Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, follows the story of Wade Watts, a teenage video game superfan who lives in a world that certainly suits his talents and knowledge. Despite the year 2045 offering little hope in the reality of climate crisis and crumbling infrastructure, the massive multiplayer reality game OASIS allows much of the population to experience a practically infinite video game universe. Why do so many people choose to spend so much time simply plugged in to a virtual reality? It might have something to do with winning the entire fortune of the most successful video game creator and visionary of all time: James Halliday. His fortune is unimaginably large, and that means there’s a lot of competition for Wade. Dawning a completely manufactured online identity, he joins the rest of the world in the search for in-game keys needed to unlock the Halliday fortune. Anyone who enjoys video game culture or expansive fantasy worlds filled with challenge will love this novel. That being said, the book is also completely approachable to anyone who’s never held a controller before. The story and characters are exciting and surprising, and the challenges and puzzles faced in the real world and OASIS are just as excitingly page-turning regardless.

Review by Brett, Teen Reviewer