Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July

I hope everyone is celebrating our independence today with fireworks and cookouts. 

I used to love fireworks but my dogs are afraid of them. Now when July rolls around, I cringe. Hopefully, this year will be quiet. 

Have you ever read a book and you still think about it a year later?

My sister recommended this book to me. It's called Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I held off reading it because it sounded a little weird and techno-geeky when she explained it to me. Then my other sister recommended it. I finally read it. Boy! What a book! 

I copied the description off Goodreads.

It's the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets.

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune -- and remarkable power -- to whoever can unlock them.

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday's riddles are based in the pop culture he loved -- that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday's icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes's oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig.

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle.

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt -- among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life -- and love -- in the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.

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

I know what your thinking. What the....? I... don't think I'm interested.

This book is filled with coolness. It's packed with 80's trivia, action and adventure, and has a romance too. The first two chapters move a little slow but once that hook sets in your mouth you won't be able to put it down. I promise. I love books that make me think and try to put all the pieces together. This one kicks your brain into full gear. Like I said, I still think about this book and I read it over a year ago. Guys love it, too. Go ahead and give it a try. If you do, let me know what you think about it. I know everyone that I recommended it to has told me they absolutely loved it.