Ready Player One

Has the GD ever done a group read of this? Given its more sci-fi than fantasy, but its a great read. I'm about a third of the way through atm, and would love to hear others thoughts.

I read it last year, Deus, after I purchased it for my son based on the many acclaims here. I don't think we did a group read, but there were a lot of discussions in threads.

I loved it, despite never having been a gamer. The characters were engaging and I liked the worldbuilding. I just noticed today that on a book's work record there is now a section for discussions and mentions, which makes it easier to trace talk about a particular title - could be useful to you, DEL.

I adored it, and also was never really a serious gamer.... although I did occasionally play some of the now-vintage video games mentioned in the book.

I loved this book! There are a couple of similar books I've read recently too. One of the ER/ MG recently called Vaporware by Richard Dansky also about a game-that-wants-to-live but more towards the horror side. Then the one about a girl who loses in a game Feyland: the dark realm and needs a hero to help. That is a Tamlin drag-and-drop.

I thought I'd like Austin Grossman's "You" (sorry, title won't touchstone) for the same reasons I liked Ready Player One but no such luck -- couldn't finish "You".

I enjoyed Ready Player One, especially as I listened to the audio book read by Wil Wheaton. Lots of gaming references, some of which I got, some of which I didn't but it didn't matter.

RPO read by Wesley Crusher O.o that might be the most awesome thing I've heard all day.

Enjoyable read, but at the risk - or near certainty - of being a curmudgeon, I would feel remiss not to mention that it was very YA and suffered from clumsy execution, limited character development, jarring issues of pacing and premature discharge of tension, and even a disconcerting pervasive naivete. But I liked its sheer sense of fun and romp.

I thought we had done a group read, but can't find it on the GD home page. Maybe it was just a lot of us reading it and commenting on each other's reading threads.

Enjoyed it. One of my favourite books of last year .

I know there was supposed to be a film coming out - although I've not heard of anything for a long time. Anyone know any more? Has he written anything else yet?

stellarexplorer: I'd agree on the clumsy execution in some parts, particularly near the end where the main character gets "arrested" abruptly, and only explains MUCH later. I'm curious about the Naivete comment. Especially given the way it ended. Also: Very young adult? Am I unusual in thinking that just because a book focuses on teenage characters doesn't mean its ya? And even if so, is that necessarily a bad thing?

No, not necessarily a bad thing. And no, a young character doesn't necessarily make something YA. But for the person who has yet to read RPO, it may be of some help to locate it within a common classifying designation. Admittedly, the term is not objective. To Kill a Mockingbird is firmly planted culturally in the adult canon, and yet there may be those who prefer to view it as YA.

I offer my impressions largely because the book has many positive comments, and I just want to present that not everyone will read this and fail to be distracted by its shortcomings. I say shortcomings in the spirit that almost every book is imperfect and falls short of genius. The failings of this book were very distracting to me. That is a big part of my definition of a failing in a book: that I am wrenched out of the bookworld -- distracted, taken out of my suspension-of-disbelief -- frequently in the course of reading.

I certainly grasp that many readers didn't have this problem with the book.

Naivete: to my ear, the voice read as unskillful and juvenile. Others may find this seamless and intentional. I didn't find it so. Just one view.

Despite all that, there was much to enjoy.

I read the naivete more as the character than the author. I don't mean to harp on this particular aspect, and I think I understand where you're coming from, but would you mind saying a bit more about how you see the writing as naive?

Personally the bit near the end was the main thing that threw me out of the narrative. No lead up to it, not even a hint, and doing what he did with no espionage training of any kind felt, to me, to be a stretch.

Sure, happy to expand -- I'm leaving for vacation soon, so it may be a little while.