The Cube: Keep the Secret

by Annie Gottlieb, Slobodan D. Pesic

Spread the word . . . but keep the secret! The Cube is an imagination game—and more—that holds a secret you are dared not to reveal. Last seen making the rounds in the coffeehouses of Eastern Europe, the Cube is rumored to be of ancient Sufi origin, but no one really knows for certain. This mystery game just seems to reappear when and where it is needed. Now it is here! Inside these pages, the game is revealed along with intriguing stories of others who have played the Cube—including such celebrities as Gloria Steinem, Willem Dafoe, Erica Jong, and Judy Collins. So don't be square . . . Get Cubed!

Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology, Philosophy, Games, Self Help

204 pages, Paperback

First published September 8, 1995

Reviews

[Carly Laughlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Cube" is an interesting psychology experiment, but it should begin with a few suggestions: do it in a quiet place, take time to visualize, and try to picture as much detail as possible. After finding out the "secret" and reading what each thing represents, I wish I had spent more time on it, because you can't do it twice.
The Cube is an interesting way to learn more about how you see your life, and it is impressive in how accurate the results can be. However, I think there were too many chapters of other people's responses, some of which were very long. Also, I feel that the opening chapters should have asked more questions to get a more detailed analysis. Overall, The Cube is a good psychological test and maybe a fun party game, but not much more.

[crazy-book-lady · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting "imagination game". I'm not sure that I buy the claim on the back of the book that "the Cube is rumored to be of ancient Sufi origin".

I picked up this copy from the Bookcrossing shelf at the Yonge/Bloor Starbucks in Toronto, so at least I didn't pay for it. Will likely pass it on at a Bookcrossing social sometime soon.

[Kelly-Ann McFern · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ce livre m'a été fortement suggéré par une de mes collègues.

C'est un jeu d'esprit intéressant qui demande à la personne d'imaginer cinq éléments. Je ne veux pas en révéler trop si jamais vous souhaitez vous prêter à l'exercice. C'est en quelque sorte un test de personnalité comme le TRIMA ou le Big OCEAN. Il n'est pas moins bon ou meilleur qu'un autre test de personnalité. Il ne m'a pas révélé grand chose. Je suis quelqu'un de très proche de mes émotions et de qui je suis / veux être alors il y a plusieurs choses que je savais déjà. Il y a aussi certains trucs qui sont complètement erronés dans ce test (en ce qui me concerne tout du moins).

J'ai moins accroché au petit côté "culte" durant la lecture de l'oeuvre. Le livre semblait dire que c'était un outil révolutionnaire qui pouvait nous changer en profondeur et ce ne fût pas vraiment le cas pour moi. Bref, un livre intéressant, mais à ne pas prendre au sérieux complètement.

[Edna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I completely ruined a dinner party with this book. I had found it earlier that day in a used book store, and I thought it would be fun to use it at dinner. I told everybody to pick their cube, horse, flowers, etc, then before I told them what each symbolized, they all shared their stories with each other. As they went round the table sharing, I realized I had made a huge mistake. I had to tell them what each item symbolized. Now we all knew way too much about each other. Some people were crying. Some said this had changed them and the way they saw themselves & their partners. It was intense.

So, it totally works! Just don't use it at dinner parties.

[Shubhada · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book, and has an ability to keep you hooked till the end ( except certain in between pages- quite a few of them, which I skimmed and skipped)

Basically, it is your imagination and creativity coupled with your mindset at that time. I want to keep the secret aa the author has said, so will not reveal anything here.

But just a word of advice before you start reading this book, have a quiet space all for yourself, take a cup of hot black ginger tea, switch your mobile off, and let your imagination run wild. More you are creative and detailed , better you will feel later.

[Sammy Tiranno · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really like the imagination exercise and the contemplation that it can provoke, but in the end it comes off as a glorified dream dictionary for the conscious mind. Part four relates "celebrated cubes" from people of celebrity status, but I was completely disinterested. Being engaged in discussion with someone regarding their "cube" is one thing, but I couldn't care less about reading other people's experience/interpretation.

[Brandon Baggett · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy read to let you know how you can help others discover themselves. Just be prepared to go through a lot of analyzing others, specifically those who are full of themselves, to get the full meaning of this book. But then again, I think that is the true way to get others to see themselves, just let them do the talking and guide them with a few simple questions.

[Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool read but drawn out too much, could have easily been a 50-100 page book.

[Aaron Bauer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reads like a role playing game or the setup to a fantasy video game. If a true parlay trick, it’s better left as one. There is no psychology here except the pseudo kind where you are left to relative interpretation. We could just as easily go to a box store and ask “why did you pick that cereal? If you pick cheerios it because you love the mundane and simple but if you are drawn to lucky charms it means you are adventurous!”

This is likely great as a conversation ice breaker. But beyond that, please don’t make any grand life altering decisions.

[Brad Bevers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't remember where I heard about this, but added it to my list to knock out this year. It's interesting . . . a fun psychology experiment that can give you some insight into yourself and others who take it with you. I wouldn't put too much into what the book says, but it is interesting how the insights seemed to be true in my case and with the others that I tried it with. If this kind of thing is at all interesting to you, don't read anything else about it or you will ruin it. Pick up a copy.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has a psychological puzzle in the first twenty pages. After doing it, you find out what the answers mean. The author also includes the responses of various famous people. The book ends with a supposed history of the puzzle.

[Gabriele Paganelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ho letto il cubo in coppia, e devo dire che è stato un ottimo spunto per lunghe conversazioni. Certo, non si basa certo su scienza e dimostrazioni empiriche, ma l'esercizio è molto gradevole e stimola la creatività.

[Raphael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to this book, I can now tell your entire personality from the desert, cube, a ladder, a horse and flowers you describe to me.
Accuracy 80%

[Marla Silovitch Strappe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a fun game and appeared to be true, at least for me. Unfortunately you can only do it one time.

[William Dennett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a quick read and it's a fun little exercise that can really make you think about your life. This one will stay with me.

[Birgit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Auch wenn das Buch einen etwas esoterisch angehauchten Eindruck erwecken mag, fällt es meiner Meinung nach nicht in diese Schiene. Ähnlich der Traumdeutung, werden hier Symbole auf sehr differenzierte Weise gedeutet, und zwar ausgehend von verschiedenen "Dingen", die man sich vorstellen soll. Hat man diese schließlich zu einem Gesamtbild vor dem inneren Auge zusammengefasst, dann, und wirklich erst dann, darf man weiterblätteren, um herauszufinden, was dieses Bild über einen aussagt.
Absolut überraschend, aber vor allem erstaunlich zutreffend, war ich von dem Resultat begeistert und habe mich auch tatsächlich genau darin wiedergefunden. Manche meinen zwar, wenn man einmal weiß, worum es in dem Spiel geht, könne man es nicht mehr spielen, aber das finde ich absolut nicht. So wie wir uns im Leben weiterentwickeln, ändern sich auch die Bilder und damit auch das Resultat.
Kurz: Ein tolles Buch, mit dem man auf spielerischem Weg mehr über sich selbst erfahren kann!

[Martin Kurniadi · Rating 4 out of 5]

It sure is a nice book to have!

This will get you an inner knowledge about your friends, future love, your trouble, ideas, and of course... YOU!
I wouldn't say it was as important as the Bible, but anyways, this book is a game - to take a guess of what your friends or companion felt about right now, or about the future.

I can't really tell you what the secrets are, because this book is not easy to comprehend for the first time. You have to really do it to your friends, play it, with trials and errors, in order to get the real meaning of the Cube.

And that's the reason why you should have this book.

[Lindsey Weeks · Rating 1 out of 5]

I know this isn't a "book you read" kind of book, but seriously. What a bunch of horse sh*t. Here's what I want: a book that is a tool I can only use once. Should I be in a weird mood when I try using this tool, or should I accidentally flip to the wrong page in the tool, this tool will be rendered utterly useless except in the sense that it will become a tool in the form of a mirror, a mirror that will very clearly show my reflection, that is, the reflection of a suckery, money-wasting, tool.

[Azra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had played the game years ago but without the book to explain more about what element was about, I didn't fully appreciate what it meant back then. Plus, I wasn't the most aware thing around then either.

Now, this little book inspired quite a jounal entry and is likely to inspire several more with the imagery it brought up. It left me pondering for quite a while.

I imagine this is a book I will come back to every now and then (maybe every few years - long enough to forget elements of the game,) just to see if and how the imagery changes.

[78sunny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ich mag ja solche psychologischen Spiele, aber hier war ich etwas enttäuscht, das es sich nur um ein einziger 'Spiel' handelt. Das war mir für den Preis dann etwas wenig.
Grundsätzlich war es aber eine schöne Idee, die sehr gut erklärt wurde. Die Auswertung bereitete auch keine Probleme. Zusätzlich gab es noch einige Anregungen zur Interpretation und aucg Antworten von einigen 'Prominenten'.

Meine Wertung:
4 von 5 Sternen

[Corie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unlike a lot of people I thought this was really quite cool. Except I wish I had put more actual thought into the first one third of the book - the THINKING part before I impatiently scanned ahead to the WHAT THIS MEANS part.

I'm waiting till enough time has gone by and my mind forgets a bit of what's in there so I can do it again.

Kindof cool though.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is great fun! You learn to build an imaginary scene, then to psychologically evauluate the implication of your choices. You really should have a friend (me) guide you through it before you read the book. Once you read the book you'll cheat in building your scene because you'll know exactly what it means.

[Coco · Rating 4 out of 5]

One part personality test, one part self-discovery... I was actually surprised at how accurate it turned out to be, and found it interesting that the symbols work for everyone. I have a lot of deep and profound thoughts about my experience with this, but I don't want to give anything away and damage anyone else playing the game.

[Imran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bida if you believe in this stuff, but a fun childhood game like that MASH game played in middle school. They say it has roots as an ancient Sufi teaching tool...but it's far from it's original intent.

[Bevan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not so much a book as a journal of self-discovery. It provokes thought and reflection towards your current attitude and the decisions you've made to get there. To reveal what the book is about is to ruin the fun of it. Buy a copy, discover yourself.

[kit · Rating 2 out of 5]

A friend told me about this book after he read it. The idea thus created outshone the actuality. This book would be much more interesting were it not for the mundanity of its "secret."

[Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most interesting and insightful experiences I have ever found in print! Definitely worth looking into. I loved it.

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

an interesting 'self exploration' tool. once you do it, you cannot re-do it..but it's cool to get your friends to also read and do the exercises & compare notes

[DixieJo · Rating 4 out of 5]

fun party game to play with good friends, or to do alone or with your spouse. What will the CUBE tell about you?

I first discovered teh cube in massage school, now that was awhile ago!

[Maryann Branco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had to buy it after some guy did 'the cube' on me. It's a mind puzzle used to make assesments on your character and your current state of being. FUN STUFF!