By Ishan K
Ernest Cline's first novel "Ready Player One" was a massive success earning great reviews and two awards including the highly prestigious 2012 prometheus award. Other novels by Ernest Cline include "Armada", another success, and the lesser known, (The Importance of Being Earnest". Ready Player One is a science fiction novel that takes place in 2044, in a world that has become nearly uninhabitable due to humans and the effects they have had on the climate.
Wade Owen Watts is just a regular old teenager living in the stacks, a community of mobile homes, shipping containers, and RVs stacked up many stories high to save space. His father died of gunshot wounds while robbing a store and his mother of a drug overdose. Now living with his abusive aunt, Wade's only escape is into a virtual reality in the form of OASIS, the video game that most of human civilization now logs onto every day. OASIS is a virtual reality game developed and created by James Holiday, a rich programmer and his partner Ogden Morrow of GSS (Gregarious Simulation Systems). Modern day life in 2044 is centered around OASIS. It's in game currency is the most stable in the entire world, it allows people to work and kids to go to school for free (including Wade) and from anywhere. OASIS can be likened to the lifeblood of humanity in 2044.
There are many different worlds and domains in OASIS, arranged in a rubiks cube like fashion, these worlds have games to play adventures to complete and much more. Some are recreations of pop culture themes like star wars and star trek. Some have stores and businesses and much more. Wade Owen Watts however, is stuck on only one of these many worlds, Ludus. The World for schools and public education. While others are able to leave and do as they please, Wade is stuck on Ludus only to go to school and field trips. If things stay this way, Wade will never be able to follow his true passion, searching for 'the egg" as a gunter. James Halliday died in 2039 and left a video message for everyone playing OASIS. It was about an easter egg he hid in the game that entitles it's discoverer to all of James Halliday's fortune and gives them control and ownership over OASIS. This is the goal of Wade and other "gunters", to find this easter egg and claim the awards that come along with it. Though there are people who are trying to stop him from achieving this dream. IOI a very influential company is trying to claim the egg for themselves and make OASIS a pay to play service. This will block many kids and adults alike from going to school and work while ruining society as well. Wade and his avatar Parzival will have to claim the egg first, before it's too late.
I really enjoyed the main plot of this novel. Ernest Cline's ability as an author really amazed me. However, there is strong language in this book so one does have to be mindful of that. Also, although the story was very enriching and easy to get engaged into, it was extremely slow paced with the plot heightening towards its peak and then dropping for thirty minutes or more without a single exciting moment. This book is meant for patient readers and if you are not willing to wait for the juicy bits of story, you will have a very hard time staying engaged in this book.
This was the first time I have read one of Ernest Cline's books and I can say I was very impressed. I would recommend that any young adult readers who have the patience to read a book like this, should definitely consider giving it a look.
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