Ready Player One

  Ready Player One is set about 30 years in the future. The world has only gotten worse from the problems we’ve seen today except for one thing: the OASIS, an immense 3-D virtual reality world created by James Halliday and his partner. OASIS has anything anyone could want, it’s the internet but it feels real. People run businesses, get married to people they never meet in real life, in-game money is a far more stable currency than any type that is government issued. Then, James Halliday dies. In his will, he reveals that his entire fortune, $240 Billion, will be given to whoever can find and solve 3 puzzles he has hidden in the vast world of OASIS. Five years later, people are still searching for the answer to the first clue to find the first puzzle. James Halliday was obsessed with the 80s (when he grew up)  so 80s culture has become hugely popular in an attempt to find all this money. The real action begins when a high school kid discovers the location of the first puzzle. . There’s murder, intrigue, feats of derring-do in the real world as well as the virtual one, romance, friendship, and games. What more could you want in a book?

  This book is action packed and terribly fun to read if you have even a little knowledge of 80s pop or geek/nerd/gaming culture. There are references to every kind of genre you could wish in this book. I’ve seen seriously mixed reviews for this book. People either love it or hate it. The only problem is the people who hate give a multitude of reasons and the people who love it just say “OMG this book was great, go read it for yourself.” I loved this book. The first time I read it, I finished it in one sitting and wanted to start over again immediately. The characters are memorable; the story is engrossing; the setting and premise are fascinating. I will admit to being a huge geek and partly obsessed with some of the same things that the creator of OASIS contest loved. Anyone who is a fan of geek/dork/nerd culture will like this book just for the references. If you want a decent adventure in a dystopian future that isn’t too distant from now, definitely pick up this book and soon.