Review - Ready Player One

Ready Player One

Ernest Cline

350+ pages

 

Description via Goodreads

When I dropped a quarter into the left coin slot, the game emitted a familiar electronic bea-wup! sound. I tapped the Player One button, and the first maze appeared on the screen. I wrapped my right hand around the joystick and began to play, guiding my pizza-shaped protagonist through one maze after another. Wakka-wakka-waka-wakka (222)

 

Charming. Funny. Entertaining. Fun. An ode to 80s pop culture.

 

This is about an adventure in the life of Wade Watts, an eighteen-year old gamer and 80s pop culturist(?), on a mission to find Halliday's egg. Halliday's egg will bring him fortune, fame and the means to move out of his aunt's trailer. However, Wade is not alone in this quest--he must compete with billions of other "gunters" to find this egg, which can only be found through something of a virtual scavenger hunt...using 80s references as clues.

 

The idea behind the story is very interesting, refreshing even. A game within a story, a game within a game, blurring the line between virtual and reality. An escape from reality is a prevalent theme here, as well as, connecting people who are otherwise disconnected in their actual lives. Wade Watts is young, immature and surprisingly, vulnerable. He airs out his insecurities, (physical and emotional) and reveals weakness. It's not something I see a lot. Very uncharacteristic of male protagonists I've come across. He's very smart, dedicated and a little awkward--overall a likeable guy.

You know you've totally screwed up your life when your whole world turns to shit and the only person you have to talk to is your system agent software (237)

Cline utilizes first person narrative fairly well. He's super descriptive in his explanation of the chaotic, rogue, resource-deprived cities of the future and the the inner-workings of OASIS, a game-like interface used to educate, conduct business, work and participate in extracurricular activities. Basically, people sit on their asses all day, instead of engaging people in reality...why does that sound familiar?...But Wade aka Parzival (his OASIS I.D, sort of like a Gamertag) informs the reader again and again that reality sucks.

 

If I had to pick on something in this book, it would probably be the dialogue--it's really cheesy and elementary at times...I would like to think it would've worked  since Wade is a socially awkward, insecure nerd, whose brilliant thoughts don't always translate into well-articulated conversations. And the book is a little heavy on tell-not-show description, which leads me to another thing. The 80s references. I understand they were essential to the hunt, but it gets tiresome--quickly. At first it's like "Oh yeah, I remember that song" or "Oh yeah, that movie was pretty funny haha", but after 300 pages of it...you just don't care anymore.

I created the OASIS because I never felt at home in the real world. I didn't know how to connect with people there. I was afraid, for all of my life. Right up until I knew it was ending. That was when I realized, as terrifying and painful as reality can be, it's also the only place where you can find true happiness. Because reality is real. Do you understand? (364)

I really liked the main antagonist, the IOI, a huge global corporation trying to control the flow of information for everyone. They'll stop at nothing (including murder) to find Halliday's egg and control OASIS. I also liked that Wade doesn't lead triumphantly the entire way. He needs help, he falters, he encounters obstacles. In the end he learns a valuable lesson about the perks of living and participation in the real world...although he does only learn it through a virtual scavenger hunt...hmm.

 

It's a fun read about adventure and self-discovery in the context of 80s video games. But you don't need to be a gamer or familiar with the 80s to enjoy it.

 

Ready Player One

  

Three stars.

Review - Mockingjay

Mockingjay

Author: Suzanne Collins

Pages: 400+

Description:

Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss's family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding. 

It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plains--except Katniss. 

The success of the rebellion hinges on Katniss's willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsiblity for countless lives, and to change the course of the future of Panem. To do this, she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels' Mockingjay--no matter what the personal cost.

I also think you're a little hard to swallow. With your tacky romantic drama and your defender-of-the-helpless act. Only it isn't an act, which makes you more unbearable. Please feel free to take this personally (218) 

A little hard to swallow and unbearable....This pretty much sums up how I felt about Katniss throughout the entire book, from start to finish; and it's interesting that Collins would write this (albeit from the view of another character)...it's like she knew just how lame Katniss was. Forget the rushed plot, vague descriptions and cop out ending. Katniss' character development--or the lack thereof--is beyond annoying. She never truly embraced the role of Mockingjay. She was too self-righteous at all the wrong times, too irresponsible at others, a silly pawn easily manipulated by both President Snow and Coin. She was numb, flat, blah.

Don't be a fool Katniss. Think for yourself (111)

And I get it, she's been through a lot, but if you're going to agree to be the Mockingjay and you know what it means for the future of the rebellion, then you should own it. But Katniss does it half-ass. Gale and Peeta progress more than she does...There is no journey for her. At one point Katniss is shot, and I almost wished she had died and then someone else took over as Mockingjay. At another point she votes for another Hunger Games to happen--Why? This makes no sense. Where's the maturation? Where's the climax? Why even write this?

I don't have much else to say. As a reader, I prefer lots of description, a lot of show and less tell. There is a lot of 'telling' going on in this series, with cheesy dialogue and an inactive protagonist...The writing was not that much better in the previous two books, but at least they were fun to read. This one bombed. 

Mockingjay

Two stars.

Review - A Clockwork Orange

A Clockwork Orange

Author: Anthony Burgess

Pages: 200+

Publisher's Description:

A Clockwork Orange is a frightening fable about good and evil, and the meaning of human freedom. And when the state undertakes to reform Alex to "redeem" him, the novel asks, "At what cost?"

My thoughts:

I've been meaning to read this cult classic for long time. I mean a really long time. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about and now that I've read it, I think I understand the appeal. The readers follow Alex and his gang of droogies as they carry out their ultra-violence and speak their Nadsat slang (which was really fun to decipher). The reader gets the feeling that they're always up to no good. Theft, rape, murder, you know, the usual. One day Alex is caught by the millicents (police) and thrown in jail for murder. After some time in jail, he is chosen to be a test subject for a rehabilitation technique that turns the bad into the good. 

The question is whether such a technique can really make a man good. Goodness comes from within, 6655321. Goodness is something chosen. When a man cannot choose he ceases to be man (93). 

After being rehabilitated Alex is released back into society, but has a tough time reintegrating. Society is cold and without empathy. It's the society he both came from and helped perpetuate. Alex encounters a group of subversives who want to use him as a weapon of propaganda against the government, but with no desire to be violent and no sense of belonging, he seeks an outlet: suicide.

I most emphatically do not approve. An eye for an eye, I say. If someone hits you you hit back do you not? Why then should not the State, very severely hit by you brutal hooligans, not hit back also? (104)

I found the novel to be an interesting mix of philosophy; tossing in God, humanity and oppressive political systems. The central character Alex is somewhat intriguing. I had a hard time understanding his fascination with classical music. I mean it's not unusual to like classical music. I like classical music, but I was also a musician. And Alex just seemed so one-dimensional, his only motivation being his ego, his violence and tendency to fly off the handle. And classical music to me is very different. It has many layers. It's disciplined and complex, tender at times, bombastic at others. But I may be over-analyzing this. Alex liked classical music simply because he could. He had the choice. Later in the novel, choice is denied to him and classical music once a source of pleasure is transfigured into a source of pain. 

Apparently, the last chapter of the edition I read was initially omitted from the American version..I can see why. In the last chapter there's a change; after converting back into his old self, Alex becomes bored with violence and begins to mature at the ripe age of eighteen. I don't know, it just seems out of place. I wish I hadn't read the last chapter. I would have preferred to end it on a darker note, with the implications that man is man, violent and reckless. And he can't be changed. This American can appreciate that message. 

If you were wondering what the title is about, maybe Burgess can shed some light on it:

I mean it to stand for the application of a mechanisitic morality to a living organism oozing with juice and sweetness (A Clockwork Orange Resucked, 1986)

I liked it. I get why it's a cult classic.

A Clockwork Orange
 

Three stars.

Review - Catching Fire

Catching Fire

Author: Suzanne Collins

Pages: 350+

Publisher's Description:

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by the defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their familes a life of safety and plenty. But their are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.

My thoughts:

Catching Fire picks up right after Katniss and Peeta have won the Hunger Games. It begins with Katniss describing her new life as a victor, right before she and Peeta must make a tour of all the districts as the winners of the Games. Katniss receives a surprise visit from President Snow, who basically tells her that not only did she make a fool of the Capitol, she has inadvertently triggered the beginnings of a rebellion. President Snow makes it clear that if she doesn't make an effort to clean up her mess, he'll have no choice but to snuff out whomever necessary. The threat is directed primarily at Katniss, but she knows that her loved ones are also at risk.

Sure enough, flashes of an uprising begin to surface in all the districts and eventually, Katniss and Peeta end up participating in the Quarter Quell--a special Games for the 75th year, if you will--and are tasked once again to put on an act (This time Katniss and Peeta are getting married AND there's a pregnancy--but not really *rolls eyes*) in order to survive. President Snow wants to squash any hopes of a rebellion by killing off the strongest of the denizens of all twelve districts, aka, the previous victors of the Hunger Games.

I guess I'll begin with the things I didn't like...In my opinion, Katniss is fairly mature in the first book of the Hunger Games, but in this one she just seems like a big whiner. Perhaps, she should be entitled to whining, granted all she's been through, but its still annoying to read. I still feel her love for Peeta is insincere, and I'm pretty sure she states this in the book, in her own confused, whiny kind-of-way; so I don't know why she seems all torn between Peeta and Gale. Choose Gale dummy! She eventually does...I think? Anyways, I'm completely over this love triangle.

There are many things I did like. I mean, who doesn't love a good rebellion story? The secret/not-so-secret symbol of a mockingjay representing the rebellion is cool. I also like that the victors worked together to literally break out of the Games. Oddly enough, I didn't see it coming. I also appreciated that the Games seemed more cerebral...yes, they still have to kill each other like savages, but the arena timed like a clock, with different times of terror, and them having to figure it out was pretty cool. I'll be interested to see how they remake the events in the arena in the movie. I also like the fact that District 13 is now a mystical location, or possibly something like a safe haven or headquarters for the subversives. The end of the first book, left me a little blah because I wasn't sure what the second book would be about other than putting Katniss back into the arena. But I'm more intrigued with the ending of this book. Overall, I think Catching Fire is a good intermediary, and I'm definitely curious about how this all ends. Honestly, being the pessimist I am, I get the feeling a lot of main characters are going to die...and I might even go as far as to say that the rebellion might fail. But I'm probably wrong, and it could go the other way; Katniss will somehow end up being the new president of District 13 (which would be comprised of what's left of all districts, but unified) where all is well.

Catching Fire
 

Three stars.

Review - The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games

Author: Suzanne Collins

Pages: 350+

Publisher's Description:

Katniss is a sixteen-year-old girl living with her mother and younger sister in the poorest district of Panem, the remains of what used to be the United States. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in the annual televised event called, "The Hunger Games". The terrain, rules and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed. When Kat's sister is chosen by lottery, Kat steps up to go in her place. 

My thoughts:

I guess I'll start with my expectations--I had none. All I knew before reading the book was that it's really popular. I didn't know a plot synopsis or any spoilers, so I basically went in blind. And in the end I really enjoyed the book. It was very fast-paced and to the point. Katniss is a likeable character, talented but not super-human. The circumstances of the people living in District 12 and I suppose many of the other Districts are unfavorable, and The Hunger Games really just makes life terrible. If I lived there, I would agree with Katniss; having kids just wouldn't be an option.

I really like the action described in the games, not the preparation leading up to, but the actual release into the terrain and the events that follow. The pomp and circumstance during the preparation in the Capitol was ridiculous. The only thing that interested me was the bathroom that dried and styled your hair without any effort on your part. I would really like to have one of those. At the arena, I kind of wanted the violence to be more graphic or full of more gore, but then again this is "teen" fiction. Nonetheless, I was satisfied. One thing that did annoy me was the excessive amount of affection exchanged between Katniss and Peeta. Pretend or not, it just seemed out of place. But it did get them survival gifts from sponsors...I don't know, it just made me raise an eyebrow. All this kissing and hand-holding, while you starve or freeze or bleed out...I mean really? And then Katniss had Gale back home. I'm so glad the Romeo and Juliet-esque double suicide attempt near the end wasn't successful, that would have annoyed me like no other. Then again I knew she wouldn't die because its a trilogy. I assumed Katniss would somehow survive the berry poisoning but Peeta wouldn't be so lucky.

The end did leave me quite intrigued. I can understand the confusion on Katniss' behalf. She has two unique bonds with two different young suitors--oh, the young teenage angst! My guess is Gale won't want here anymore for obvious reasons, and then Peeta won't want her as much because she's not really into him. But the good news is she's rich. Right? Unless the rule-makers renege on a promise or the tradition. This also wouldn't surprise me...I'm curious to see how the movie turns out and I'll definitely be reading the second book soon. 

The Hunger Games

 

Four stars.