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theaceofpages's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
While the reading experience was pleasant enough I didn't actually like this book. I would love to see something more nuanced done with this idea, but I do get why others love it so much.
Graphic: Violence, Death, Classism, and Murder
Moderate: Cursing and Gun violence
Minor: Homophobia and Death of parent
giuliana_ferrari's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
But the book falls short in some major ways. The same audience it is trying to captivate it also entails into a complicated narrative of the importance and overall superiority of white, all-American males, teenage boys that would be bullied for knowing all the dialogues to any nerdy TV show or movie, but in this universe, they become Gods. Any point of contention that could be used to argue important issues - the lack of proper representation of different cultures (except the classic Japanese 'samurais', which is kind of cringy) and races, and discrimination against women gamers - gets lost in the ever increasing list of game, TV shows and movies referenced in the book.
In the end, Ready Player One tried to be many things at once and it failed in less or higher degrees to several of them. It was still a compelling read, but I feel like this book will be quickly erased from my hard drive - see what I did there? - in the near future.
Graphic: Gun violence and Violence
shirarweiss's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Gun violence, Death of parent, Gore, Violence, Death, and Fire/Fire injury
balamaqab's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Slavery
naychapman's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Very cleverly written, this book is akin to Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade - if Indy were a teenage computer hacker. When the eccentric creator of the OASIS (James Halliday) dies, he bequeaths his multi-billion dollar ownership of the OASIS to whoever can solve his riddles to find a hidden Easter egg within the system. This sparks a major hunt and 17-year-old Wade, aka Parzival, joins the heated competition. As a fan of all things 80s, all of Halliday's references in the clues are to past video games, movies, songs, and TV shows from that decade. Making this book a fantastic trip down memory lane!
The book, in my opinion, is MUCH better than the recently produced movie adaptation. Although also very entertaining, there are major scene and sequencing changes to the movie, and a lot of great content was left out. My guess is due to copyright issues!
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Death of parent and Murder
Virtual reality violence.jasminrain's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I was a bit hesitant to read the book having seen the film, but the storyline was actually quite different to the film adaptation and brought more layers to the story. I listened to the audiobook read by Wil Wheaton and it just really brought the story to life in all the best ways possible.
All this being said, there was some problematic language and transphobia that were left completely unaddressed, which I found really problematic considering the target age and audience of this book. So not a five star but really good read.
Graphic: Gun violence, Transphobia, Cursing, Violence, Classism, and Death
Moderate: Bullying, Fatphobia, Murder, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, and Misogyny
Minor: Racism, Addiction, Abandonment, Death of parent, Grief, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
ruthieelisa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Death of parent, Gun violence, Classism, Death, Drug abuse, Murder, and Suicide
sp4ceprince's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Addiction, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, and Violence
Minor: Sexism
kelly_e's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Author: Ernest Cline
Series: Ready Player One, #1
Genre: Science Fiction
Rating: 4.25
Pub Date: August 16th 2011
T H R E E • W O R D S
Inventive • Gripping • Compulsive
📖 S Y N O P S I S
Flashforward to the year 2044, the world is a dark and ugly place, a real dystopia. In fact, many choose to escape to a virtual utopia known as the OASIS, a place where you can choose to be anything you want. Ready Player One follows Wade in his ultimate quest to discover a secret egg, hidden somewhere within the OASIS, and inherit creator James Halliday's fortune. A nostalgic, high-stakes, action packed adventure of heartache, friendship, and determination.
💭 T H O U G H T S
It takes a special kind of book, for me to feel fully engaged within the first few pages, thus was the case with Ready Player One. The writing was intriguing and fast-paced, the character development was on point, and the references to 80s pop-culture and video game culture were fantastic. I certainly wish I could have appreciated all of the references to their full potential though. The trio of Parzical, Aech, and Art3mis has great chemistry, and I would have to say Arch was my favourite character, even more so as the story progressed. I listened to the audio simultaneously while reading, and the narration definitely added an extra dimension and really brought the story to life. Given the book is quite long, I am not sure if I'd have enjoyed it as much without the audio. This isn't a genre I typically gravitate towards, so there was apprehension going in, but it quickly dissipated. And this book ended up being just the escape I didn't know I needed.
I'd recommend this to anyone craving retro vibes, an escape from reality or who reads science fiction on a regular basis. And I'll definitely be adding Ready Player Two to my TBR for the future.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers looking for retro vibes
• Science Fiction lovers
• those not too sure about Science Fiction
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"'I created the OASIS because I never felt at home in the real world. I didn't know how to connect with the people there. I was afraid, for all of my life. Right up until I knew it was ending. That was when I realized, as terrifying and painful as reality can be, it's also the only place where you can find true happiness. Because reality is real. Do you understand?'"
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Cursing, Drug use, Gun violence, Hate crime, and Violence
Minor: Fatphobia, Homophobia, and Transphobia
overdose, crimerbacon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
Graphic: Murder, Cursing, Death of parent, Gun violence, Hate crime, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
Moderate: Homophobia