To be honest, I was thrown by the this novel's rather bleak beginning. I expected something more light-hearted. In a strange way, this book is both tragic and light-hearted fun. The tragedy is in the fact that people hide from the world in the worlds of fiction and gaming when the world is falling apart around them. And who can blame them, really? Some of us know how the creator of the OASIS, James Halliday, feels, having felt socially awkward and rejected by the mainstream, finding your identity in your particular fandom or sub-culture. Also, it was amazingly shocking how ruthless IOI was in getting their way. I can be a bit suspicious and mistrustful of big business, no question about that. But I didn't expect IOI to be willing to commit murder to win the contest. That was surprising to me.

I really liked Wade as the lead character. He is quite cynical in a way that I found sad, but I don't live in the world he does. Maybe all belief would be snatched out of me too if I lived what he lives through (I hope not). Even with his flaws, he's a rootable hero, and I was actually quite worried about him throughout this novel I also liked H and Ar3mis and Shoto. I wasn't expecting a bad guy, but boy does this book have a majorly hard core bad guy and they are quite relevant to the world we live in today.

Wil Wheaton is a fantastic narrator. He imbues the characters with plenty of life, makes them believable and sympathetic when they are supposed to be, and seriously mega-jerks when they are not.

This is one of those books that I feel is enhanced significantly by the audiobook experience. I felt even more like I was part of the book. It's a long book, but it doesn't feel long, because the story flows so well.

Even though some aspects could be on the technical end of computer knowledge, it doesn't feel technical or dry to me. I'm not a computer programmer by trade or aspiration, so anything that goes too much in that direction tends to go over my head. Thankfully, Cline doesn't bog down the narrative with too many technical explanations.

I found the gamescape fascinating, and I rooted for Wade and his friends to work their way through the OASIS and claim the Egg.

I think that Cline appeals to readers in that he has so many different avenues of pop culture that even if you aren't a gamer or into online culture, you can still appreciate the TV, books, music and movie tidbits from this book. I am not shamed that I have not seen Monty Python and the Holy Grail, since I did watch the show. If folks are giving out geek creds, I have plenty in other areas. Even if you aren't technically a geek, you might still enjoy this book. It's a fun adventure book with plenty of laughs, more sadness than I expected, and realistic characters who will have you cheering them on.

I give this one the highest of fives. ...more

36 likes · Like · see review

Dec 19, 2016 Netanella rated it liked it

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

2 likes · Like · see review

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

1 like · Like · see review

May 25, 2015 Dea rated it it was ok

Three hundred and seventy four pages of self gratifying fantasy for a middle class heterosexual white male that grew up playing video games. Written in a language accessible to six graders and containing plot and characters so unoriginal that I feel terrible for the space it took up on electronic paper. This book is nothing more than fan service, like a terribly written fan fiction, but if it gets people reading I am all for it I guess.

1 like · Like · see review