REVIEW: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Tracy's Rating: 4/5 Stars
Genre: Science Fiction
Audience: Adult/Young Adult Crossover

Summary: The real world in 2045 is a sad, desolate place of poverty, energy-depletion, and pollution. So is it any wonder that most people spend more time in the MMO virtual reality world of the OASIS than in reality? The OASIS is more than just entertainment; it has pretty much taken over the internet, becoming the preferred  online platform for communication, work, and education. It is also the site of a virtual contest with real-world ramifications. When billionaire OASIS creator James Halliday died, he left behind a sort of online treasure hunt, declaring that the first person to solve a series of puzzles, discover three keys, and find the Easter egg hidden somewhere in the vast worlds of the OASIS will inherit his company and his fortune. Within a year, the outside world has immersed itself in all of Halliday's obsessions—most notably a wide range of 1980s pop culture trivia—hoping to find clues to unravel Halliday's first puzzle.

But it is 2045, several years after Halliday's death, before the first key is discovered by an avatar called Parzival and the contest begins in earnest. In real-life, Parzival is 18-year-old Wade Watts, a student who lives in a crammed and precariously stacked mobile home with his less-than-loving aunt. He is obsessed with all things Halliday—from vintage coin-operated video games to Family Ties reruns—and escapes to  abandoned van to adopt his online persona. But now that "Parzival" has solved the first clue, the competition to find the egg intensifies. Along with the other scoreboard leaders, Wade now finds himself in mortal danger from a power-hungry corporation willing to do anything to win—even commit murder.

First Line: "Everyone my age remembers where they were and what they were doing when they first heard about the contest."

Tracy's Thoughts:
Ready Player One is a total geek fest. If 80s flicks, classic video games, anime, comics, and Monty Python quotes make you happy, it's definitely the book for you. Of course you don't have to enjoy them all (I score a whopping one out of five) to get a kick out of this fast-paced—sometimes mind-bending—story of an underdog's quest to save the day (and himself!). As I read the book, I found myself downright giddy at times. I by no means recognized all of Cline's 80s references, but many of them (War Games! Better Off Dead! The Back to the Future DeLorean! Schoolhouse Rock! Speed Racer!) put a billboard-sized smile on my face. So, Ready Player One definitely gets an "A" for the 80s nostalgia factor.

But for all its 80s flashback moments, Ready Player One is also a darn good story. It sucks you in, just as OASIS sucks the book's characters away from their reality. It was fun, for a while, to immerse myself in Wade's quest and leave my own world behind. (I guess books are my video games!)  Many people claim they read as an escape. This is clearly a primary motivation to Wade's love of videogames and the OASIS:

Descending the network of metal girders had always reminded me of old platform videogames like Donkey Kong or BurgerTime. I'd seized upon this idea a few years earlier when I coded my first Atari 2600 game (a gunter rite of passage, like a Jedi building his first lightsaber.) It was a Pitfall rip-off called The Stacks where you had to navigate through a vertical maze of trailers, collection junk computers, snagging food-voucher power-ups, and avoiding meth addicts and pedophiles on your way to school. My game was a lot more fun than the real thing.

Of course, real life also bleeds into Wade's virtual world. It is fascinating how, for me, the characters' virtual reality and their "real lives" became entwined. I was just as invested in the avatars' survival as the characters themselves. Perhaps more so.

Ready Player One isn't a perfect book. The writing was a bit uneven at times (e.g., trivia-laden footnotes pepper the prologue then mysteriously vanish), and the romance between Wade/Parzival and his online crush Ar3mis felt a bit forced. Still, it is a clever, fun read with likeable characters and an intriguing premise. Plus, there's that nostalgia factor :)

Celebrate Teen Tech Week!

Computers. Hackers. Video games. Blogging. Social networking. RSS feeds. Read all about it in teen fiction! To celebrate Teen Tech Week, we are highlighting some great tech-themed books for teens:

Former Book Picks:

Little Brother by Cory Doctrow

Warnings: (1) This book contains some “adult” content, so it may not be appropriate for some younger readers. (2) This book may induce paranoia.

This is a seriously scary book—in a very real way—and an easy segue into dystopian fiction for those who are not sure if they will like the genre. It takes place in a not-too-distant future
where school security systems use gait recognition software to keep intruders out—and students in—and where every keystroke on a school laptop is monitored. Then there is a suspected terrorist attack in San Francisco and things get really crazy. Seventeen-year-old Marcus thinks the Department of Homeland Security is out of control, so he uses his tech savvy to start an underground rebellion against the current government. This book is socially and politically charged, featuring super-smart teen characters who are willing to take risks for what they believe in. It may hold particular appeal for techies and teens interested in civil liberties.
--Tracy's Picks, Fall 2008

Genesis Alpha by Rune Michaels

Josh was a test tube baby designed to save his cancer-stricken brother Max, and the two have always been extremely close. When Max is arrested for a brutal murder, Josh knows Max is innocent. But then the sister of the murdered girl starts hassling him and hiding clues to his brother's guilt in their favorite online role-playing game, old secrets come to light, and suddenly Josh doesn’t know what to believe about his brother or himself. This is an unforgettable—and unsettling—suspense novel that explores the natures of good and evil, and the roles of biology and free will.    --Tracy's Picks, Spring 2009

Here are a few more suggestions:
The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary Pearson
Brain Jack by Brian Falkner
Confessions of a Boyfriend Stealer by Robynn Clairday
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Epic by Chuck Kostick
Evil Genius by Catherine Jinks
Feed by M.T. Anderson
Fever Crumb by Philip Reeve
For the Win by Cory Doctrow
Framed! by Malcolm Rose
The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
The Gospel According to Larry by Janet Tashjian
Human.4 by Mike A. Lancaster
I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
iBoy by Kevin Brooks
In Your Room by Jordanna Fraiberg
Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
Little Blog on the Prairie by Cathleen Davitt Bell
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Robot Dreams by Sara Varon
Streams of Babel by Carol Plum-Ucci
Things I Know About Love by Kate Le Vann
Ttyl by Lauren Myracle
Unison Spark byAndy Marino
Variant by Robinson Wells 
Very LeFreak by Rachel Cohn
Virtual War by Gloria Skurzynski
Wish You Were Dead by Todd Strasser

And for those more inclined toward narrative nonfiction, try:

The Radioactive Boy Scout by Ken Silverstein


You might also want to take a peek at our page on Facebook, were we've been posting book trailers, or check out our list of 15 Ways to Geek Out for Teen Tech Week, based on YALSA's list of 25 Ways to Geek Out.

Do you have a favorite tech-themed read? We'd love to hear which of the books above you recommend—or what we've left off the list*!

*We have only included titles available from Bullitt County Public Libraries. We also chose to keep steampunk titles to a minimum.

REVIEW: Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

Tracy's Rating: 4/5 Stars
Genre: Historical Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Humor
Audience: Middle Grade/Tween

Summary: Jack Gantos can't seem to stay out of trouble. It's the summer of 1962 and, after an incident with his dad's collectible WWII sniper rifle and getting caught in the middle of a parental feud, Jack is "grounded for life"! Now he's only allowed out of the house to help his dad dig a giant hole in the yard and to type up the obituaries for his elderly neighbor, whose arthritic hands won't allow her to use the typewriter. But somehow what promised to be a deadly-dull summer turns into one of the most memorable summers ever, filled with bloody noses, underage driving, Hells Angels, and a suspicious number of dead people.

First Line: "School was finally out and I was standing on a picnic table in our backyard getting ready for a great summer vacation when my mother walked up to me and ruined it."

Tracy's Thoughts:
I listened to the audio book in my car, and there were moments that I laughed hard enough to become a potential traffic hazard. This is a book with Personality, from the irrepressibly curious Jack to his loving, bickering parents. Then there are all the other zany characters that inhabit Norvelt: Bunny Huffer, Jack's best friend and daughter of the local funeral parlor owner, who gleefully entertains Jack with nosebleed-inducing tales of gore; Jack's uncle, who paints his horse's mane in bold colors for effect; and of course the feisty, history-spouting Miss Volker, who tells it like she sees it and revels in a good argument. Possibly my favorite character was Mr. Spizz, a crochety old man who rides around town on a giant TRICYCLE, handing out citations and offering chocolates in his decades' long mission to woo a resistant Miss Volker. I particularly enjoyed Gantos's narration of Spizz's character in the audio version; every time he called Jack "Gantos boy" in Spizz's wheezy, condescending way, I couldn't help but grin.

Dead End in Norvelt is a great mix of history, humor, and realistic fiction. It is richly layered, but for readers who prefer action and laughs over deep thoughts, the history and life lessons aren't overly intrusive. Like most of Gantos's books, it is loosely autobiographical. Perhaps that is why the book is imbued with so much energy and believability, despite the occasionally far-out scenarios. I very much enjoyed the dark humor, slightly off-kilter (often hilarious!) descriptions, and eccentric characters. Those with an interest in history (particularly admirers of Eleanor Roosevelt) will be especially pleased.

Here's a look at the book trailer:



And here is a brief interview with Jack Gantos after Dead End in Norvelt was selected as the 2012 Newbery Medal winner:

DUAL REVIEW: Press Here by Herve Tullet

Lucinda's Rating: 4.5/5 Stars
Tracy's Rating: 5/5 Stars
Genre: Picture Book
Audience: Toddler-Kindergarten

Summary: Each page intructs the reader to perform a different action producing surprising results that will be different on each page.

Lucinda's Thoughts: This book was a bunch of fun....each page brought a new action with surprising and delightful results.  The bright, primary colors could be used to aid in teaching little ones colors as well as the concept of size, numbers, counting, and a host of other concepts.  A must read for anyone who has little ones who are curious and eager to learn.

Tracy's Thoughts:
I pretty much summed up my thoughts when I selected Press Here as one of the Best Picture Books of 2011. It was one of the most innovative, entertaining, and educational children's books of the year. Here's what I had to say then:

This ingenious, interactive picture book will incite wonder and delight in children ages 2 to 200. It doesn't require batteries or have any fancy flaps or tabs. Instead, Tullet asks kids to suspend belief and participate by pressing on dots, shaking the book, turning it, and blowing on it—gently of course. When they turn the page, they see the results of their actions. The illustrations—somewhat reminiscent of Leo Lionni, without the personification—are simple, leaving room for the reader's imagination. Ages 2 to 5.

REVIEW: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Tracy's Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Audience:Teen/Young Adult, Adult Crossover 
Genre: Realistic Fiction

Summary: Hazel Grace Lancaster is a walking miracle. Diagnosed with terminal cancer at 12, she is now 16, alive thanks to an experimental drug that keeps the fluid in her lungs in check. Still, breathing is an ongoing struggle, and there is no doubt the the cancer will one day kill her. She's taking college classes but has little human interaction with people other than her parents and doctors. Her "third best friend" (after her parents) is Peter Van Houten, the reclusive author of Hazel's favorite book, An Imperial Affliction. Despite numerous fan letters penned by Hazel, they have never met or even corresponded, but Hazel feels that he is the only person who understands what it's like to be dying without having actually died.

Augustus Waters is a 17-year-old cancer survivor in remission. Hazel first meets him at a support group she attends only under protest. Before Hazel knows what is happening, the two are trading words and feeding off each other's comments with an energy that Hazel hasn't felt in... forever. Then they swap their favorite books, and Augustus makes it his mission to help Hazel find the answers to the many questions she has for Peter Van Houten.  

First Line: Late in the winter of my seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of my abundant free time to thinking about death.

Tracy's Thoughts:  

First, let me say this: John Green is awesome. I adored An Abundance of Katherines, and, although I was slightly less enthusiastic about the Printz-winning Looking for Alaska, I still found it smart, funny, and compelling. I have no good excuse for the fact that I still haven't gotten around to reading Paper Towns or Will Grayson, Will Grayson—his much hyped collaboration with David Levithan—but you can be assured that both are now bumped up near the top of my TBR. No one writes smart teen characters like John Green. His books are both incredibly intelligent—pondering Big Questions with verve and style—and hilarious. Seriously, before I even hit the second chapter of The Fault in Our Stars, I was laughing so hard I was gasping for breath. Twice. In a book about terminal cancer.

At its heart, The Fault in Our Stars is a love story, if one we know to be doomed from the start. Augustus is an incredibly charismatic character, and the snarky, deep-thinking Hazel is his perfect match. Hazel and Augustus have a natural affinity that makes for truly riveting dialog, their separate intellects enhanced by the other. Both are quick-witted, with improbable vocabularies and bookish tendencies. In a way, their repartee reminds me of the nuanced banter of Briony and Eldric in Chime. But unlike Briony and Eldric, Hazel and Augustus are also believable as modern teenagers: they have in-jokes, play pranks, and have the requisite addictions to reality TV and video games. They still feel like teenagers, just teens with extreme intelligence and a situation-enhanced view of reality. Hazel's narration grabbed me from the start—and, despite the comments of some other reviewers—I never felt that it was inauthentic. Here is one early sample:

The Support Group, of course, was depressing as hell. It met every Wednesday in the basement of a stone-walled Episcopal church shaped like a cross. We all sat in a circle right in the middle of the cross, where the two boards would have met, where the heart of Jesus would have been.

I noticed this because Patrick, the Support Group Leader and only person over eighteen in the room, talked about the heart of Jesus every freaking meeting, all about how we, as young cancer survivors, were sitting right in Christ's very sacred heart and whatever.

So here's how it went in God's heart: The six or seven or ten of us walked/wheeled in, grazed at a decrepit selection of cookies and lemonade, sat down in the Circle of Trust, and listened to Patrick recount for the thousandth time his depressingly miserable life story—how he had cancer in his balls and they thought he was going to die but he didn't die and now here he is, a full-grown adult in a church basement in the 137th nicest city in America, divorced, addicted to video games, mostly friendless, eking out a meager living by exploiting his cancertastic past...

Really, there isn't much more I can say about this book without somehow taking away from the incredible journey that it takes you on. It is a wonderfully written book about love and loss and learning to live while coping with the reality of death, about wondering how you will be remembered after you're gone and what will become of those you love. The Fault in Our Stars is not an easy read. It is intellectually and emotionally challenging—but worth the effort. By turns brilliant, hilarious, and heartbreaking, this is a book that is not easily forgotten.

REVIEW: Chicken Cheeks by Michael Black

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars
Audience: Pre-K to 1st Grade
Genre: Picture Book
Summary: Some bears will go to any length to get some honey. This one recruits every animal that comes along to form, well, at stack. The result? Tail of the duck to the gluteus maximus of the duck-billed platypus (with many other rears in between).

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Lucinda's Thoughts:  I laughed my rear off (no pun intended!) when I read this book.  The plays on words that Black uses accompanied by Hawkes comical illustrations are just what is needed to brighten up a dull day!  This book will appeal to children and adults with its "butt humor" and will be a hit to read to any little jokester.

Just a little something from the author!

DUAL REVIEW: Little Pea by Amy Rosenthal

Lucinda's Rating: 4/5 Stars
Tracy's Rating: 4/5 Stars
Audience: Toddler -1st grade
Genre: Picture Book



Summary: Little Pea hates eating candy for dinner, but his parents will not let him have his spinach dessert until he cleans his plate.

Lucinda's Views:  Little Pea's adventures are relevant for any young child.  Not liking what is for dinner is a regular facet of childhood and Little Pea is no exception.  The fact that Little Pea doesn't want any candy is what tickles the funny bone in this book.  The illustrations are very succinct and add to this story's charm.  For example, the facial expressions of Little Pea as he is eating his much hated candy meal are priceless.  If you like a good chuckle in your picture books this is the one for you!

Tracy's Thoughts: Amy Rosenthal is the author of one of my absolute favorite picture books from recent years, Duck! Rabbit! And while I don't love and adore Little Pea with the same fervor, I still think this book is utterly charming. The story and illustrations are simple, yet adorable. And the reverse psychology is sure to convince a picky eater or two to try something new.