Review: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

 Book: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Crown Publisher
Release Date: August 16th, 2011

In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the  OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. When Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.

It’s official. Ready Player One is my first favourite book of 2017! It’s been a while since I read a book I fell in love with as much as this one. It’s got so many things you need in a great book: amazing, relatable characters, awesome world building, a great story, and of course, 80’s nostalgia. What more could you want?

Now, I'm not from the 80’s. I'm a super proud 90’s kid! So, sadly, I didn’t get the majority of the references made regarding cartoons, TV shows, movies, anime, and all the games made in that decade. But I know anyone who experienced the 80’s would feel like they were thrown back in time after reading this book.

So what’s the story? Flash forward to the year 2044, and most of the world is not looking too great. 90% of the world is living in poverty, including our main character, Wade Watts. However, living in reality isn’t the only option anymore. A man named James Halliday created a virtual world called the OASIS, and the majority of the world currently live, work, and meet friends through this.

The OASIS seems like an amazing device. You can create an Avatar that looks just like you (or what you wish you looked like), and create a whole new life for yourself that makes reality seem so obsolete. Think of Sims, if you will.

Wade, just like the rest of the world, has been living his true life in the OASIS, as his home life isn’t ideal – an orphan living with his aunt who doesn’t care for him and dates guys that like to beat on people smaller than them.

Wade is living his everyday life as usual when he receives a message that changes his life, as well as most of the OASIS’s players – the owner, James Halliday, is dead. And as he never had an heirs or family, he decided to make a competition, and the winner of that competition would win an Easter egg that would contain his entire fortune. So, Wade, along with the rest of the world, frantically attempts to unlock clues that Halliday left to try and find the Egg.

For the next five years, Wade watches and plays everything everything Halliday ever loved – be it movies, TV shows, music, games, even his favourite food. You name it and Wade knew it. It became an obsession, not just for Wade, but for the majority of players.

The story begins five years after Halliday died. The competition seemed to be at a standstill as no one was finding any clues. However, once a key is suddenly found, the game is back on and quickly everyone all around the world is back into finding these clues to win that Egg.

We see Wade attempt to decipher clues and meet some amazing friends, who are all just as obsessed as he is to win the Egg. There’s a lot of world building involved, between explaining rules of the OASIS, the characters, etc., but it’s all so interesting that I never felt it lagged or got boring.

I don’t want to say any more in terms of plot as I don’t want to spoil anything, but I will say that this book takes you on one hell of a ride that has your heart pounding and you just really want these characters to prevail.  They deserve it so badly, and they go through so much!

Before the movie of this is released in 2018, I dare you all to read it. Unlike other books, I think this will make a fantastic movie but it will never be as good as reading it and imagining the characters in your head. So grab a copy, put on 80’s music, and sit down to read this absolute beauty.

“As terrifying and painful as reality can be, it's also the only place where you can find true happiness. Because reality is real.”