surperb's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
emilyxperry's review against another edition
5.0
This book was amazing. I honestly can’t find any faults with it except for the font size. I loved every page and the writing was amazing and easy to read. Anybody could read and love this book, except for young kids. I can’t describe how great it is. I don’t know if I can see the movie just because of how much I loved the book. The plot twists were unexpected, which isn’t very common. I urge everybody to read this book, it’s now one of my favorites.
marimbagirl22's review against another edition
4.0
this was a great book and a good intro into the world of geekery. looking forward to diving into this genre more.
akeenan95's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- 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
5.0
nathalieisg's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
lspoo22's review against another edition
5.0
This is fun the entire way through, and this world is far from inconceivable! I forget exactly when I read this during lockdown, but web3 hype was building. Marry that with pay-to-win microtransactions and the like from videogames and you literally have RP1.
nelsta's review against another edition
4.0
There’s a common saying that goes, “the book is better than the movie.” It holds up in just about every circumstance I can imagine. However, in this case it is not true. There’s another saying that goes, “if it’s a New York Times Bestseller, it’s a great book.” Alright, I’m not sure that’s an actual saying. But in this case, it is also not true.
It’s worth saying that this book has an absolutely brilliant premise. What’s not to love about a multibillionaire game designer that runs a global, Willy-Wonka-style, Easter egg hunt for all the marbles? In this, both the book and the movie agree. But there were large chunks of this book that just… lost me.
The first fifty pages describe the world in which the protagonist, Wade Watts, lives. It’s the most optimistic dystopian future I’ve ever read about. One mega-corporation owns the vast majority of the internet and the internet is the world’s most valuable commodity. (So far, so good. I’m looking at you, Amazon.) Famine, war, and climate change have ravaged the Earth and humanity has apparently concluded that it isn’t worth saving. The United States of America has essentially dissolved entirely and all that’s left are crumbling cities abandoned by most of the population. School, work, and play are all conducted in a virtual-reality paradise known as the OASIS.
But then, later in the book, Wade is captured and becomes an indentured servant and there’s some umbrella human rights organization that monitors him to make sure his rights aren’t violated? And somehow this evil corporation that owns him (and has blatantly committed murder) is not allowed to collect his DNA because the Supreme Court says so. Also, somehow this future dystopian society is vastly more cooperative than we are in real life. It just proves that “fact is stranger than fiction,” I suppose.
The book struggles with pacing and the dialogue is often clunky. And just like many books that came out around the same time, (Hunger Games, Harry Potter, The Maze Runner, etc) the protagonists are idealist, ultra-savvy, highly-intelligent teens uninterested in anything but accomplishing their goal (although the characters spend a good portion of the novel ogling each other.)
In short: the premise is genius but the execution is flawed. This is worth a read, but probably borrow a copy from the library.
It’s worth saying that this book has an absolutely brilliant premise. What’s not to love about a multibillionaire game designer that runs a global, Willy-Wonka-style, Easter egg hunt for all the marbles? In this, both the book and the movie agree. But there were large chunks of this book that just… lost me.
The first fifty pages describe the world in which the protagonist, Wade Watts, lives. It’s the most optimistic dystopian future I’ve ever read about. One mega-corporation owns the vast majority of the internet and the internet is the world’s most valuable commodity. (So far, so good. I’m looking at you, Amazon.) Famine, war, and climate change have ravaged the Earth and humanity has apparently concluded that it isn’t worth saving. The United States of America has essentially dissolved entirely and all that’s left are crumbling cities abandoned by most of the population. School, work, and play are all conducted in a virtual-reality paradise known as the OASIS.
But then, later in the book, Wade is captured and becomes an indentured servant and there’s some umbrella human rights organization that monitors him to make sure his rights aren’t violated? And somehow this evil corporation that owns him (and has blatantly committed murder) is not allowed to collect his DNA because the Supreme Court says so. Also, somehow this future dystopian society is vastly more cooperative than we are in real life. It just proves that “fact is stranger than fiction,” I suppose.
The book struggles with pacing and the dialogue is often clunky. And just like many books that came out around the same time, (Hunger Games, Harry Potter, The Maze Runner, etc) the protagonists are idealist, ultra-savvy, highly-intelligent teens uninterested in anything but accomplishing their goal (although the characters spend a good portion of the novel ogling each other.)
In short: the premise is genius but the execution is flawed. This is worth a read, but probably borrow a copy from the library.