Bibliofemme Bookclub An Irish Bookclub

A cult classic, read by many. Luke Reinhart both the name of the author and the protagonist of this story, is a man who is fed up of his life- he takes it upon himself to find a way out of his same, same, predictable, wife, job 2.blah children life. His solution? Dice life.

As Luke spins his home grown philosophies and psychological theories you find yourself gradually drawn in. If he can give up his life to spontaneity of randomness and chaos – maybe too can we. The pen name as author and character works well to this end adding an air of believability. Yes maybe we choose a character and path for ourselves, yes maybe there would be unbelievable freedom in giving up the job of ploughing ones own furrow to the erratic decisions of a dice. Yes, maybe we all have it in us to be an adulterer, a murderer, a wonderful parent and lover a gibbering idiot and much more…

Yes, thought provoking and in some ways action provoking. However as Reinhart’s philosophies spun out he seemed to have difficulty in tying them up at the end and the story dragged somewhat.

I didn’t run out and buy a dice (but I thought about it and still do), but I would say read the book. 4/5

Score awarded by Bibliofemme: 3 out of 5

Awards
Impac Literary Prize

What the other femmes had to say
“Interestingly brought up a way to experiment with day-to-day life but could have ended a lot sooner.” 3/5

“A great idea that runs out of steam way before the end.”

“A great premise begins to wear thin by the end. Good conversation starter though.” 3/5

“A cult classic, The Diceman is an original idea for a book, but ebbs on for too long. Starts really well and makes us question the patterns of life before getting a bit irritating.” 2/5

“I loved this book, as a gambler at heart the idea of living one’s life based on the roll of a dice fascinated me” 4/5

“A quirky provocative trip that went astray” 2/5