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sarchitect's review against another edition
3.0
Reading this book was a lot of fun. But it ended up being a book full of references which where fun at times, but also very distracting from the overall story. I enjoyed the world building of the Oasis, and the conflict between the virtual reality and the real world, but then again all that was overshadowed by all the easter-eggs, and I couldn’t really enjoy it us much.
kaora4's review against another edition
5.0
My husband and I are HUGE nerds. We have a ninja turtle painting, and our son doesn't step out in anything that isn't Spiderman, Batman or any other comic book characters. His first onesie was an original Nintendo controller. My shelves are littered with Gundam by husband hand paints and assembles. I grew up playing Commander Keen, Zelda and Warcraft, and discovered an interest in painting the mini Warhammer figurines.
This is my husband's handpainted Gundam RX-78. (He would like me to point out this was one of his first and his painting has much improved in the 3 years.)
So this book really appealed to me. And I was not disappointed.
The year is 2044, and the majority of the world lives in poverty due to the decline of resources. Parzival or Wade Watts is one of these, living in a trailer park called the stacks where the homes stretch vertically in an effort to save space. He spends the majority of his time in a free virtual reality named OASIS, where he attends school. When the creator of OASIS dies he reveals that hidden in his game are 3 keys opening 3 gates. The first one to find them will earn his fortune. Parzival is thrown into a contest where his competitors will kill to claim the ultimate prize.
There are a ton of nerdy references in this game that I appreciated, and I loved learning about the history of video games, and the world that was created.
Being human totally sucks most of the time.
Videogames are the only thing that make life bearable.
Although as a player of MMOs I will have to disagree with that statement and say that sometimes people suck in video games as well. (See Griefing)
The characters are memorable and I really loved Aech and Art3mis, proof that the female gamer really does exist AND can kick ass. The main character, Parzival was also memorable, although I could have done without learning about his doll and masturbation tendencies.
I was completely engrossed in this book from start to finish, as these kids take on the evil corporation (*cough* EA) who wants to win simply to start charging for everything. (*cough* DLC)
But it was the showdown match at the end that sealed this book's fate as a 5-star read for me. It is so epic that it will go down as one of my favorite scenes of all time. I won't repeat it here so you'll just have to go read it for yourself.
Recommended for video game nerds.
Cross posted at Kaora's Corner.
This is my husband's handpainted Gundam RX-78. (He would like me to point out this was one of his first and his painting has much improved in the 3 years.)
So this book really appealed to me. And I was not disappointed.
The year is 2044, and the majority of the world lives in poverty due to the decline of resources. Parzival or Wade Watts is one of these, living in a trailer park called the stacks where the homes stretch vertically in an effort to save space. He spends the majority of his time in a free virtual reality named OASIS, where he attends school. When the creator of OASIS dies he reveals that hidden in his game are 3 keys opening 3 gates. The first one to find them will earn his fortune. Parzival is thrown into a contest where his competitors will kill to claim the ultimate prize.
There are a ton of nerdy references in this game that I appreciated, and I loved learning about the history of video games, and the world that was created.
Being human totally sucks most of the time.
Videogames are the only thing that make life bearable.
Although as a player of MMOs I will have to disagree with that statement and say that sometimes people suck in video games as well. (See Griefing)
The characters are memorable and I really loved Aech and Art3mis, proof that the female gamer really does exist AND can kick ass. The main character, Parzival was also memorable, although I could have done without learning about his doll and masturbation tendencies.
I was completely engrossed in this book from start to finish, as these kids take on the evil corporation (*cough* EA) who wants to win simply to start charging for everything. (*cough* DLC)
But it was the showdown match at the end that sealed this book's fate as a 5-star read for me. It is so epic that it will go down as one of my favorite scenes of all time. I won't repeat it here so you'll just have to go read it for yourself.
Recommended for video game nerds.
Cross posted at Kaora's Corner.
timgarris's review against another edition
2.0
I want to give this two and a half stars. I'm torn, because while I did read it all the way through and enjoyed parts of it, there were times where I punched the book in frustration. But I'm going by the tooltip text on Goodreads' stars, with two stars being "it was okay" and three stars being "I liked it". So consider that my short opinion on this book- it was okay.
The first third of the book is the hardest, because Cline takes a premise that should be fairly straightforward to anyone that's read a cyberpunk novel ever, and over-explains the hell out of it. There are entire portions that are nothing but exposition, and while the world he sets up is interesting, it's way too much detail without significant plot or character development and simply kills the pacing. Once he gets through the worst of that, the book gets better, but at its best the dialogue and story are pretty basic and there are no real surprises.
The themes are also nothing new for stories about virtual worlds: is living in a virtual world all the time to escape harsh realities healthy? What's the cost of interacting with people online instead of in person? Don't get me wrong, these are natural questions to explore in such a setting, but that doesn't give license to hamhandedly shove them in the reader's face. Case in spoilery-point:
The hardest part of this book for me though, and paradoxically the selling point for many others, are the copious amounts of 80s and geek pop-culture references crammed in. It's like a list was made of every show, song, movie, author, game or book that he wanted to reference, and then it all got dropped in whether it fit or not. It's just way too much, and comes across as name-dropping instead of clever. It would be bad enough if done with a wink and a nod, but here it's done with a wink and a nod and then another wink and a finger pointing at the wink just in case you're not getting the idea and a sign that says "I'm winking so you understand that this is a pop culture reference," which he then reads aloud. References are like jokes; they're much worse when you explain them. Done well, they enhance the experience for those who are in the know, without getting in the way for readers who don't get it. Instead Cline takes time to explain every reference, which comes across as awkward and often breaks the flow. When the main character was challenged to a game of Joust, I thought it was cool. When the next several paragraphs were spent explaining in detail what Joust was, I threw down the book in disgust. I wouldn't be reading this to begin with if I didn't know what freaking Joust was.
That's the trouble with Ready Player One - it relies on its references so much that it has to be sure you get them. If you were to strip out the pop culture references, it's a pretty run-of-the-mill book that doesn't do much new and does it with a level of writing I'd usually associate with YA fiction. Not even bad YA fiction, just kind of simplistic. But it cloaks itself in gallons of the most blatant fan service I've ever seen to try and be more than it is. When I was first writing this review in my head I conceived a metaphor involving a prostitute dressed up as Princess Leia explaining to you who Princess Leia is, but my indignation has since cooled somewhat. So instead I'll just leave you with a couple of alternative recommendations:
-If you want a good story filled with gaming culture references that don't get in the way, try Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim graphic novels, starting with [b:Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life|29800|Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life (Scott Pilgrim, #1)|Bryan Lee O'Malley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348109012s/29800.jpg|30220].
Or, if you want to read a fresh take on a story set in a virtual game world, try out Yahtzee Crowshaw's [b:Mogworld|7923163|Mogworld|Yahtzee Croshaw|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1403200898s/7923163.jpg|11229518].
-And if you're not already familiar with the trope, just...Google "simulated reality in fiction."
The first third of the book is the hardest, because Cline takes a premise that should be fairly straightforward to anyone that's read a cyberpunk novel ever, and over-explains the hell out of it. There are entire portions that are nothing but exposition, and while the world he sets up is interesting, it's way too much detail without significant plot or character development and simply kills the pacing. Once he gets through the worst of that, the book gets better, but at its best the dialogue and story are pretty basic and there are no real surprises.
The themes are also nothing new for stories about virtual worlds: is living in a virtual world all the time to escape harsh realities healthy? What's the cost of interacting with people online instead of in person? Don't get me wrong, these are natural questions to explore in such a setting, but that doesn't give license to hamhandedly shove them in the reader's face. Case in spoilery-point:
Spoiler
The best friend who the protagonist thought was a white, heterosexual male? Just happens to turn out to be a black, gay woman. And our protagonist Wade finds that they're still just as good friends! Only we aren't shown this. Within a page or two of this reveal, he pretty much just says, "Wow, my friend who I thought was a straight white guy is actually a gay black girl. But none of that affects our friendship! What a powerful commentary on race and gender and orientation and friendship all wrapped up into one brief scene." Don't worry though, the love interest with the attractive white female avatar still turns out to be an attractive white female in person.The hardest part of this book for me though, and paradoxically the selling point for many others, are the copious amounts of 80s and geek pop-culture references crammed in. It's like a list was made of every show, song, movie, author, game or book that he wanted to reference, and then it all got dropped in whether it fit or not. It's just way too much, and comes across as name-dropping instead of clever. It would be bad enough if done with a wink and a nod, but here it's done with a wink and a nod and then another wink and a finger pointing at the wink just in case you're not getting the idea and a sign that says "I'm winking so you understand that this is a pop culture reference," which he then reads aloud. References are like jokes; they're much worse when you explain them. Done well, they enhance the experience for those who are in the know, without getting in the way for readers who don't get it. Instead Cline takes time to explain every reference, which comes across as awkward and often breaks the flow. When the main character was challenged to a game of Joust, I thought it was cool. When the next several paragraphs were spent explaining in detail what Joust was, I threw down the book in disgust. I wouldn't be reading this to begin with if I didn't know what freaking Joust was.
That's the trouble with Ready Player One - it relies on its references so much that it has to be sure you get them. If you were to strip out the pop culture references, it's a pretty run-of-the-mill book that doesn't do much new and does it with a level of writing I'd usually associate with YA fiction. Not even bad YA fiction, just kind of simplistic. But it cloaks itself in gallons of the most blatant fan service I've ever seen to try and be more than it is. When I was first writing this review in my head I conceived a metaphor involving a prostitute dressed up as Princess Leia explaining to you who Princess Leia is, but my indignation has since cooled somewhat. So instead I'll just leave you with a couple of alternative recommendations:
-If you want a good story filled with gaming culture references that don't get in the way, try Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim graphic novels, starting with [b:Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life|29800|Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life (Scott Pilgrim, #1)|Bryan Lee O'Malley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348109012s/29800.jpg|30220].
Or, if you want to read a fresh take on a story set in a virtual game world, try out Yahtzee Crowshaw's [b:Mogworld|7923163|Mogworld|Yahtzee Croshaw|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1403200898s/7923163.jpg|11229518].
-And if you're not already familiar with the trope, just...Google "simulated reality in fiction."
batrock's review against another edition
3.0
A frequently annoying book set in a poorly explained future dystopia where nobody has money and yet a lot of people can afford the ruinously expensive items within the virtual world they escape to.
Cline is pretty bad at world building, but on this instance he does okay at storytelling. Despite taking literal half year breaks in the story, there's a decent momentum here and the slavish pop culture references are occasionally well implemented. This all sounds like it should be two stars, but enjoyment just slightly trumped irritation.
I feel like there's a much longer review in me for this one, but God knows if I'll ever get to it.
Cline is pretty bad at world building, but on this instance he does okay at storytelling. Despite taking literal half year breaks in the story, there's a decent momentum here and the slavish pop culture references are occasionally well implemented. This all sounds like it should be two stars, but enjoyment just slightly trumped irritation.
I feel like there's a much longer review in me for this one, but God knows if I'll ever get to it.
rubyrubay's review against another edition
4.0
Great for a first read if you appreciate 80s culture and trivia, and/or like video games. It loses some of its charm with every re-read, but it's fast and easy to digest so I tend to come back to it when I can't decide what to read next.
barbiern84's review against another edition
5.0
Amazingly written and very detailed. I felt like I was part of the story. I can't wait to watch the movie to see how it matches up.
pcasebeer's review against another edition
5.0
This is by far my favorite book. I’ve never wanted to read a book a second time, seeing how there are so many good books to read, but I wanted to with this one.
With the movie coming out soon I wanted to reacquaint myself with the story and seeing how it was some time in between readings a lot of it was new again.
The fact I grew up during the 80’s, had many of the same gaming, music and movie interests made this even better. It brought me back to so many fond memories and was so fun.
The story is, well awesome! Action, suspense, murder, love, mystery, everything all in one. It’s like reading a video game and for me, that is pretty cool.
I’m sure I’ll read it again.
With the movie coming out soon I wanted to reacquaint myself with the story and seeing how it was some time in between readings a lot of it was new again.
The fact I grew up during the 80’s, had many of the same gaming, music and movie interests made this even better. It brought me back to so many fond memories and was so fun.
The story is, well awesome! Action, suspense, murder, love, mystery, everything all in one. It’s like reading a video game and for me, that is pretty cool.
I’m sure I’ll read it again.
alexp5124's review against another edition
3.0
I was very excited to read this book, however, I was a little let down. I found myself getting into it and thinking the story was really well written, but then I would get to parts that felt rushed and the writing changed. I still think this book is fantastic, just not my favorite.
danieleloy's review against another edition
4.0
Exceptional. I never thought I would get so invested in the virtual lives of fictional people and their quest for a gleaming egg.