Otherworld

Jason Segal and Kirsten Miller (actual book)

I bought this book because I succumbed to the staff recommendation slip at the bookstore – ‘If you liked Ready Player One!’.  Since RP1 is one of my son’s favorite books, I thought that we could get a two-fer with this book that we both could enjoy and discuss.  I didn’t realize until after I finished it that it was the actor, Jason Segal (of How I met Your Mother fame) who co-wrote this book with Kirsten Miller.  I would normally be a little dubious about an actor writing a YA book and trying to possibly trade on their celebrity and especially if they have a co-writer who is possibly doing all the heavy lifting, but I know that Jason Segal writes a lot of the work that he appears in as a screenwriter and ‘Forgetting Sarah Marshall’ is one of my guilty pleasures.  There should be a word for a movie that you will always watch if it comes across your attention whilst TV channel surfing.  Groundhog Day and Kill Bill No. 1 are two of those movies for me – Forgetting Sarah Marshall is another.  (comfort flicks? Movie worms?) 

The short description of this book would be that it is like Ready Player One without the Eighties easter egg storyline.  I think it actually develops the possible ‘reality’ of VR in a better way than RP1.  One of my pet peeves with the premise of the VR experience in RPQ is the reliance on haptic suits and universal treadmills.  They look and sound stupid in the movie and they are not very believable as truly immersive in real life.    Having a direct brain connection makes a lot more sense both stylistically and intellectually.  I remember as a kid waking up, getting ready for school and taking the bus and then waking up again and realizing that it was a reality dream.  Just the other day I reality dreamed that I was reading articles on my phone while lying in bed.   I don’t think that this is that uncommon an experience for people.  I don’t think that slapping a patch on your neck and brain stem would be able to make the neural connections necessary for a true VR experience, but it is credible. 

From a literary standpoint, it also allows for higher stakes for the character’s since it is believable that when in that state, if your brain believes that you have died then you actually die.   Not just losing your avatar levels and acquired virtual loot.    Do I think that there are problems with Ready Player One?  Yes, I do.  Otherworld is better when it comes to describing a virtual world but it has significant problems of it’s own.    

The biggest issue with the book is that Simon, the main protagonist, is just not very likeable.  He comes across as an entitled jerk who doesn’t really warrant our sympathy or affection.  I guess if you are a teenager reading this book, you can identify with his nihilistic and rebellious attitude especially against his stereotypical disaffected parents who are more concerned with their jobs and their social standing rather than showering all the attention to their moody son but if you are older and have some actual life experience, Simon comes across as just annoying.  I felt a lot more connection with the other supporting characters in the virtual world who are trying to escape their induced vegetative states and end up sacrificing themselves  so that Simon can continue his quest – even though they have no objective proof that their reality is what Simon says it is beyond his proclamations.    

Simon’s borderline obsession, I mean love, of Kat is similarly shallowly presented.  She spends most of the book just out of reach as she travels ahead of him to the mythical exit area (why an exit area?  Isn’t everything virtual?)  and they don’t have a lot of backstory that illustrate their relationship except that she taught him to play in the woods when he was a sheltered youngster and spent a lot of his time at her house because it was more warm and loving then his own.  Simon is awkward and distant throughout and has to be practically forced by Kat to express any emotion for her.  Again, maybe this is a teenage boy’s mindset but it seems very stupid.  Especially having read Eleanor and Park (Review coming soon) around the same time, some actual touching dialogue or description of Simon and Kat’s relationship would have gone a long way to making their feelings seem three dimensional.

I actually am disliking this book more and more now that I am writing about it.  The deus ex machina events throughout the book – the mysterious virtual guide who turns about to be a fellow classmate – the unpleasant descriptions of bacchanal temptations as they proceed from level to level.  Even the somewhat obvious twists involving Kat’s stepfather.  This is a series of action scenes and unbelievable plot coincidences to get people to the right place at the right time. I was going to say that I was hoping that my son would read it and want to get the sequel ‘OtherEarth’ so that I could continue reading the sage without violating my self imposed restriction not to buy any new books, but after a week to let it sit with me, I find that I don’t really care.

Takeaways:

Character development is super important.  You need to know what motivates someone in a believable and consistent manner.  Spend a little time fleshing out personality and relationships.

Don’t be lazy with the plot.

I did read this book and enjoyed it at the time – reasonable action, cliffhangers and some hook will take your far.  I guess this is the current media standard.  Good enough for a popcorn book, but annoying if you read critically at all.  If I wasn’t reading so much other and better books, I would be a lot less forgiving.