Ready Player One, by Ernest Cline

In a future of limited resources and failing infrastructure, humanity lives out its dreams in a massive virtual reality game-world. Wade Watts is a high school student, getting an elite education for free despite his impoverished real-world life, because that was the vision of the game’s creator: unlimited access to knowledge, for rich and poor alike, where every kid has a genuine opportunity to make something of themselves. But not everyone wants to keep it that way.

The original programmer is dead, and a prize is hidden in the game. Whoever decodes the clues first will inherit his billions—and control the virtual universe. Wade has been searching for years. If he wins, he can leave his life in “the stacks” behind, and he can protect the world he knows and loves. But big business is searching too. If they win, the world can say goodbye to free education. That could add up to trillions, and they’ll do anything to get it. Continue reading “Rare. Epic. Legendary.” →