A review by heathercottledillon
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

5.0

This is definitely one of my favorite books from 2011. I've never read anything quite like it before: totally futuristic, but with a retro feel. It's so bizarre to be reading about the insanely awesome virtual reality technology being used to play Frogger or watch "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." I recognized a lot of the 80s stuff, but I missed some of the references since I was born in 1985. I had a lot of fun looking things up and adding old movies to my Netflix queue. I couldn't put the book down; it's nonstop action from page one to 374, but I didn't feel like it was too rushed, either. It's not often that such a thrilling book makes me think a lot, but this one certainly did. It brings up a lot of questions about virtual reality and the implications it can have on society. Is it unhealthy for people to live in a virtual world most of the time, or does it simply give people the opportunities to do things they can't do in real life? Does living in an online world cause people to care less about the real world? If so, is that good or bad? And who should pay for this thing--should it be free for everyone, or should there be a charge for it? All very interesting things to ponder, considering the increasing impact technology has on our lives. But, as much food for thought as this book provided, it's mainly just good, plain fun. I say it's a must-read for anyone who grew up during the 80s or is into video games, but even people who fall outside of those categories will enjoy it as well.