Getting Lost: Survival, Baggage, and Starting Over in J. J. Abrams' Lost (Smart Pop series) (Paperback)

by Orson Scott Card (Editor)
Key Phrases: smoke monster, background survivors, pilot episode, Ana Lucia, John Locke, Dharma Initiative (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

If you're a diehard fan, check it out."  —USA Today 

Product Description

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Theories abound about the survivors of Flight 815 and their enigmatic island home on the supernatural television phenomenon Lost. This collection of essays provides insight into the most talked-about issues, including chapters on Why the Survivors Must Be in Another Dimension (or the Twilight Zone), Lord of the Lost: Jack vs. Locke, The Others: Where On Earth Did They Come From . . . or Did They?, and A Theologian's View of the Island as Purgatory. Contributors such as television critic Joyce Millman, science-fiction writer Adam-Troy Castro, and paranormal-romance author MaryJanice Davidson tackle predominant themes, plotlines, and symbols of the hit show while answering the questions on every fan's mind: What's with the polar bears and black mist? Why does the sudden struggle for survival lead some to romantic relationships, some to conflict, and others to leadership? and Why did Boone have to die?

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Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Benbella Books (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932100784
• ISBN-13: 978-1932100785
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #524,244 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mostly mediocre, September 28, 2006

By	Dustyn K. Gobler "DKG" (Washington DC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Getting Lost" consists of 14 short essays about the hit ABC show, "Lost." With few exceptions, the majority of the essays are mediocre. "Lost" is a show with deep meanings and I would have preferred essays with stronger philosophical references.

The book also contains a fantastic introduction by Orson Scott Card, and a poorly written, most useless "Lost Encyclopedia".

If you live near a bookstore coffee shop, read the essays bit by bit when you visit, but save your money otherwise.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing collection of essays about my favorite TV show, October 12, 2006

By	Craig Childs (Cordova, TN United States) - See all my reviews

Of the 16 essays presented in this collection, only three were worth my time:

(1) Orson Scott Card's Introduction is a very informative and thoughtful analysis showing how TV has evolved over the last half-century and how LOST may be the next "evolutionary" step.

(2) Amy Brenner's "Double Locked" illustrates how the fictional character John Locke closely echoes the teachings of the real-life 16th century philosopher with the same name.

(3) Glenn Yeffeth's "The Art of Leadership" is the highlight of the collection, which discusses how Jack, Locke, and Sawyer are all really bad leaders. And it puts forth a pretty good argument that Hurley may be the best leader on the island.

Some of other 13 essays fall into the category of Comedy. "The Same Damn Island" points out the show's similarities with Gilligan's Island. "LOST Connections" attempts to concoct a conspiracy theory based on which actors have appeared on film together throughout their careers.

"The LOST Book Club" and "Have You Been Framed?" examine literary allusions and shared themes with classic works. "LOST in Love" tries to analyze every love pairing on the show. Surprisingly, only the essay "Game Theory" actually attempted to explain the mysteries; but I really hope the show doesn't turn out to be just one giant video game.

"Oops" and the Encyclopedia are both out of date, due to events that been aired since the publication of the book.

Overall, I guess I wanted more of these authors to present their theories to explain the mysteries. Instead, I felt most of these pieces were just fluff and "talking head" analysis.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars As good as any other Lost analysis book -- in other words, just okay, December 31, 2006

By	Blake Petit "Novelist, Comixtreme.com columni... (Ama, Louisiana United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

It seems like more and more of these Lost analysis books are coming out every month -- as this one was compiled by Orson Scott Card, though, I figured it would be worth picking up. It's not bad, but it's really not any better than any of the other collections of Lost-inspired essays out there.

Card has pieced together a book of essays detailing various aspects of the Lost phenomenon by various writers -- essays of varying quality. A piece by Adam-Troy Castro arguing that the Losties are sharing the same island as Gilligan and the Skipper is great; a piece by Amy Bender dissecting the character of John Locke (written, ostensibly, in the character of the historical John Locke) is ponderous and dull. The rest of the pieces are somewhere in-between.

The book wraps with a long Lost "encyclopedia" by Wayne Allen Sallee, which is of mixed usefulness. Entries for each of the main characters and the actors who portray them, books and cultural references in the show and clues to the mysteries are all quite useful. For several entries, though, it feels like Sallee was just padding the section -- do we really need him to define "acolyte" for us without giving any explanation as to its purpose in the show, for instance? In fact, when we reach the entry for "Jaunty Cravat," Sallee outright admits someone pointed out there weren't enough "J"s. No wonder it felt bloated.

An okay book, as good as any other Lost book out there, but not great.