Dear J. Brandon Lowry,
Yeahs! You perfectly stated what I kept muttering about! I bought this book because the ad for a movie looked good & I prefer to read the book first. I started reading it, then stopped in sheer frustration.
Even though I was of the “right” age in the ’80s, I was never a gamer, so I found myself bored stupid. Next, most of the time the hero wasn’t playing, he was complimenting himself — how smart he was to memorize this or play that to perfection earlier in life. Golly, when I wasn’t admiring his skills, I was wondering just how old he was to have had the time for ALL those books & games , yet still manage do enough homework not to get kicked out of school & somehow find a way to feed himself ‘cause sure as shit no one else was taking care of him, surrounded as he was by abusers & other miscreants. Luckily, I don’t think anyone ever goes to the bathroom in the virtual world.
Sorry for rambling, obviously you touched a raw nerve. I still can’t believe someone recommended this book to me! All thumbs way down on the book, not on the review.
