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A review by vaughanreads
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Ready Player One – Ernest Cline
Wade Watts is nearing the end of his high-school golden days. His grades are pleasantly high, he hangs out with his best friend all the time and regularly binges on 80s pop-culture. The only difference between us and Wade Watts is that he is doing it all in the ‘OASIS’.
Utilising his school issued virtual reality console, Wade can enter an entirely new cosmos. One where it is possible to form friendships – including relationships – battle hordes of players in a planet-wide game of deathmatch or search for the sacred egg. The egg, left by the creator of the OASIS - James Halliday, is the most lucrative adventure in current civilization. Wade is a Gunter, he searches high and low for his heroes easter egg but there are others in the search, including the cold-hearted corporate suits of IOI.
In this game, you only get one life.
Ernest Cline’s ‘Ready Player One’ is a true masterpiece. It pays tribute to so many amazing moments in 80s pop-culture and represents gamers/gaming incredibly. I don’t know how many times I laughed to myself and thought, “Yeah, I totally do that!” or “Damn, that’s so relatable and reminds me of my teenage years of gaming.”
There is for sure a handful of occasions where I caught a ball in my throat because Cline writes each character’s back story so amazingly that you cannot help but feel what those characters are feeling.
The ending of the book is debatably predictable. However, the events that transpire to that ending had me on the edge of my seat the entire time – and that is more valuable to me.
I think that Ernest Cline portrays diversity in this book extremely well. He has a mixture of nationalities and race, a broad age range and shines light on the insecurities of birthmarks that can be debilitating to people’s confidence. Cline also touches upon the realities of race in society. There is a section of the book where a character explains that their mother, a proud and intelligent black woman, created her avatar in the likeness of a white man. This was because she noticed first-hand more opportunities and success in her online business in the OASIS.
The author is highly skilled in his writing at keeping me interested and thoroughly informed without feeling bored or overwhelmed with detail. There is dialogue that will melt your heart, then on the next page reinforce it with a level 50 armour piece.
I happily gave this book a 5/5 and would give it more if the mechanics allowed! If you are a person who has an affinity to games in general, you like aspects of the 80s and you’re down to have quotes galore stuck in your head for days then this book is for you.
Wade Watts is nearing the end of his high-school golden days. His grades are pleasantly high, he hangs out with his best friend all the time and regularly binges on 80s pop-culture. The only difference between us and Wade Watts is that he is doing it all in the ‘OASIS’.
Utilising his school issued virtual reality console, Wade can enter an entirely new cosmos. One where it is possible to form friendships – including relationships – battle hordes of players in a planet-wide game of deathmatch or search for the sacred egg. The egg, left by the creator of the OASIS - James Halliday, is the most lucrative adventure in current civilization. Wade is a Gunter, he searches high and low for his heroes easter egg but there are others in the search, including the cold-hearted corporate suits of IOI.
In this game, you only get one life.
Ernest Cline’s ‘Ready Player One’ is a true masterpiece. It pays tribute to so many amazing moments in 80s pop-culture and represents gamers/gaming incredibly. I don’t know how many times I laughed to myself and thought, “Yeah, I totally do that!” or “Damn, that’s so relatable and reminds me of my teenage years of gaming.”
There is for sure a handful of occasions where I caught a ball in my throat because Cline writes each character’s back story so amazingly that you cannot help but feel what those characters are feeling.
The ending of the book is debatably predictable. However, the events that transpire to that ending had me on the edge of my seat the entire time – and that is more valuable to me.
I think that Ernest Cline portrays diversity in this book extremely well. He has a mixture of nationalities and race, a broad age range and shines light on the insecurities of birthmarks that can be debilitating to people’s confidence. Cline also touches upon the realities of race in society. There is a section of the book where a character explains that their mother, a proud and intelligent black woman, created her avatar in the likeness of a white man. This was because she noticed first-hand more opportunities and success in her online business in the OASIS.
The author is highly skilled in his writing at keeping me interested and thoroughly informed without feeling bored or overwhelmed with detail. There is dialogue that will melt your heart, then on the next page reinforce it with a level 50 armour piece.
I happily gave this book a 5/5 and would give it more if the mechanics allowed! If you are a person who has an affinity to games in general, you like aspects of the 80s and you’re down to have quotes galore stuck in your head for days then this book is for you.