Apart from biographies I haven’t read many books in my free time. I read journals, cases and legal updates every day, so my enthusiasm for further reading has been somewhat lacking. Then Ready Player One came along and WOW!
Earlier this year, I watched a trailer for the Ready Player One movie which will be released in March 2018, you can check it out here:
It caught my eye and my ear, a hint of ‘Pure Imagination’ (from Willy Wonka) and ‘Tom Sawyer’ (which embarrassingly I must admit I didn’t know at the time). The trailer is an Easter Egg hunter’s dream Deadpool, Gandalf, a DeLorean to name a few. Then I saw ‘Comes Ernest Cline’s Holy Grail of Pop Culture’, although I didn’t read for pleasure I do google. Like Jonny 5 ‘I need input,’ I didn’t recognise the name Ernest Cline, so I googled him. I learnt he was an author and the writer of ‘Ready Player One’. I downloaded the first chapter I read a few pages, it intrigued me, but to be honest I left it. Then last week I went back to it, I downloaded the book and read it all in 5 days. In the words of David Aames ‘People will read again’.
The book follows the journey of Wade Watts, the year is 2044 and people have turned to the OASIS, a virtual reality (‘VR’) simulator to live out their dreams. In Chapter One we learn that the OASIS was developed by James Halliday. Halliday has died and left his fortune and the OASIS to the player who finds his Easter Egg hidden inside the OASIS. Wade is a gunter, which means someone who is seeking the Easter Egg (egg hunter became gunter). He is still at school and in the real-world lives in poverty in the Stacks. The book grabbed my attention with its nostalgic references to 80’s pop culture and gaming, but it kept my attention with its pace and the developing relationships between Wade and the other characters as he progresses on his quest for the Easter Egg. At times I honestly thought this book was written just for me, I empathised with Wade. Using my imagination, which I haven’t done in a while, was a pure thrill. Imagining the OASIS whilst drawing on my own memories of the 80’s meant I was absorbed and I did not want to put the book (my iPhone) down. Apart from the grand finale, my favourite chapter is a party Wade attends in the OASIS hosted by one of the founders of the OASIS Ogden Morrow. The description of the music and atmosphere meant I felt immersed. I had to remember I was reading a book not watching a film. There are lots of concepts to take away from the book which seem relevant in 2017 let alone 2044. You can see the beginning of the VR era, who knows if it will go as far as it is described in the book. Also looking at the way society has engrossed itself in to the internet, I don’t think it is too far-fetched to believe that VR could be the next step. Just like the OASIS, we already have a lost generation with some feeling more comfortable online with the persona they have created rather than being their true selves. The book is not new having been released in 2011, but it has a very good following. Online reviews average at around 4 and ½ out of 5 and my own score is a 5 out of 5. It has been exhilarating to be engaged in reading again and I truly enjoyed this book from start to finish. It is without a doubt my new favourite book. Ernest Cline has written a further book ‘Armada’ which is next on my reading list. I am excited to see how the film brings the book to the big screen, especially as it is directed by Steven Spielberg. However, I am somewhat apprehensive as to whether it will meet my expectations. I can already see differences between the book and the film and I just hope the film delivers on the massive potential the book offers. If you want to grab a copy of Ready Player One which I would recommend you do, you can get it from Amazon on paperback or digital download.
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