Onze site gebruikt cookies om diensten te leveren, prestaties te verbeteren, voor analyse en (indien je niet ingelogd bent) voor advertenties. Door LibraryThing te gebruiken erken je dat je onze Servicevoorwaarden en Privacybeleid gelezen en begrepen hebt. Je gebruik van de site en diensten is onderhevig aan dit beleid en deze voorwaarden.
"In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the Oasis. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines -- puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win -- and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape"--Page 2 of cover.… (meer)
A guy left his Converse sneakers at the Arcade's door in 1986 and keeps looking for them. Even after death.
This pretty much sums it up. One would think that, at least, something is gonna happen to raise the suspense but no, it's just a giant videogame geek's wank where the final reward is infinite lives, superpowers, money and, obviously, the girl; with a sloppy moralistic afterthought (probably by the editor, Great Absent otherwise) about the primacy of real life, slapped on the ending like a Parental Advisory on a CD.
Style: clunky when not absent. The attempts at giving characters a voice are even worse than the general flatness.
Storyline: ridiculously childish. There is every single marker of bad narrative: Deus ex Machina; last-minute tricks; plot-serving character twists; even the Protagonist's Cunning Plot (that goes so smooth that you start doubting whether the Evil All-Powerful Corporation is run by dummies). Had I marked every instance of bad plot symptoms, finishing the book would have taken years.
Characters: cardboard silhouettes. Should I mention predictability?
A second star because I was a child in the Eighties. But it's a guilty pleasure star. It should have been one star. Guilty as charged.
EDIT: I have afterthoughts, too. To be honest, the first third of the novel is not that bad. I remember thinking that it could have made for decent cyberpunk dystopian sci-fi with a geeky twist (apart from the style. The style is awful throughout. I know, I am repeating myself). There were many interesting threads: life in the stacks of caravans, the collective loss of contact with reality, the protagonist not being your run-of-the-mill muscular handsome fella... until he becomes one, but more about this later on, in the spoiler. The problem is that, as the novel goes on (I don't dare say "progress" because, well, it ends up going nowhere) all these threads are left loose, and the attention narrows down to a pretty challenge-less ascent to power with little credibility. Considering that the characters are already plot-driven and that the world-building stops at the caravan stacks, with some further reference to economic implosion and to the world of hikikomori, when the plot flatlines one is left with pretty little to keep the whole thing moving. Then there is the diversity tokenism. Every time this guy tries to wink to minorities he ends up shitting himself with a distinct David Brent: Life on the Road flavour.
SPOILER ALERT CUM RANT.
The fat black lesbian chick disguising herself until now as a white handsome guy is totally fine, let's not challenge the choice and its repercussions; it's just that her homophobic mum taught her to pass white and male online to avoid problems and that's what she will keep doing until the end of the novel. A-okay, right? Look at the bright side, at least she was not acting when drooling over arses and tits with the protagonist. Yes, this is an argument actually made in-text. You are welcome.
Our protagonist is a chubby boy, how inclusive. Until he starts exercising and becomes your run-of-the-mill handsome fella, ditto. Because one doesn't want the reader to visualise a chubby boy smooching the pretty girl-with-birthmark-so-she-is-different-while-remaining-wank-material-for-acneic-teenager-males, does one?
END OF SPOILER ALERT. RANT CONTINUES BELOW.
And the style, well, the style sucks. Have I mentioned how the style sucks? I never tire of mentioning it. I wonder why. And indeed...
...one last consideration about the style, or lack thereof. Boy, this compulsion to put in the characters' mouths pedantic citations of date and details of books, games and movies. Come on, I am a Start Trek geek myself. I don't answer casual references to Data with "well said! Star Trek: Next Generation, 1985-1992, the actor was Brent Spiner". I just don't. Either the interlocutor is a geek like me, which makes this kind of info-dumping redundant, or they are not, which makes it just annoying. One is supposed to bond by hugging in tears at the discovery of a brother in arms, or to answer with another reference if the mutual geekiness is already acknowledged. There is no universe in which info-dumping is acceptable. Unless one IS Data, of course. And one is most definitely not.
Actually, it comes out that it was a rant more than an afterthought. Thank you for your patience. ( )
This book was solid! Full of cliches and the writing and story was so geeky it was mind boggling, but whenever a book like this really commits to the style, it tends to work out fine. Worth reading for anyone who likes games and is looking for a fun, laid back read with some twists and turns. ( )
I read this book originally back in 2020, and finally got around to listening to the audio book. I love this book, the great pop culture references, the notes of the decline of the world and humanity, and specifically such a great sci-fi adventure story. Wade's character development, as well as his general outlook on life is the exact type of character arc I love to see. My one favorite reference is specifically Rush, my dad's favorite rock band. Just the nod to the bands work just made my soul happy. ( )
Ready Player One borrows liberally from the same Joseph Campbell plot requirements as all the beloved franchises it references, but in such a loving, deferential way that it becomes endearing. There’s a high learning curve to all of the little details Wade throws out about the world, and for anyone who doesn’t understand or love the same sect of pop culture Halliday enjoyed, Ready Player One is a tough read. But for readers in line with Cline’s obsessions, this is a guaranteed pleasure.
The breadth and cleverness of Mr. Cline’s imagination gets this daydream pretty far. But there comes a point when it’s clear that Wade lacks at least one dimension, and that gaming has overwhelmed everything else about this book.
Informatie afkomstig uit de Engelse Algemene Kennis.Bewerk om naar jouw taal over te brengen.
For Susan and Libby Because there is no map for where we are going
Eerste woorden
Informatie afkomstig uit de Engelse Algemene Kennis.Bewerk om naar jouw taal over te brengen.
Everyone my age remembers where they were and what they were doing when they first heard about the contest.
Citaten
Informatie afkomstig uit de Engelse Algemene Kennis.Bewerk om naar jouw taal over te brengen.
Like most gunters, I voted to reelect Cory Doctorow and Wil Wheaton (again). There were no term limits, and those two geezers had been doing a kick-ass job of protecting user rights for over a decade.
It was the dawn of a new era, one where most of the human race now spent all of their free time inside a videogame.
"No one in the world ever gets what they want and that is beautiful." [199]
And now the conditions at any schools had gotten so terrible that every kid with half a brain was being encouraged to stay at home and attend school online.
The Great Recession was now entering its third decade, and unemployment was still at a record high. (2045)
...his obsessive adherence to routine and preoccupation with a few areas of interest led many psychologists to conclude that Halliday had suffered from Asperger’s syndrome, or from some other form of high functioning autism.
...contrary to popular belief, the OASIS won’t change that drastically when IOI takes control of it.
I could barely believe it myself. IOI had actually tried to kill me. To prevent me from winning a videogame contest. It was insane.
Capitalism would inch forward, without my actually having to interact with another human being.
The sight of my tiny one-room apartment, my immersion rig, or my reflection in the mirror—they all served as a harsh reminder that the world I spent my days in was not, in fact, the real one.
I could vote, in both the OASIS elections and the elections for U. S. government officials. I didn’t bother with the latter, because I didn’t see the point. The once-great country into which I’d been born now resembled its former self in name only. It didn’t matter who was in charge. Those people were rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic and everyone knew it. Besides, now that everyone could vote from home, via the OASIS, the only people who could get elected were movie stars, reality TV personalities, or radical televangelists.
Questing kept me busy and served as a welcome distraction from the growing loneliness and isolation I felt.
You know you’ve totally screwed up your life when your whole wid turns to shit and the only person you have to talk to is your system agent software.
It’s not over until it’s over.
Try and use your powers only for good. Okay?
I created the OASIS because I never felt at home in the real world. I didn’t know how to connect with the people there. I was afraid, for all of my life. Right up until I knew it was ending. That was when I realized, as terrifying and painful as reality can be, it’s also the only place where you can find true happiness. Because reality is real. Do you understand? (James Halliday)
Laatste woorden
Informatie afkomstig uit de Engelse Algemene Kennis.Bewerk om naar jouw taal over te brengen.
It occurred to me then that for the first time in as long as I could remember, I had absolutely no desire to log back into the OASIS.
"In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the Oasis. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines -- puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win -- and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape"--Page 2 of cover.
This pretty much sums it up. One would think that, at least, something is gonna happen to raise the suspense but no, it's just a giant videogame geek's wank where the final reward is infinite lives, superpowers, money and, obviously, the girl; with a sloppy moralistic afterthought (probably by the editor, Great Absent otherwise) about the primacy of real life, slapped on the ending like a Parental Advisory on a CD.
Style: clunky when not absent. The attempts at giving characters a voice are even worse than the general flatness.
Storyline: ridiculously childish. There is every single marker of bad narrative: Deus ex Machina; last-minute tricks; plot-serving character twists; even the Protagonist's Cunning Plot (that goes so smooth that you start doubting whether the Evil All-Powerful Corporation is run by dummies). Had I marked every instance of bad plot symptoms, finishing the book would have taken years.
Characters: cardboard silhouettes. Should I mention predictability?
A second star because I was a child in the Eighties. But it's a guilty pleasure star. It should have been one star. Guilty as charged.
EDIT: I have afterthoughts, too.
To be honest, the first third of the novel is not that bad. I remember thinking that it could have made for decent cyberpunk dystopian sci-fi with a geeky twist (apart from the style. The style is awful throughout. I know, I am repeating myself). There were many interesting threads: life in the stacks of caravans, the collective loss of contact with reality, the protagonist not being your run-of-the-mill muscular handsome fella... until he becomes one, but more about this later on, in the spoiler.
The problem is that, as the novel goes on (I don't dare say "progress" because, well, it ends up going nowhere) all these threads are left loose, and the attention narrows down to a pretty challenge-less ascent to power with little credibility. Considering that the characters are already plot-driven and that the world-building stops at the caravan stacks, with some further reference to economic implosion and to the world of hikikomori, when the plot flatlines one is left with pretty little to keep the whole thing moving.
Then there is the diversity tokenism. Every time this guy tries to wink to minorities he ends up shitting himself with a distinct David Brent: Life on the Road flavour.
SPOILER ALERT CUM RANT.
The fat black lesbian chick disguising herself until now as a white handsome guy is totally fine, let's not challenge the choice and its repercussions; it's just that her homophobic mum taught her to pass white and male online to avoid problems and that's what she will keep doing until the end of the novel. A-okay, right? Look at the bright side, at least she was not acting when drooling over arses and tits with the protagonist. Yes, this is an argument actually made in-text. You are welcome.
Our protagonist is a chubby boy, how inclusive. Until he starts exercising and becomes your run-of-the-mill handsome fella, ditto. Because one doesn't want the reader to visualise a chubby boy smooching the pretty girl-with-birthmark-so-she-is-different-while-remaining-wank-material-for-acneic-teenager-males, does one?
END OF SPOILER ALERT. RANT CONTINUES BELOW.
And the style, well, the style sucks. Have I mentioned how the style sucks? I never tire of mentioning it. I wonder why. And indeed...
...one last consideration about the style, or lack thereof. Boy, this compulsion to put in the characters' mouths pedantic citations of date and details of books, games and movies. Come on, I am a Start Trek geek myself. I don't answer casual references to Data with "well said! Star Trek: Next Generation, 1985-1992, the actor was Brent Spiner". I just don't. Either the interlocutor is a geek like me, which makes this kind of info-dumping redundant, or they are not, which makes it just annoying. One is supposed to bond by hugging in tears at the discovery of a brother in arms, or to answer with another reference if the mutual geekiness is already acknowledged. There is no universe in which info-dumping is acceptable. Unless one IS Data, of course. And one is most definitely not.
Actually, it comes out that it was a rant more than an afterthought. Thank you for your patience. ( )