Ready Player One

By: Ernest Cline

Narrated by: Wil Wheaton

Length: 15 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Now a major motion picture directed by Steven Spielberg.

“Enchanting . . . Willy Wonka meets The Matrix.”—USA Today • “As one adventure leads expertly to the next, time simply evaporates.”—Entertainment Weekly

A world at stake. A quest for the ultimate prize. Are you ready?

In the year 2045, reality is an ugly place. The only time Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the OASIS, a vast virtual world where most of humanity spends their days.

When the eccentric creator of the OASIS dies, he leaves behind a series of fiendish puzzles, based on his obsession with the pop culture of decades past. Whoever is first to solve them will inherit his vast fortune—and control of the OASIS itself.

Then Wade cracks the first clue. Suddenly he’s beset by rivals who’ll kill to take this prize. The race is on—and the only way to survive is to win.

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Entertainment Weekly • San Francisco Chronicle • Village Voice • Chicago Sun-Times • iO9 • The AV Club

“Delightful . . . the grown-up’s Harry Potter.”—HuffPost

“An addictive read . . . part intergalactic scavenger hunt, part romance, and all heart.”—CNN

“A most excellent ride . . . Cline stuffs his novel with a cornucopia of pop culture, as if to wink to the reader.”—Boston Globe

“Ridiculously fun and large-hearted . . . Cline is that rare writer who can translate his own dorky enthusiasms into prose that’s both hilarious and compassionate.”—NPR

“[A] fantastic page-turner . . . starts out like a simple bit of fun and winds up feeling like a rich and plausible picture of future friendships in a world not too distant from our own.”—iO9

©2011 Ernest Cline (P)2011 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

2017, Laura Hillenbrand Outstanding Literary Award, Winner

“The science-fiction writer John Scalzi has aptly referred to Ready Player One as a ‘nerdgasm’ [and] there can be no better one-word description of this ardent fantasy artifact about fantasy culture. . . . But Mr. Cline is able to incorporate his favorite toys and games into a perfectly accessible narrative.” (Janet Maslin, The New York Times)

“This non-gamer loved every page of Ready Player One.” (Charlaine Harris, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse series)

awesome

great candid story in the first person. so well narrated I'm looking at all Will Wheaton narrated books

best book I have ever listened to hands down!

performance and story line are so we'll thought out and performed, I've listened to it three times now and find something I missed Everytime!

Amazing piece of Audiobook

This book was preformed amazingly by Wil and the story was great too. If the movie based on the this book was interesting to you, Id recommend this audiobook. It was strange that every single challenge was different in the book compared to the movie, but if anything that made it more thrilling. Seeing how the High Five deal with the 6ers in new ways not seen on the big screen. Wil’s performance of reading this book was so great I was able to imagine everything he was reading as it was going on. It really made my driving to and from work enjoyable.

This was a pretty good book. NOT FOR CHILDREN !

This was a pretty good book. NOT FOR CHILDREN! There is colorful language in this book.

ready player one

think this is the third time I've listened to this, pretty sure it won't be the last either

geek heaven

having gamed in arcades in the 80's and being a fan of near future science fiction books, i loved this book. ..

Absolutely Amazing!

Loved this book! I couldn't listen to enough. I usually listen to a book 50-60 minutes a day, but with this book I could not get enough. So many references that had me thinking how cool it was that "that" detail was put in the book. I can't think of one chapter that did not have a memorable moment or two. The movie adaptation is going to have a very tough time being this good (Note: while visually the movie was great, it did not hold up to the book). Character were great, setting was inspirational, and the story was amazing. Also of significant note is Wil Wheaton's performance; he is amazing at reading books and really getting the listener into the story. I've listened to this book 3 times and I still can't wait to listen again!

Wow....great book!

loved every moment of this book. I can't wait to see what Steven Spielberg did with this.

Fantastic Tribute to Geek-dom and 80s Pop Culture

From beginning to end, I found it hard to pause between listening sessions, constantly wanting to listen "just a little bit longer."

Ready Player One tells a captivating story with a plethora of 1980s era video game, movie, and music references, invoking feelings of nostalgia to anyone who remembers playing crudely pixelated video games in an actual arcade.

Even those unfamiliar with the retro pop culture references will still enjoy the story... even if portions are predictable at times.

Wil does a fantastic job in his performance. Narrating in Ready Player One's first person perspective, it's hard not to imagine Wil as the actual voice of Wade, the story's protagonist.

If you enjoy playing classic video games like Galaga, Pac Man, or Armada...

If you can quote lines from The Breakfast Club, The Princess Bride, War Games, or The Goonies...

If you enjoy Star Trek, Dungeons and Dragons, Firefly, puzzles, and/or giant robots...

...this book is for you.

Outstanding book and very captivating!

Had my attention throughout. Narration was phenomenal and spot on with intonations, clarity and speed.