The Dice Man
by Luke Rhinehart · first published 1971
47% recommend53% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Darkly comic cult novel about a psychiatrist who starts making his life decisions by rolling dice. It is entertaining and thought-provoking on chance, free will, and identity.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
The cult classic that can still change your life...Let the dice decide! This is the philosophy that changes the life of bored psychiatrist Luke Rhinehart - and in some ways changes the world as well. Because once you hand over your life to the dice, anything can happen. Entertaining, humorous, scary, shocking, subversive, The Dice Man is one of the cult bestsellers of our time.
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Max should meet Luke Rhinehart -- The Dice Man: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dice_Man
on “Eager to Burst His Own Bubble, a Techie Made Apps to Randomize His Life” ↗For a novelist's take on making life changing decisions based on chance, Luke Rhinehart's "The Dice Man" comes recommended.
on “Heads or Tails: The Impact of a Coin Toss on Major Life Decisions and Happiness [pdf]” ↗The Dice Man - Luke Rhinehart once you hand over your life to the dice, anything can happen
on “Ask HN: Which books do you wish you'd read earlier in life?” ↗If you're really convinced that there's a "true" version of yourself, you should read the 70s cult classic "The Dice Man" by Luke Rhinehart. While not exactly earth-shattering prose, and while also following a general plot arc of increasingly graphic and violent sexuality, in the right setting it can be a deep reminder…
on “Intellectual Loneliness” ↗Funny book recommendation: "The Dice Man" by Luke Rhinehart.
on “Heuristics that almost always work” ↗Yeah that and The Dice Man are the two big ones that stand out to me. I heard of them both years back from everything2: https://everything2.com/title/Books+that+will+induce+a+mindf...
on “Who is the real Dice Man? The elusive writer behind a cult novel” ↗5 books not on this list that might expand your.mind: * The Dice Man by George Cockroft. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dice_Man?wprov=sfla1 * The Teachings of Don Juan by Carlos Castaneda. * Looking Backward by Edward Bellamy https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/624…
on “Mind-expanding books” ↗Relevant and very entertaining read: The Dice Man
on “Heads or Tails: The Impact of a Coin Toss on Major Life Decisions and Happiness [pdf]” ↗For a literal take on the role of luck in life, read “The Dice Man”.
on “On Cumulative Advantage and How to Think About Luck” ↗That sounds like something out of a novel called "The Dice Man"[1], in which the protagonist decides to base all of his actions on the roll of the dice. [1] - https://www.amazon.com/Dice-Man-Luke-Rhinehart/dp/0879518642
on “What Is the I Ching?” ↗I'm not sure I'd say "The Dice Man" encourages anyone to do what the Rhinehart character does in the book.
on “Who is the real Dice Man? The elusive writer behind a cult novel” ↗I like your style https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dice_Man >The Dice Man is a 1971 novel by American novelist George Cockcroft, writing under the pen name "Luke Rhinehart".[1] The book tells the story of a psychiatrist who makes daily decisions based on the…
on “Ways to annoy your senior engineer” ↗"Luke Rhinehart"'s The Dice Man isn't the stagecoach of life I should be riding? Damn.
on “Your Most Improbable Life” ↗It's interesting to compare "Dice Man"[0] with "Yes Man"[1] (the book, not the Jim Carrey film adaptation). Both books are about people putting their decision making to an external force (Dice man with a die, Yes Man by accepting any offer…
on “Who is the real Dice Man? The elusive writer behind a cult novel” ↗This is the plot of the 1971 novel, The Dice Man? (I thought that was reasonably well known?) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dice_Man
on “Cointoss” ↗