Ready Player One Book Review

The novel Ready Player One is set in the future in the year 2044 and is a science fiction novel. In the book, the world is experiencing global warming, overpopulation, and many other types of social and economic problems. To escape these problems a man by the name of James Halliday creates a free virtual world called the Oasis. A person can enter the Oasis by putting on a headset and after it is on, that person is transported from the real world into a complete and different virtual reality. In this virtual reality a person can be and do just about anything.

A person can be taller or cooler; they can climb Mt Everest or fight dinosaurs. AfterJames Halliday dies without any friends or family, he annouces to the whole world that he has hidden an Easter egg (which is a prize) in the Oasis. The first person who solves the various riddles and finds 3 hidden keys will win the game and be able to claim the Easter egg which is Halliday’s entire fortune and control of the OASIS. Ready Player One is a book that would appeal to many different groups of people. The book itself is a video game, full of with quests, avatars, heroes, bad guys, and tons of references to pop cuture of the 80’s.

Most kids these days have grown up playing video games. Reading Ready Player One where the main characters plug into an online world that has adventure, action and where they can be anyone they want would be very, very appealing to young adults. The main characters in the book have to use their knowledge about the the 80’s music, movies and literature to solve riddles. They also use their gaming skills to fight bad guys and the billion dollar prize provides incentive for everybody to win. For younger people who may not be as familiar with the 80’s pop culture, it is still easy to follow the plot and enjoy the book.

Another group of people that the book might appeal to are young adult females. One of the main characters in the story is a very fierce, independent young woman who competes wiht the boys to find the hidden Easter egg. In addition to This strong independent female character in the book is a major competor in the competition would also appeal to girls who would read the book.

Finally, another group of people that Ready Player One would appeal to is anyone who grew up in the 1980’s. Eighties references are jam packed throughout the whole book. In order to solve the riddles and find the hidden keys, the main characters in the book need to have an in-depth knowledge of the 1980s pop culture. There are references to 80’s music, movies, popular actors, actresses and musicians and one-liners throughout the book. For anyone who is an 80’s trivia nerd, the book would be very entertaining to read and re-read. For younger people who migh not be as familiar toe the 80’s pop culture, it is still easy to follow the plot and enjoy the book.

Cite this page