The Book Nook

80’s Nostalgia Adventure   “Ready Player One” by Ernest Kline received several enthusiastic reviews for both the book, which was published in 2011 and the movie that followed nine years later.  It’s been described as a young adult adventure novel, a dystopian science fiction tale and a love story. Describing the plot will require a few spoilers, which I’ll try to minimize.  The story takes place in 2044 when famine, pollution and economic disaster have made life miserable.  Many choose to flee into OASIS, a vast virtual-utopiaia where they live vicariously through an avatar they’ve created.  But there’s another reason that’s tempting people into this paradise. The creator of OASIS was James Halliday, a software programmer extraordinaire who has been dead for five years as the book opens.  Upon his death the world learned he hid an Easter egg in OASIS.  This is a feature put in software by the programmer.  The first person to find it will inherit Halliday’s fortune and control of OASIS, a prize worth hundreds of billions of dollars.  He gives one clue about the egg’s location, noting that accomplishing the quests to find the egg may be too difficult for even the most skilled. This sparks a massive subculture of seekers called gunters (a combination of egg and hunters).  But Halliday’s prediction may be true as no one has made even the tiniest bit of progress towards gaining the prize after half a decade. One hopeful player is Wade Watts, an orphaned high school student living in his aunt’s tiny laundry room.  The lack of progress doesn’t bother Wade, who truly believes he has a chance.  Knowing Halliday was obsessed by pop culture of the 1980s, he’s devoted his life to becoming an expert on that decade, mastering trivia and many arcade and computer games. He’s stunned when he finally discovers the clue needed to start his first quest, becoming the first player on the Hunt’s scoreboard.  But other names quickly join his, including those of a blogger he admires, his best friend and two strangers. Wade suggests an alliance within this group but they’re not interested, a decision they may regret.  A huge corporation called IOI is using professional gunters to find the egg on their behalf.  Everyone fears if IOI wins, OASIS will be commercialized and ruined.  The competition gets increasingly ugly as IOI makes it clear they’ll stop at nothing to win. As Wade fights to stay at the top of the scoreboard, he has problems in the real world.  One is the struggle to keep his identity a secret so he can stay focused on the hunt.  For now, he’s safe behind the anonymity of his avatar, but how long will that last?   He falls prey to a major distraction, which threatens to derail his success.  Time is running out.  Will his mastery of gaming and pop culture be enough in the face of massive and fierce competition? This was a fun and enjoyable book with a retro feel.  At times I felt the trivia got in the way of the story, although lovers of nerdy culture may disagree.  I also longed for more suspense or a deeper dive into social issues and the romance angle. Those points aside, I enjoyed the many counterpoints in this entertaining tale.  The chilling futuristic feel was balanced by a nostalgia for the past.  There’s both celebration and criticism of online culture, which describes the fun of a virtual world while noting problems caused by abandoning reality.  Cline really delves into why escapism is so attractive, also looking at loneliness and isolation. The author has peppered his tale with blasts from the past in obvious and subtle ways.  I lost count of the allusions to 80s pop-culture after the first few chapters and it was fun seeing how many references I could identify.  The story toggles easily between the virtual and real worlds with nice contrasts between the utopian OASIS and dystopian reality. You don’t have to be a gamer or 80s enthusiast to enjoy this story, although it will enhance the depth of enjoyment.  Some who saw Stephen Spielberg’s movie complained that he focused more on the flashy than the philosophical.  Others felt the director’s excellent handling of the references made for a superior product to the book. Humor features heavily here, with particularly good moments when Wade and his friends trade insults or argue about trivia.  There’s also suspense built on the common-man versus evil corporation theme. Reading a book about escaping reality at a time when many are experiencingcabin fever due to the pandemic seems ironic.  During these trying times many have turned to electronics to communicate, learn and pass the time.  Sometimes the best way to forget your troubles is to read about someone else’s and while some of Wade’s problems are virtual, they are epic.