Ready Player One

ALL OF THE STARS. It's been a minute since I've read a book that I couldn't put down. My house is a mess and I have guests coming and I haven't eaten properly and none of that matters because I had to finish reading this story.

It's interesting to read my friends' reviews of this book. Geekery levels being equal, I find that the younger they are, the less they liked it: my friends currently in their 30s consistently were more critical of it than my friends currently in their 40s. Honestly, I don't have a whole lot of love for the 80s. I wasn't allowed to play those games or listen to that music or watch those shows/films, so the nostalgia doesn't mean much to me. But what struck a chord was the adoration. Like, if you put so much love into something, it's hard for me not to love it. And this world is very, very lovingly created.

And what a world it is! If you've ever played World of Warcraft or a similar multiplayer online game and wished the simulation could be more realistic, the experience more visceral, you'll really enjoy what Cline has done with OASIS. And with virtual reality taking off (again), it feels like that kind of thing isn't completely out of reach anymore. I could do without the real-world-falling-apart aspect of it—I'm fine with that not actually happening, but I hope I live long enough to see such immersive environments become reality (outside of specialised fields like the defence industry and such).

I'm still grinning! What a fun read.