It's the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.
Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets.
And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune--and remarkable power--to whoever can unlock them.
****
I heard about Ready Player One a few years ago, when I was video-surfing various booktubers' book hauls and reviews. When I found out that RPO is full of 80's pop-culture, it immediately went on my mental 'to read' list. And even though it's taken me a while to get to it, this book has always been lingering in the back of my mind.
I recently found myself in a bit of a slump pre-Ignite Me, and wanted a nice stand alone to pull me out of the mourning period. I expected to pick a typical, fluffy beach read, however I remembered once again that I had yet to read RPO, and this time around, I really wanted to read it.
It's very interesting to see the way different authors present the future in their books. From The Hunger Games to Divergent to Awaken, every one is always different and intriguing, and RPO was no different. What I loved most about Cline's version of our future, is that even though the world is a pretty awful place for just about everyone, there is still one escape that everyone can go to. The idea of the OASIS could have had a 'been-there-done-that' feel to it; but it wasn't that way at all. I think that this is partly due to the fact that right from the start we are introduced to the 80's pop-culture, which has also worked it's way into the OASIS. It gave the old idea of a 'virtual reality' new life and depth. And as an 80's geek, I adored it.
While the idea of a 80's infused video game story line may sound happy and light, let me assure you that there were moments of darkness I wasn't expecting at all. The whole plot line with the Sixers (Sux0z, lol) grew into something actually quite scary. When it came to Wade's 'big plan' I was actually fearing for his life.
Moving on to Wade. Ah, Wade. Wade, Wade, Wade. I love this guy so much. I loved his many moments of vulnerability. Wade, I feel, is a good representation of many people on the internet. We all hide behind our screens and feel brave enough to say and do anything, but it's safe to say we all have our own hang ups and insecurities. Wade handles his so well, and I feel he is a stronger character for not letting things like his weight or, hum, virginity, stand in his way of being kick-ass, funny and incredibly brave. Of course, Wade later proves his bravery outside of the OASIS in the real world, which I honestly didn't see coming. I felt for sure that Wade and his comrades would continue to battle it out inside the OASIS, and maybe meet with each other in the real world someday. Having them all come together and meeting each other for the first time, and just like Wade, each one of his friends had something they were self conscious of, or didn't want people to see.
One of my other favourite characters was actually James Halliday. One quote stuck out to me when I read it, and I think it is one of my favourites from the book:
"Looking around, I wondered why Halliday, who always claimed to have had a miserable childhood, had later become so nostalgic for it."
Halliday is such an enigma to everyone playing his game. He created a world-wide hunt inside a game of his own creation, in the process making sure everyone looking for his egg researched and then came to love all the things he loved. I loved hearing the little snippets of James' childhood that Wade had learnt from his studies. I could honestly have read more and more about him. When Wade went to Halliday's childhood home, it really touched me.
While I was reading, I of course had to look up every 80's reference I didn't understand. I particularly enjoyed looking up what a TRS-80 looked like (WOW). While I do love the eighties, I never actually looked too deeply into all the video games of that era, and now it's safe to say I have been playing Galaga on my iPad so much my frustration levels are through the roof. I also learnt things about video games I'd already heard of, such as the split screen level in PacMan. I actually read about that about halfway through the book, so when Wade came to play it and won, I was immensely proud.
Of course, I loved the 80's music and movie references. I particularly liked Art3mis' blog post on "Dorky Girl/Boy Fantasies" trilogies. Which, was spot on. I loved that Wade had to recite both WarGames and Monty Python's Holy Grail word for word. And one of my new favourite songs is now Rebel Yell by Billy Idol. Thank you, Mr. Cline.
Of course, I loved the 80's music and movie references. I particularly liked Art3mis' blog post on "Dorky Girl/Boy Fantasies" trilogies. Which, was spot on. I loved that Wade had to recite both WarGames and Monty Python's Holy Grail word for word. And one of my new favourite songs is now Rebel Yell by Billy Idol. Thank you, Mr. Cline.
With each clue Wade got, I was trying desperately to come up with my own answers as I was reading. There were a couple of things that I got right, but some were so obscure that only a true gunter could have gotten them right. Sigh.
This was such a fun book to read. It's the perfect mix of light and heaviness. Full of wonderful description and all the great eighties references. If you enjoy looking up different things mentioned in books, you'll definitely love this one. I think it's such a funny thing that Wade and all his friends were obsessed with this era, purely because James Halliday himself had loved it.
If you're looking for a great dystopia with a difference, this one's for you. Or, if you just love the eighties as I do, then definitely give this book a try. I also hear it's been optioned for a film adaptation, which I'd be so excited to see.
This book is easily one of the best I've read this year, and I'm so sad it took me so long to get to it. Definitely a 4.5/5 from me!
See you next time.
Buy Ready Player One
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