Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
For a child of the eighties, this book is chock full of nostalgia. As fun as that is, the novel is much more than that. It's not necessarily particularly original, but the way Cline puts the parts together is creative and entertaining. He creates a believable dystopic future that doesn't feel that far off. There are some good twists in the plot that keep it from becoming too predictable or simplistic. The main characters are relatable and interesting, but not all that complex and don't grow or develop much. This is one of its weaknesses. Another weakness is that it ends up being a bit too heavy on the theme of OASIS as too escapist. That's part of the characters' stories, and that's fine. But there is a lot of value that is being created in this VR world too. The characters recognize this, but it gets a little undermined by the escapism theme at times. I would have also liked a little more world building in OASIS--if only to experience it more.
It's not a novel that likely will be a classic sci-fi; but it is great fun to read.
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