Customer Reviews

Unlocking the Meaning of Lost: An Unauthorized Guide

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I was sent an advanced copy of the book through their publicist because I write occasional short articles for www.lostblog.net. I agreed I'd review it, and promised them nothing (no rave reviews, no automatic endorsements) except an honest opinion & critique--since I posted it there, I thought I might as well post my early opinion here as well. :)

This is a 290 page softcover which promises "to explore the philosophies and themes of the hit show, as well as the countless mysteries that consume fans." Topics covered by chapter include:

Creating Lost
Lost without Technology
Lost in Their Lives
Lost Spirituality
Larger Spiritual Concepts
Lost Ancestors
Cult(ivating) a Lost Audience

...and a long glossary/appendix section.

Overall, I found this to be a decently engaging book for those who are true fans of the show, and want to delve more deeply into underlying themes. It at times reads like an academic text, taking its subject matter seriously (and may be a little stylistically dry for some). They have obviously done a good amount of research. Drawbacks for more populist fans of the show are that it has no photographs or pictures, (in part because of copyrighting issues, I assume?). Readers seeking a more official companion book may want to check out LOST Chronicles (Mark Cota Vaz, 2005, Hyperion) instead, which also works better as an episode guide.

Particular strengths of this book are in the beginning chapter (about the creation of the series) and the ending chapters (about other literary/TV/movie references that preceded the series, and fan participation). They provide a lot of meaningful insight / background into what may be going on within the TPTB creative minds. The book is clearly written by fans of the show for fans of the show, and the passion for the subject matter comes through.


The middle chapters which look into arching themes are solid and well-referenced down to episode. The chapters on technological themes and interconnectiveness of lives aren't bad, but I do believe that within the spirituality chapters, there is a paucity of information on some recurrent symbology which is not explored well, including black & white/duality themes, Western governmental philosophies, and Eastern spirituality (there are a couple of sentences on dharma, but little else from that perspective, though the book does a good job with Christian, Muslim, and even Pagan themes). Another unfortunate thing about the book is that it suffers from its "mid-seasonality"-in order to release it in time for sweeps, it has to by necessity cut off the analysis to the episode The Long Con (2.13) and will not cover through all of Season 2.

I for one was attracted to the fact that the book restrains from too much random speculation/conjecture in the middle chapters, and backs up all connections with specific facts found within the episodes. Many of the ideas were obvious (some honestly a bit mundane), but there were a few that were original as well, making them enjoyable to read and think about (inspiring me with a few tangential thoughts of my own). The only time the book dips its toes deeply into the muddy theoretical realm is in the chapter on fan sites/forums. This did not bother me, because it stuck with just a handful of older semi-popular (and not yet discredited) fan theories-I had heard of some of them, but some were new. One of the theories mentioned, the "Copenhagen photo" has since been officially discredited as a hoax by the perpetrator, and probably should not have been included.

I liked the background info in the ending chapters, detailing some of the history of the show and the origins of its "fandom"; it was like having a backstage pass. There is very much an appreciation in the book of the unique interactivity of the show, and of how far the "phenomenon" of LOST has come with its internet fan base (a community which the authors themselves appear proud members of). It's hard to come up with a comprehensive list of show "ancestors" without going overboard (since there are just SO many possible influences), but the authors did a good job with their limited list (roughly 20), especially with analysis of connections to Lord of the Flies, The Stand, and The Twilight Zone series.

The Glossary, the Character Sketches, Character Connections and Appendix sections take up a good third of the book, but they are well worth it and I think will make a good, organized source of reference for those interested in future detailed discussions of the show.

In summary, this book is worth a read for those seeking intelligent, grounded commentary on general themes that permeate the LOST series, Season 1 - half of Season 2; just remember that this is not an official or "insider" book.

I'll be the first to admit it, I don't read a lot of nonfiction. And what nonfiction I DO read, typically, is discussion and analysis of my favorite fiction. Such is the case here, as Lynnette Porter and David Lavery delve into the mysteries of one of the top shows on televison, Lost.

Porter and Lavery have constructed a very thoughtful and (more importantly) thought-provoking analysis of the show, the story of the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815, which crashed on a mysterious island where nothing is as it seems. The book discusses each of the main characters, outlines connections between them, dissects many of the "ancestor texts" -- TV shows, movies and books that are percieved to have influenced Lost and which may contain clues to unlock the show's mysteries -- presents a great many of the theories behind the show's mysteries and even talks about the innovative production and promotion of the show, which has used the internet to create a community of fans that interact with the creators in a way that no television show has done before.

Interestingly, for a book concerned with "unlocking the meanings," this book is very short on speculation. The authors content themselves with discussing the facts of the show as known and the ideas put forth and supported by the fan communities, but they don't put forth or endorse any theories or ideas of their own. It's a surprisingly journalistic approach to the subject matter, one that took me quite by surprise. The book covers the entire first season of the show and a bit more than half of the second season, presumably all of the series that had been aired at the time the book went to press.

Overall, this really is a well-written, well-researched book that serves best as a recap for longtime fans as a way to refocus their thinking and go over what we've uncovered so far.

Unlock the Meaning of Lost with this Unofficial Guide, which is the only key you'll need. This book is for the thinking fan who likes to unravel the many mysteries hidden in Lost. It delves deeply into all sorts of areas like spirituality, for instance, uncovering various hints of religious ideology from Catholicism to Paganism as well as the philosophical underpinnings of Locke.

It also secures Lost within a literary and popular culture history, providing the reader with its "ancestors," like the work of Defoe's Robinson Crusoe to my favorite, Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer. If you've read any of Lavery's other books on popular culture, this one won't disappoint either. Porter is also the author of one of the best books on The Lord of the Rings too. Together, Lavery and Porter create an unbeatable dynamic duo, who manage to create a real tour de force of criticism here.

Make no mistake about this. Even though it's written by two Ph.D.s, this book isn't just for academics. Although it deals with some complex material like literary criticism, it's written in an entertaining and engaging way. It's fun. It's even got a section on all the fan sites, a Lost glossary, and some great character sketches that help provide background for those of us wishing to catch up on the series.

In short, the book is well-researched and a great, easy read. It unlocks all the mysteries that you've been wondering about and even some that you didn't know existed.

This unofficial guide is the only guide you'll need to navigate the incredibly complex, unmapped terrain which is Lost.

Buy it today!

I am an avid fan of Lost and found this book to be a great resource, as well as a starting point for some new thought on the subject. There is a lot to keep track of in this TV series (characters' current lives on the island, flashbacks to characters' previous lives, plot twists, philosophy. . .etc) and the details that are catalogued in this book have been revelatory to me. Having all those details laid out in front of me has helped me to think about my own and others' theories on Lost and make some interesting connections and even some dismissals. This book is for the thinking fan who wants an accessible resource and insightful discussion of an incredible series. I have also loaned this book to a friend who I wanted to get interested in Lost, and she has found it most helpful and is now HOOKED on the series. There is also a section on fansites and blog resources that has been really fun to peruse. I have even run into one of the authors online and gotten to chat. Very cool! In short, this book has it all!

I read this book during the break in seasons 2 and 3. Besides the thorough section devoted to the producer's influences--the parallels to "The Stand" and "The X-Files" are interesting--it was a waste of time. It left me wondering what audience they were targeting with this book--huge Lost fans who are involved in the intertextuality of the show know all of this already, and casual fans won't be bothered by buying books. I also noticed that there is no speculation whatsoever in the book, and that it sticks to the basic facts that we all know already. Plus, it was written before the last episodes of season 2, which are critical to "unlocking" any meaning behind the show.

Don't buy it.

In a world where so much television programming is merely a rehash of what's gone before and film studios bring to the big screen movies based on long-ago television hits, it's refreshing to find a program like "Lost" that combines familiar concepts and gives them a new twist. The same can be said for the new book "Unlocking the Meaning of Lost" by Lynnette Porter and David Lavery. This totally original look at the popular "Lost" TV show reminded me of why I began watching ABC network programming again, after growing ill from so much "reality" programming. I've read other materials about the "Lost" TV show, but none captivated my interest and made me think about so many unusual aspects of the television series as did this new book. I particularly enjoyed Chapter 6, where concept comparisons are discussed. Everything from "Gilligan's Island" to "Lost Horizon" are sifted for content likenesses in "Lost," while the authors' research illustrates the originality of characters who give meaning to "Lost." More than anything I've read on the series, this book provided me with insight as well as reading pleasure. It's a fun read and one I recommend to anyone who has become interested to the innovative storytelling evident in each episode of "Lost."

I had some great hopes for this book to help me through the long wait for season 3 to come onto DVD, while I ultimately wait for season 4 to start. I found allot of this to be a synopsis of the obvious. I was hoping for some intelligent theory on what is actually going on, on the island.

In fact, I found quite a bit of the pontificating about various metaphors to be weak at best and just off track at its worst. Meaning I disagreed with allot of what speculation they did offer. If you frequent any LOST message boards, you will find this to be remedial and light to boring reading.

If you are just getting into LOST... this would be a good place to go to get up to date before you hit any intense discussion websites etc...

The book gives you information about the creation of the show, the writing, and it's characters. It's especially good if you like the show but are confused because it's fills in some blanks without giving too much away!

Just watching the episodes of LOST on the TV, it's sometimes difficult to understand just what's going on, but after reading this book, and being able to read about LOST in black and white, alot of things are much more clearer to me now, and have helped me understand things I didn't understand before. I enjoyed reading it and would reccomend it.

What a horrible horrible book. This is not for Lost fans. This is for someone who's never seen Lost. It does not unlock or analyze anything. It pretty much reviews what has already happened. What a waste of money and time.