Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I don't even like sci-fi dystopian novels, am not a gamer, geek, or techie. I was too busy being a mom to 5 kids in the 80's to be little more than worried about the influence of its pop culture. I was not only terrible at Mario but I could see no point in wasting my time as it made me tense and jittery. Now as a grandma I have even stronger feelings about online gaming and its violent, addictive qualities. All that being said, I REALLY liked this crazy book about an unattractive, overweight male teen who barely has a life outside of gaming. I don't think it is very well written, but due to the compulsive nature of my reading it, in the end I decided it doesn't matter, because I liked it.
I agree with another reviewer who pointed out that the book looks at how we deal with the online "friends" we've never actually met and how certain segments of society wall themselves off from the real world living almost exclusively in a virtual world.
It is a fun, escapist read, a blend of "tech version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," The Matrix, and The Hunger Games. I predict a sequel and a movie adaptation.
I listened to the audio version which is exceptionally well done. I don't think I would have enjoyed text version as well. I knocked off a point for crude language and mediocre writing.


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