''Life's Lottery'' is a

speculative fiction Speculative fiction is an umbrella term, umbrella genre of fiction that encompasses all the subgenres that depart from Realism (arts), realism, or strictly imitating everyday reality, instead presenting fantastical, supernatural, futuristic, or ...

novel by

Kim Newman Kim James Newman (born 31 July 1959) is an English journalist, film critic, and fiction writer. He is interested in film history and horror fiction – both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's ''Dracula'' at the age of eleven & ...

, published in

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

. Loosely connected to Newman's '' The Quorum'', ''Life's Lottery'' is written in second-person and invites the reader to assume the role of the protagonist, an

Englishman The English people are an ethnic group and nation native to England, who speak the English language, a West Germanic language, and share a common ancestry, history, and culture. The English identity began with the Anglo-Saxons, when they we ...

named Keith Marion, and make decisions that determine the character's life and death. Because ''Life's Lottery'' can be read not only as a standard novel but also in a traditional

gamebook A gamebook is a work of printed fiction that allows the reader to participate in the story by making choices. The narrative branches along various paths, typically through the use of numbered paragraphs or pages. Each narrative typically does not ...

format, it is often classified as a "''

Choose Your Own Adventure ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' is a series of children's gamebooks where each story is written from a second-person point of view, with the reader assuming the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character's actio ...

'' book for adults".

Plot summary

''Life's Lottery'' opens speculating on the question of

free will Free will is generally understood as the capacity or ability of people to (a) choice, choose between different possible courses of Action (philosophy), action, (b) exercise control over their actions in a way that is necessary for moral respon ...

and

predestination Predestination, in theology, is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God, usually with reference to the eventual fate of the individual soul. Explanations of predestination often seek to address the paradox of free will, whereby Go ...

. The reader is invited to decide for themselves which philosophy to follow in reading the book and then is presented with Keith's birth in England on October 4, 1959. Keith is raised in England by a successful

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

and has, as the author points out, "been dealt a better hand than many". The boy is spoiled by his parents and enters primary school shy and timid. The book offers its first choice on the first day, when Keith is confronted and teased by a gang. The consequences of the choice – "

Napoleon Solo Napoleon Solo is a fictional character from the 1960s TV spy series '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' The series format was notable for pairing the American Solo, played by Robert Vaughn, and the Russian Illya Kuryakin, played by David McCallum, a ...

Illya Kuryakin Illya Kuryakin (Russian: Илья Курякин) is a fictional character from the 1960s TV spy series, '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' He is a secret agent with a range of weapons and explosives skills, and is described in the series as holding a ...

?" – set Keith on a path that determines his lifelong friends, enemies, and opportunities. Following this key point, the plot paths diverge wildly, and range from Keith winning the lottery, becoming a distinguished novelist, making a bomb threat, having an incestuous affair, committing a murder, and making a deal with the Devil.

Non-interactive

Should the reader decide to disregard the novel's interactive nature and read through it as any other book, they are presented with both immediate outcomes of the first decision and perspective then switches to the two doctors who are observing Keith; one confirms that this is Keith Marion, "of Marion syndrome", and the other remarks that although he is in a coma, he looks "quite ordinary", considering his symptoms. The rest of the novel includes every possible scenario that the reader could encounter, all of them playing out in Keith's mind. The stream of thought is occasionally interrupted by another scene with the doctors, each of which slowly leaks information to the reader, who eventually learns that he is not assuming the role of a man named Keith Marion. Rather, the protagonist is a woman named Marion Keith, who, in her coma, spends her time speculating on what her life might be like had she been born a man. Eventually, she settles on an outcome in which she is a man laboring for a living in

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

Reception

Joel Harley of

Starburst Magazine ''Starburst'' is a British science fiction magazine published by Starburst Magazine Limited. ''Starburst'' contains news, interviews, features, and reviews of genre material in various media, including TV, film, soundtracks, multimedia, books, ...

gave a positive review, writing that Newman "handles the multiple narratives with aplomb, packing the book full of humour, horror...Clever, unpredictable and fresh, Life’s Lottery is a great read."

References

{{reflist 1999 British novels 1999 science fiction novels 1999 speculative fiction novels British science fiction novels British psychological novels Second-person narrative novels Gamebooks Novels by Kim Newman Simon & Schuster books