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)

Exceeded my moderate expectations!

I kind of knew how the movie went (without seeing it, just reading about it and Honest Trailers) and I was skeptical to read the book. ( I know, poor judgement). BUT, I had also listened to books that I KNEW I enjoyed as audio-books and the narrator ruined the experience pretty harshly.

So, a good book could be killed by poor narrator or it could just be bad.

This was a GREAT book with GOOD narration. (by a Wesley Crusher too ;) ) No, I will not be telling you to 'Shut up Wesley" not even for a moment...
This book is PURE nerd/geek porn. Constant nerdgasms taking me all the way back...

For someone born in 87', this along with shows like Stranger Things are all that I really enjoy nowadays..

This is a REQUIRED read for you 70-90's kids.

I LOVED THIS. ENRAPTURED FROM BEGINNING TO END.

Solid performance, amazing story not easy to predict, solid message, and the attention to detail was exquisite.

great story by a great writer

loved it!!!!! watched the movie and read the book after. The book was way better than the movie.

Love this book

I loved this book! I’m afraid to go see the movie because I don’t want them to ruin it! All the 80’s throw backs made me happy. I really haven’t had a book get to me in a long time. This one did! It had me in the middle of ALL my emotions!

New to Audible..

I’ve always thought of myself as an avid reader, but I won’t lie, I’ve been slacking for going on a few years now. What with work, relationships and the struggle with my Netflix addiction, I don’t find myself reading at all anymore. This app, this book in particular, has made be reevaluate my prioritization of time and has truly inspired me to explore the new generation of writers!

Nerd Fantasy

I love everything about this book and I love everything about how they produced it into an audio book. I laughed so hard in public that strangers asked me to explain what I was listening to. I cried, I nerded. This is just so good. I forgive the stupid boy fantasy pieces because the whole thing is a masterpiece.

loved the book and loved the audio book.

Wil Wheaton made Ernest Cline's words come to life. Ready player one was such a pleasure. i didn't want it to end.

Movie was better

Solid book. Very euphoric read for this gamer. Made me realize how little of an actual nerd I am. But at the same time Spielberg translated the book into a film beautifully. Skipped over all the confusion and gave the audience what they wanted. Still a good read, just go see the movie as well

Great book cool story

Absolutely loved the book, overall great. Wil Wheaton did great. ending could have been better

Addictive

Absolutely addictive story. Highly recommend by my brother and I am glad I listened to it.