Ernest Cline

Immersing himself in a mid-21st-century technological virtual utopia to escape an ugly real world of famine, poverty and disease, Wade Watts joins an increasingly violent effort to solve a series of puzzles by the virtual world's super-wealthy creator, who has promised that the winner will be his heir. (This book was previously listed in Forecast.)

Ready Player One

Thomas Novaro

Ho creato OASIS perché non sentivo di avere un posto, nel mondo reale. Lì, non sapevo come creare un legame con le persone. Ho avuto paura per tutta la mia vita. Fino al momento in cui ho saputo che stava finendo. Solo a quel punto ho compreso che, per quanto terrificante e dolorosa possa essere la realtà, è l’unico posto in cui si può trovare la vera felicità. Perché la realtà… è reale. Mi capisci?

Amal Hassan

(Spoiler Free) 

Even though I am a 90's kid, Ready Player One made me nostalgic for an era I never lived. We're all familiar with 80's television, film, music, video games and books. But Cline gives us a new perceptive of all the 'throwbacks' we've heard so much about from those who were lucky enough to have lived in the decade. 

I never felt lost or confused about all the 80's trivia. In fact I found myself welcoming them, trying to remember if I've played a video game or watched a particular movie (which I mostly had. The 80's was an epic year for film). I also never felt like it was far too futuristic, which I was somewhat worried about before starting the book. 

All in all I think Cline did a very good job of touching on some rather important subjects, such as the possible rapid decline of our climate and the results thereof, whilst still producing a witty, nerdy and refreshingly original novel. 

I loved the characters, in particular Ogden Morrow. And I found myself looking forward to Wade and H's interactions. 

If you want a book that you can get completely immersed in, where you can forget about the real world and transport yourself to the Oasis Ernest Cline so wonderfully depicted, then I would most certainly recommend reading Ready Player One (also it helped a lot that Will Wheaton narrates the audiobook. He definitely added to the quality of my reading experience).

Kairos

Actually, I finished the book in 2012 when I was in uni and was I disappointed.
First of all, to all of Ernest and this book's fans, this book is by no means a terrible book, it is a disappointing experience.

The premise was very intriguing and epic. A virtual gaming world filled with the dopest creations you can imagine, a land where you can be anyone and you can do anything (once you've reached a certain level of course) and there is a contest that grants the sole winner a stupendous amount of wealth, fame and power. But in order to win, players have to go through the hideous level-design and puzzle-solving.

This should be fun. Right? Wrong.

1. the protagonist is a self-absorbed arrogant twat who constantly tells the reader how he knows everything because he just knows. Oh, what's that? A quiz? Well lucky me, I just happen to know it's from that exact episode of that exact TV show from the exact year when the Oasis Founder was doing his blah blah blah, and I just happen to memorise every single line of that episode and I can re-enact the whole episode with the exact accent and exact intonation at every exact timing.

I mean, get the F out okay? No one can do that. 

2. the amount of deas Ex Machina in this book is ridiculous. Whenever Wade found himself in grave danger or out of options, there was always a lucky solution just begs him to take advantage of. Oh a problem, but no sweat, I just happen to have this item that I bought from a super convenient market that the IOI hasn't already farmed up to every corner. Or oh a conflict, but no worry, I just happen to have this totally god-like supporter that has the most convenient plot-saving help I've ever needed.

3. the plot holes. I get it, IOI is stupid and all, but do I really believe that IOI couldn't just raise the teleportation fee to an unaffordable amount? Do I really believe that no one in the IOI does the security identity double check especially when a former employee went rogue? Do I really believe that the IOI has no power over the government that they could just own a human being without even explaining it to any authority? Do I really believe that IOI couldn't cut off the entire Wi-Fi providers to other gunters? NO, I DO NOT

-----------------
There was not a single moment I felt a slightest dread or pity for the main protagnist - Wade. There was not a single moment I cared about the real world in the book, because the story didn't allow me to. And that was the biggest turn-off for me. I wish I could read more about the real world issues and how people manage to live and interact, more about the human relations and how people have learnt and evolved, more about Wade's moral choices, more about how people in real life thought about the IOI.

Instead, this book would fill with every plot hole with 80s pop culture references and hope the nerds wet themselves. And what about the 80s? It was an awesome time but that doesn't mean it was THE best era of the entire civilisation, I get how people were forced to like it because that's how you're gonna win the contest but that's like what, only maybe 10% of the whole population who actually cared about or could afford the Oasis? What about the rest of the population who were suffering and struggling to survive? Ready Player One didn't care, our protagonist didn't care. The only person who cared was Arty and she only mentioned it like twice. And that's it.

The story failed to impress me with all of those impossible timed Deus Ex Machina, the characters were forgettable and one-dimensional and the message this book tried to send was misleading and underdeveloped.

Lauren Grey

Wow! Where do I begin? Two or so years ago I met Ernest Cline. I didn't know anything about him, but I heard he would be at a local movie theater for a reading and signing, so I bought Ready Player One to have something for him to sign. Although I didn't know much about his work, I wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to meet an author. He signed my book and then the book got set aside. I started it twice, but always got distracted with something else... until two weeks ago. I have been in a reading slump since my senior year of college, graduating, getting a full-time job, and getting married. Reading just fell to the wayside, but I missed it. Since the movie release was nearing, I decided to sit down and read this book and I am so glad that I did! 

Ready Player One was phenomenal! One of the best books I have read in a long, long time! It was so original and entertaining. So often now all books read the same with no personality and with the same worn-out storylines, but not this one. This is a dystopian book like no other. It had me on the edge of my seat since chapter one. Although I am not a game player or a huge geek, I am a little bit of a nerd and I am a fan of the 80s, so loving this book was not hard to do. My dad taught me well when it comes to 80s pop culture, so I would get so excited when I would understand a reference, know a song, or have fond memories of playing certain Atari games. Ready Player One is such a fun ride and journey that will not be a disappointment if you make it to the end.

The setting of this book hits really close to home with all of the virtual reality technology coming out and the more and more time that people of my generation spend online, but I hope it never comes to something that extreme! The characters in this book were strong and well thought out and the setting is described beautifully making it easy to picture everything that is going on. Ernest Cline is incredible and I am so glad his nerdiness paid off in this book!

Briar's Reviews

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline lived up to the hype for me: It's a wildly fun, fantasy, sci-fi, 80s-fueled romp!

I wanted a book that was fun and would keep me interested and this book did the trick! I watched the movie when it came out in theatres and knew from that point on that I wanted to read the book. Everyone told me the two are very different, but if you enjoyed the movie then you'd also like the book - they were right! While there are some very big differences, the general idea is the same. A teenager and a group of his virtual friends take on a giant quest to make sure the OASIS platform doesn't get into the wrong hands. There are quests along the way packed tight with lots of 80s references. 

I thought this was fun! I didn't once put the book down because I was bored, which is really nice for me. It's hard to find a book that I want to jump back into that is also popular with the general public.

This book is not for everyone though. If you don't like an outrageous amount of 1980s references then you might want to steer clear. I liked the references and found myself learning more about the 80s (as a 90s baby) so it was a great read for me. I also like learning and I'm a big nerd for goofy or nerdy references, so this book was definitely made with me in mind for the audience.

Ready Player One is nerd central. It has a very particular taste and that's why I like it. Wade can be a bit annoying, but he's some teenager locked up in a helpless place who wants to get out. Everything that he does seem like what a moody, needy teenager would be. If you were living in poverty and you had a chance to make a change, wouldn't you? Especially in a way that's full of entertainment that teenagers might actually enjoy (movies, videos games, books, etc.). 

Is the world realistic? Meh. In some ways yes, in some ways no. But it's fantasy and fiction! Sure the stacks seem unrealistic, but if you look at how the world is that's not much of a stretch from some places. Let yourself be immersed in this fantasy land and enjoy. If you're along for the ride to simply have fun and whisk away from the insanity of our world, this book can do it.

Overall, this book was perfect for me! And, shocker, I'm reading the sequel immediately after it! This was a fantastic (late) Christmas gift! 

Five out of five stars.

Erik Wallace

I can't say enough about this book, but if I could give it SIX stars I would. A great premise, fun characters and a serious page turner.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this book and honestly only read it because of my book club. YALL IT IS SO GOOD. It gives me Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow vibes, but straight from the 80s with some added suspense. I just loved it. The pop culture is brilliant. I love all the mini adventures within this book. Cannot wait to watch the movie. 

PRE-ORDER NOW - READY PLAYER TWO: THE SEQUEL ______________________ THE BOOK BEHIND THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE DIRECTED BY STEVEN SPIELBERG Now available for the first time in a beautiful hardback edition, perfect for hardcore fans and collectors A world at stake. A quest for the ultimate prize. Are you ready? It's the year 2044, and the real world has become an ugly place. We're out of oil. We've wrecked the climate. Famine, poverty, and disease are widespread. Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes this depressing reality by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia where you can be anything you want to be, where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets. And like most of humanity, Wade is obsessed by the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this alternate reality: OASIS founder James Halliday, who dies with no heir, has promised that control of the OASIS - and his massive fortune - will go to the person who can solve the riddles he has left scattered throughout his creation. For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that the riddles are based in the culture of the late twentieth century. And then Wade stumbles onto the key to the first puzzle. Suddenly, he finds himself pitted against thousands of competitors in a desperate race to claim the ultimate prize, a chase that soon takes on terrifying real-world dimensions - and that will leave both Wade and his world profoundly changed. ____________________________________ If you loved READY PLAYER ONE and can't wait for more, check out ARMADA, Ernest Cline's geek masterpiece! 'Wildly original and stuffed with irresistible nostalgia, Ready Player One is a spectacularly genre-busting, ambitious, and charming debut' Independent 'Part intergalactic scavenger hunt, part romance, and all heart' CNN 'Ernest Cline's novel deserves to be a modern classic' SciFiNow 'Gorgeously geeky, superbly entertaining, this really is a spectacularly successful debut' Daily Mail

The global bestseller and now a major Steven Spielberg movie

Joy Bush

good book. lots of geek stuff. really picks up in the 2nd half and all the feels toward the end.

Zhomart M

Mediocre book for teenagers. I didn't like it much.

Wilde

Couldn't put it down. Perhaps a bit of a rushed ending though, bit predictable.

Juan Felipe

This could be one of the most uninspired, stylistically bland and laziest books I've read. Yet mysteriously engaging and addictive. I kept rolling my eyes at every movie and video game reference, that instead of serving as world building metaphors or descriptions, are used as crutches, as the laziest way of describing a place or a situation. 
More or less instead of giving me a nice description of a place that I could play with in my mind and later figure out it's Rivendell, I'm just bluntly told, with any sort of inspiration behind this enunciation that this place is "just like Rivendell". The only thing missing is a footnote, where it tells me which page I can go on the Fellowship of the ring book, and read the description, or even the exact minute where I see it on the movie. (and this happens all through out the book)
And it just becomes a list of references instead a well built world.
But the most jarring fact is that this "genius" behind the creation and design of OASIS has no idea about proper game design. How the hell is it fun to re-enact movies? why are these missions so absurdly bland and boring? Why did he just ripped out games instead of building his games?
Yet I read it all, hoping the conclusion will bring things together, but it is disastrous and poorly executed on all fronts.
I'd recommend this to anyone who wants a light read, with no effort required or excitement included.

Jonathan Tysick

I'm not all that into 1980's pop-culture or playing video-games, but despite this I managed to thoroughly enjoy this fun novel. Will probably read the sequel.

ines sassou

I thought that this book was good when I read it 

Lexy 

Jason

Name dropping does not make a good book

I'm a child of the 80's. I loved the 80's. I want to go back there. 
So like every other tragic fan of that era I thought this book was tailor made for me. 
Unfortunately this was the closest I've ever come to a DNF. 80% of this was not a story. It was name dropping for the sake of it. For the first half of this book I felt like I was sitting in a room with someone simply reading through a list of 80's movies, TV shows, songs and fictional characters. That's it. That's all it was. It was 20% story, and 80% filler. And the 20% story was filled with overly convenient and simplistic plot devices. 
"Oh let's pull this thing out of my inventory that was never mentioned anywhere else in the the book which just happens to be the exact thing I need to progress further!"
Sorry, but I'm angry. Because so many people love this book. So many people I respect. But I can't help but think they all got so caught up in the reminiscing that they didn't notice that this is a terrible story. 
I look forward to seeing what Spielberg does with the movie, because if anyone can make something good out of this, he can. And he's the perfect person to turn this into what it should have been.

Ready Player One (Movie Tie-In): A Novel

Julian

I tried to read it before the movie came out but didn’t finish in time. The movie was fun but the characters fell flat. If you are a fan of the movie, the book is much better, so give it a chance!

Cheri Fuller

I freaking love this book and can't wait to read it again.

The story is engaging and entertaining and I cared about Wade and his friends. The great pop culture from the 80s just made it even better.

Colleen

4.5 Stars but I'm rounding up to 5 Stars

Ready Player One was my bookclub's selection back in September, but I didn't get my copy from the library in time, so I'm just now getting around to reading it.

From the description, I was not sure at first if I would like this book. SciFi is a hit or miss genre for me. And the story is centered around video games. I have never been into video games. As a child, my parents always encouraged reading or playing outside over gaming. Even when I went to friends' houses who had gaming systems, I never found them engaging. That has not changed in the years since. So yes, I was hesitant about reading a book that was essentially all about video games. But there is much more to the story then just gaming, and I quickly found myself engrossed in the story.

The setup to the story is pretty straightforward: in the not too distant future, much of the economy has crashed and there are massive energy shortages. Things are bleak and despairing. So most people spend as much time as they can escaping into the massive virtual reality called The OASIS. Then the creator of the OASIS dies and it is announced that his entire fortune is willed to whomever can complete a series of quests hidden throughout the game. Naturally this creates instant chaos as everyone under the sun scrambles to find the keys. 

The basic plot outline reminded me of the Polish movie Avalon only with massive amounts of 80's pop culture. Of course, things quickly escalate beyond just playing a game and finding treasure. I don't want to give anything away, but let's just say the stakes go way up.

As I mentioned, I was worried that all of the gaming references would disconnect me from the story. It focuses heavily on 80's pop culture particularly video games. I have never been overly nostalgic about the 80's - probably because I was still in diapers. But this story pulls you in even if you aren't an 80's buff. Granted, the book is a veritable smorgasbord of titillating nostalgia. You could probably overdose on it. And admittedly, there were times when I felt a little like I showed up for a test that I had not studied for. For every reference that I got there were probably two or three that I did not get. But it was fun when I did get the references. (Who knew I'd be so happy that my Dad has watched his DVDs of Max Headroom so many times?) Bottom line, don't let the 80's thing scare you off! 

The story starts slow and does have some slow parts along the way but not bad enough for me to lose interest. The characters were interesting. The main character, Wade, is as underdog as it gets which makes him easy to root for.

The world building was interesting and very detailed. The story is set in 2044, and the SciFi elements and world it describes are not hard to believe. Neither the technology nor the economic destruction are far from what exists today. Certainly there is an underlying cautionary tale. This story is about much more than just a game.

This did not always feel like a young adult book. Part of that was due to the primary intended audience to be those who experienced the 80's first hand. Despite the main characters being teenagers, much of the tone felt more adult. Somewhere along the line, I realized that part of that was because I apparently have gotten so used to YA books having dumbed-down, overly simplified writing. So now apparently anything that is not that basic stands out to me. Overall, I would say this is a book that should appeal to a wide range of readers. 

I can see why this book is so popular. It makes it so easy to unless your inner geek and go on an adventure! 


RATING FACTORS:
Ease of Reading: 5 Stars
Writing Style: 4 Stars
Characters and Character Development: 5 Stars
Plot Structure and Development: 4 Stars
Level of Captivation: 5 Stars
Originality: 5 Stars

Tuago

Fun book, very quick and stimulating read. Reminded me of Ender’s Game. I am curious about the next chapter and the movie. 

However, the obsession with 80s pop culture is a bit annoying and the female character is very poorly written. It also felt that the end of the book is a Deus ex machina situation…

Joana da Silva

I know the movie adaptations tend to be very different from the book, but this was a wild one. I decided to pick this up because it had been on my TBR forever and I'm a huge fan of the movie. It's a great book for Pop-Culture lovers like me, but the story was a bit too farfetched for me. I know the book is set on 2045, but good lord, there were way too many crazy things happening. Nevertheless, I enjoyed this book. 

Spoiler Alert: It's pretty geek, so if that's not your thing, don't pick this up.

Bouke van der Bijl

This book took me two tries to finish. First I tried reading the text version, which I found boring and couldn't even get through. After a friend implored me to give it another shot, I tried the audiobook version, narrated by Wil Wheaton. It was a blast. This book is an ode to geekdom, with 80s videogame and movie references dripping of the pages. The characters are situated in a post-apocalyptic, Late Stage Capitalism wasteland where much of the earth's resources have been depleted and whatever is left is being fought over by the people that survive. The real story takes place in a virtual reality however, where everyone can be an Adonis where they can fly spaceships and make love to virtual people.

I don't want to spoil anything more of the story, but you should just go listen to the audiobook if you've every played a videogame or watched an 80s movie.

(Also, this book isn't for everyone and will probably annoy the hell out of some people for its (over)zealous use of references)

Audrey Lord

I love this book so freaking much. I will read this book so many times until it falls apart. Everything about it is amazing. SO geeky and lovely.

Lacy W

Find this review and others like it at https://aravenclawlibraryx.wordpress.com

tw: drug use, overdose resulting in death, use of word fag quite a lot, threats of child abuse, terrorism (bombing), mass death, suicide plan

I wish I hadn’t watched the movie of this book first. Normally, I read the book first and then watch the movie. I didn’t mean to. My boyfriend was looking for a movie to watch and we decided on this one. I really enjoyed the movie but after reading the book, I realized how different they are from each other. Watching the movie first might have hindered my enjoyment of the book. I might have rated this book higher if I had read it first and then watched the movie. 

With this book, you have to be a bit of a geek with technology and the eighties in order to have even the vaguest understanding of what all the references mean. And I mean, there are so many references. I’m a bit of a geek myself but even the references were lost on me. It got to be a bit much at times. Sure, Wade explained most of the references but it was just...a lot. It was like Cline was trying to prove just how much he knew about the eighties and wanted to talk about how much he loved it. 

One of my favorite things about this book was the OASIS and concept of it. James Halliday, the founder, made sure it was available to everybody for free. He put libraries and educational things on there so everybody could learn anything they wanted too. I loved that and it shows that technology can be an awesome tool. Because the Lord knows I am tired of people complaining about how technology is ruining the lives of the youth. It’s a topic that makes me so annoyed. Maybe one day, I’ll post something about it. 

Overall, while I enjoyed the book, it had some flaws. Like the absolute crazy amount of geek and eighties references. The ending was also kind of abrupt but I wasn’t too bothered by it. I recommend reading the book first and then watching the movie. Because they are very different things.

Lord Aragorn

Amazing book! Really enjoyed reliving 80s video games and culture. Loved the adventure ride and the way the book ended. Going into my collection of favorite fiction books.

Ready Player One

Reviews

Highlights