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Lost
Featuring 400 pages and over 1500 images, the Lost encyclopedia is a comprehensive guide to the characters, items, locations, plotlines, relationships, and mythologies from all six seasons of the landmark series aired on ABC and produced by ABC Studios. Created in full collaboration with ABC Entertainment and ABC Studios, this is the full and only fully licensed and comprehensive reference to all things LOST, and it includes an exclusive forward by executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse.
110 pages, Paperback
First published August 2, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
April 26, 2024
If I'm honest I haven't read it in its entirety, since it is a dictionary it talks about each and every one of the characters in the series, which is crazy.
I don't give it 5 stars for the same reason, I think it is too long
I don't give it 5 stars for the same reason, I think it is too long
February 28, 2011
Okay - I fully admit it - I am a die hard Lost fan. But, I never watched it on television. (Lots of channel switching, avoiding articles and covering my eyes and ears...) Instead, I always asked for the latest season on DVD for Christmas. And Christmas 2010 brought the final chapter to this intricate addictive show.
But - I will be starting from the beginning again - yes one of the few shows I will re watch. And accompanying me this time will be the Lost Encyclopedia.
It's the ultimate reference for fans - a 400 page coffee table book filled with over 1500 glossy colour photos and very, very detailed information...
Each and every character that appeared, however briefly, is profiled - including all the passengers on the original flight. Some of them, I didn't even realized appeared on all seasons, such as Cindy the flight attendant. Of course, the main characters are covered in great detail, their connections on and off island and just about anything connected to their story. So many connections that I had forgotten or overlooked on my first watch.
It's not just the people covered either. Each of the Dharma stations is profiled as well as the other settings such as the camps. As someone who works in a library, I was always fascinated by what Sawyer was reading (I think my favourite was Are You There God, It's Me Margaret by Judy Blume) and the book references. All covered, as is the music, the Dharma Initiative food brand, the animals, the nicknames Sawyer used for everyone, the meaning of the hieroglyphics at the temples and of course those famous numbers. (Can you list them?) And soooo much more! Lot of obscure minutia to be found - the ingredients for those Apollo candy bars include yak butter and mouse toes.
Quoting the executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse:
"What you saw on television, the show itself, was the ten percent of the iceberg above the water. But the majority of our time in the writer's room was spent constructing the part below it. The details. The timelines. The intricate backstories of the passengers of Oceanic 815, not to mention the people who inhabited the island long before them. Then we put them altogether and let what happened, happen.
Now that the show is over, there has been great curiosity in our process...a desire to see those details in 'offical' form....And so now you hold the first and only official LOST ENCYCLOPEDIA."
Definitely the definitive guide to own for fans of Lost. And now if you'll excuse me, Season 1, Disc 1 is waiting.....
But - I will be starting from the beginning again - yes one of the few shows I will re watch. And accompanying me this time will be the Lost Encyclopedia.
It's the ultimate reference for fans - a 400 page coffee table book filled with over 1500 glossy colour photos and very, very detailed information...
Each and every character that appeared, however briefly, is profiled - including all the passengers on the original flight. Some of them, I didn't even realized appeared on all seasons, such as Cindy the flight attendant. Of course, the main characters are covered in great detail, their connections on and off island and just about anything connected to their story. So many connections that I had forgotten or overlooked on my first watch.
It's not just the people covered either. Each of the Dharma stations is profiled as well as the other settings such as the camps. As someone who works in a library, I was always fascinated by what Sawyer was reading (I think my favourite was Are You There God, It's Me Margaret by Judy Blume) and the book references. All covered, as is the music, the Dharma Initiative food brand, the animals, the nicknames Sawyer used for everyone, the meaning of the hieroglyphics at the temples and of course those famous numbers. (Can you list them?) And soooo much more! Lot of obscure minutia to be found - the ingredients for those Apollo candy bars include yak butter and mouse toes.
Quoting the executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse:
"What you saw on television, the show itself, was the ten percent of the iceberg above the water. But the majority of our time in the writer's room was spent constructing the part below it. The details. The timelines. The intricate backstories of the passengers of Oceanic 815, not to mention the people who inhabited the island long before them. Then we put them altogether and let what happened, happen.
Now that the show is over, there has been great curiosity in our process...a desire to see those details in 'offical' form....And so now you hold the first and only official LOST ENCYCLOPEDIA."
Definitely the definitive guide to own for fans of Lost. And now if you'll excuse me, Season 1, Disc 1 is waiting.....
June 22, 2011
Thanks to Netflix Watch Instantly, I recently had the opportunity to watch all 6 seasons of Lost for the first time. By Season 3 I was hooked, and was excited to find that this official, ABC authorized book (written by two of the show's writers) existed.
I would not allow myself to open the book until I'd finished the series finale - There was no way I wanted to inadvertently read a "spoiler." So when I finished watching Season 6, I opened up this book with great anticipation of finding references to philosophy (evidenced in many of the character's names - John Locke, Hume, Rousseau, Alpert) and maybe a discussion of traditional Catholic beliefs of purgatory.
Wrong. What I found inside was a ridiculous picture-heavy recap of character bios, including some information that never made it to the actual script (for example, that one of the members of the band Geronimo Jackson was actually part of the Dharma Initiative).
After investing so much time watching Lost and trying to piece things together for myself, this book just seemed frivolous. I immediately returned it to the library and picked up my intro to philosophy textbook instead.
The book is good for fan-clubbers of the show, but for anyone who watched Lost on a deeper, existential level - Don't bother.
I would not allow myself to open the book until I'd finished the series finale - There was no way I wanted to inadvertently read a "spoiler." So when I finished watching Season 6, I opened up this book with great anticipation of finding references to philosophy (evidenced in many of the character's names - John Locke, Hume, Rousseau, Alpert) and maybe a discussion of traditional Catholic beliefs of purgatory.
Wrong. What I found inside was a ridiculous picture-heavy recap of character bios, including some information that never made it to the actual script (for example, that one of the members of the band Geronimo Jackson was actually part of the Dharma Initiative).
After investing so much time watching Lost and trying to piece things together for myself, this book just seemed frivolous. I immediately returned it to the library and picked up my intro to philosophy textbook instead.
The book is good for fan-clubbers of the show, but for anyone who watched Lost on a deeper, existential level - Don't bother.
March 11, 2011
now let me think back on the enchanting women of Lost's supporting cast.
danielle rousseau! berserk and aggressive, a torturer, a killer. her accent may be french but she is all slavic cheekbones, striding around the jungle like some kind of mythic menace from the medieval past. plus she used a crossbow. my ideal girlfriend!
libby! she was a doctor, she was a healer, she had no problem dating enormously obese hurley. a wonderful counselor and, even better, she came complete with a never-explained mysterious past, one filled with mental illness and unknown riches. my ideal girlfriend!
ana lucia! what a ball-breaker. possibly the most hated character in all of Lost. trigger-happy, condescending, constantly furious (at what? the world? herself?), a sad lost girl and a brutal cop all in one package. my ideal girlfriend!
Mother! my God, she wipes out an entire village off-screen and yet is apparently the keeper of life. she is played by the always awesome allison janney. my ideal girlfriend!
juliet! okay, she's barely a supporting cast member, she's up there with the rest of the main cast. but the way she moped around with her little passive-agressive comments and raised eyebrows, she sure acted like she was a supporting cast member. however, there was this one time she clocked kate and then dragged her into the jungle. my ideal girlfriend!
The Sherriff! her role was nothing, one episode only, a threatening Other who apparently was some kind of shot-caller. the important thing is that she was played by forever-underrated diana scarwid. you may remember her as Mommy Dearest's daughter. my ideal girlfriend!
ilana! damn, so hot. jacob and ilana, the cutest couple on Lost island. she kicked ass, had big pouty lips, was apparently some kind of super-spy/super-bodyguard, and just mainly stood around, looking mysterious and threatening. my ideal girlfriend!
jacob! okay, he's not an enchanting woman. but gosh, what a cutie.
oh yeah, the book. it's okay, sorta pretentious. it does answer a lot of questions, particularly those having to do with libby. i appreciated the details about all the dharma initiative hidey-holes. it's a nice gift book. lots of pictures. c'mon, Lost fan, don't be embarrassed, just buy it.
danielle rousseau! berserk and aggressive, a torturer, a killer. her accent may be french but she is all slavic cheekbones, striding around the jungle like some kind of mythic menace from the medieval past. plus she used a crossbow. my ideal girlfriend!
libby! she was a doctor, she was a healer, she had no problem dating enormously obese hurley. a wonderful counselor and, even better, she came complete with a never-explained mysterious past, one filled with mental illness and unknown riches. my ideal girlfriend!
ana lucia! what a ball-breaker. possibly the most hated character in all of Lost. trigger-happy, condescending, constantly furious (at what? the world? herself?), a sad lost girl and a brutal cop all in one package. my ideal girlfriend!
Mother! my God, she wipes out an entire village off-screen and yet is apparently the keeper of life. she is played by the always awesome allison janney. my ideal girlfriend!
juliet! okay, she's barely a supporting cast member, she's up there with the rest of the main cast. but the way she moped around with her little passive-agressive comments and raised eyebrows, she sure acted like she was a supporting cast member. however, there was this one time she clocked kate and then dragged her into the jungle. my ideal girlfriend!
The Sherriff! her role was nothing, one episode only, a threatening Other who apparently was some kind of shot-caller. the important thing is that she was played by forever-underrated diana scarwid. you may remember her as Mommy Dearest's daughter. my ideal girlfriend!
ilana! damn, so hot. jacob and ilana, the cutest couple on Lost island. she kicked ass, had big pouty lips, was apparently some kind of super-spy/super-bodyguard, and just mainly stood around, looking mysterious and threatening. my ideal girlfriend!
jacob! okay, he's not an enchanting woman. but gosh, what a cutie.
oh yeah, the book. it's okay, sorta pretentious. it does answer a lot of questions, particularly those having to do with libby. i appreciated the details about all the dharma initiative hidey-holes. it's a nice gift book. lots of pictures. c'mon, Lost fan, don't be embarrassed, just buy it.
November 7, 2015
4.5 stars. A must have for any die-hard Lostie!! This book is humongous, with beautiful glossy photos containing nearly everything you wanted to know about LOST.
It loses a .5 star because there are grammar mistakes here and there, and on some instances, incorrect or a lack of information about a certain subject, even though it was revealed on the show.
If you don't live and breathe LOST though, you probably won't notice it. On the other hand, if you're likely to stick fanart between the pages and jot down your personal theories on sticky notes throughout the book, like I do ... well ...
It loses a .5 star because there are grammar mistakes here and there, and on some instances, incorrect or a lack of information about a certain subject, even though it was revealed on the show.
If you don't live and breathe LOST though, you probably won't notice it. On the other hand, if you're likely to stick fanart between the pages and jot down your personal theories on sticky notes throughout the book, like I do ... well ...
filmed
December 12, 2015I'm somewhere in the middle of season one.
This is a steaming pile of middlebrow crap.
I've gotta stop reading good books so I can once again watch without commenting upon the most stupid....
Consider it eviscerated. I'm not good at writing bad reviews.
Who's the guy scratching her head asking, But nr how would you knot expect it to be middlebrow crap?
No I mean it, really?
This is a steaming pile of middlebrow crap.
I've gotta stop reading good books so I can once again watch without commenting upon the most stupid....
Consider it eviscerated. I'm not good at writing bad reviews.
Who's the guy scratching her head asking, But nr how would you knot expect it to be middlebrow crap?
No I mean it, really?
June 19, 2021
I just said on another review that I don't give bad reviews. This is the exception that proves the rule. Three stars is as low as I've been willing to go so far, so shame on you guys responsible and DOUBLE shame on the people who paid you to do it.
Anyone who buys this book is buying it because they loved the show, LOST. It's quite difficult to find a book about Lost at all. There aren't many out there, and those there are are tough to locate because you only have four letters to put into the search box and that means you get a million irrelevant hits when you look. This book looked to me like the best available at the price I was willing to pay for a second-hand copy on ebay. It's a big, heavy book packed with colour photos, but the text lets it down in a big way. Frankly I got the feeling I was being treated like a ten year old, and I can't imagine this show attracted all that many ten year olds, so I really had to wonder exactly why that was.
I sat through LOST in its entirety on DVD, alone, for the first time, less than two years ago. The first series struck me as a take it or leave it kind of thing. It's mostly people on a beach hoping to get rescued. Very Robinson Crusoe. I took a month out and watched some other stuff before starting series 2. It was so mind-blowingly good I watched series 3, 4, 5, 6 in an obsessive, uninterrupted marathon. It's not perfect. I picked a lot of holes in it along the way. And I thought the end of series 6 sucked. But I had so much fun along the way. I actually described Lost to my girlfriend as "the adventure of a lifetime" and "a life-changing experience". To me, it deserves to be celebrated with a much better book.
Unfortunately, this is the kind of a risk you take when you buy online. If I'd seen this book in a real bookshop, handled it, flicked through it even for 30 seconds, I would have seen it wasn't for me and I wouldn't have bought it. If I hadn't bought it, I wouldn't be on here leaving it a bad review. There may well be a much better book about Lost out there but I don't want to buy it now. The moment has passed. This is why we need REAL bookshops so badly.
Anyone who buys this book is buying it because they loved the show, LOST. It's quite difficult to find a book about Lost at all. There aren't many out there, and those there are are tough to locate because you only have four letters to put into the search box and that means you get a million irrelevant hits when you look. This book looked to me like the best available at the price I was willing to pay for a second-hand copy on ebay. It's a big, heavy book packed with colour photos, but the text lets it down in a big way. Frankly I got the feeling I was being treated like a ten year old, and I can't imagine this show attracted all that many ten year olds, so I really had to wonder exactly why that was.
I sat through LOST in its entirety on DVD, alone, for the first time, less than two years ago. The first series struck me as a take it or leave it kind of thing. It's mostly people on a beach hoping to get rescued. Very Robinson Crusoe. I took a month out and watched some other stuff before starting series 2. It was so mind-blowingly good I watched series 3, 4, 5, 6 in an obsessive, uninterrupted marathon. It's not perfect. I picked a lot of holes in it along the way. And I thought the end of series 6 sucked. But I had so much fun along the way. I actually described Lost to my girlfriend as "the adventure of a lifetime" and "a life-changing experience". To me, it deserves to be celebrated with a much better book.
Unfortunately, this is the kind of a risk you take when you buy online. If I'd seen this book in a real bookshop, handled it, flicked through it even for 30 seconds, I would have seen it wasn't for me and I wouldn't have bought it. If I hadn't bought it, I wouldn't be on here leaving it a bad review. There may well be a much better book about Lost out there but I don't want to buy it now. The moment has passed. This is why we need REAL bookshops so badly.
March 25, 2011
Well, I can't believe I finally finished this encyclopedia. One more thing to cross off my bucket list...mwahahaha.
The Lost Encyclopedia is a book for that hardcore LOST fan...which from clever deductive reasoning, you can guess that I'm one of them. It even comes with a test! There are a number of errors in the book, both grammatical, and relating to the mythology of the show. Although these errors aren't so numerous, they are enough to be noticed by any real fan of the show and be a bit annoying. But the good thing is if you realize that there are incorrect facts as soon as you read it, then that will pretty much tell you if you are indeed a true fan!
There were a few revelations in the book that weren't necessarily revealed in the show, at least not directly. But nothing that's too mind blowing. On the other hand, there were still a few mysteries that I wanted cleared up, and I unfortunately hoped that this book would provide those answers. Um...no.
And don't you dare call me crazy for reading an encyclopedia about LOST, of all things. First of all, it took three months. This is a behemoth of a book! Also, the show (and consequently this book) has bountiful literary merits, and can lead to hours of discussion if you wanted to talk about it with me. Hey...people have degrees in Literature where all they do is analyze the shh* out of books, and I believe this is no different.
Anyway, I'd recommend this book to any die-hard fan of the show. Otherwise, I'll keep it on my coffee table as a conversation starter (or maybe mood killer?).
LOST
The Lost Encyclopedia is a book for that hardcore LOST fan...which from clever deductive reasoning, you can guess that I'm one of them. It even comes with a test! There are a number of errors in the book, both grammatical, and relating to the mythology of the show. Although these errors aren't so numerous, they are enough to be noticed by any real fan of the show and be a bit annoying. But the good thing is if you realize that there are incorrect facts as soon as you read it, then that will pretty much tell you if you are indeed a true fan!
There were a few revelations in the book that weren't necessarily revealed in the show, at least not directly. But nothing that's too mind blowing. On the other hand, there were still a few mysteries that I wanted cleared up, and I unfortunately hoped that this book would provide those answers. Um...no.
And don't you dare call me crazy for reading an encyclopedia about LOST, of all things. First of all, it took three months. This is a behemoth of a book! Also, the show (and consequently this book) has bountiful literary merits, and can lead to hours of discussion if you wanted to talk about it with me. Hey...people have degrees in Literature where all they do is analyze the shh* out of books, and I believe this is no different.
Anyway, I'd recommend this book to any die-hard fan of the show. Otherwise, I'll keep it on my coffee table as a conversation starter (or maybe mood killer?).
LOST
July 22, 2023
This is certainly the “Big Book Of Lost!” Any and everything you need to know about the series itself is laid out here in alphabetical order. From characters, to places to board games, to animals, it has it. Something that I sort of wish was part of this book was facts about things behind the scenes of the series. This Book is strictly contains things that happened in the series, no more, no less. Great book and a must have for the ultimate Lost Fan.
Book Score: 9.5/10
Book Score: 9.5/10
July 6, 2024
Extensive and thorough, this is a perfect book to read after completing the series, in order to get a better understanding of what happened, spot things you missed and connections you never understood. It also provides valuable answers that the series hints. All that without being a behemoth of 1000+ pages or something.
July 10, 2013
I really wanted to like this book. I mean, I really, really wanted to like this book.
To this day, Lost remains one of my all-time favorite television shows. An intriguing story, wonderfully written, with a talented cast, all shot in the beautiful locale of Hawai’i. As a huge fan of the show, I was excited to learn about this book, which I had read would delve deeper in the mythos of the world of Lost. So I picked it up with great anticipation.
My excitement was increased after reading the introduction from Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, the brains behind this amazing show. They mentioned that what the viewers saw on screen was just the tip of the iceberg that was the Lost story, intimating that the rest of the story would be found in the pages that followed.
As someone who was more than happy with the Lost finale, I could not understand the sense of disappointment that many felt about the final episode. Then I read this book, and I understood how they felt.
Having watched every episode of the show, this book adds very little. There are a couple of interesting areas that are explored, such as the origins of Alvar Hanso, a character that is briefly alluded to on the show. But just about everything else in the book is pretty much what you saw.
Not only does this book not really provide any new or interesting insights into the show, the writing itself is really quite mediocre. In more than one instance, a sentence will be repeated. And the whole thing is fraught with basic spelling and grammatical errors.
In all honesty, I should give this book one start, but it does have a great deal of information about all the various characters, props, locations, and other aspects of Lost that people who are unfamiliar with the show could learn from. That is the only reason this book gets it second star.
I would recommend this book to those people who are currently watching Lost for the first time. But I certainly wouldn’t recommend this for anyone who’s already seen the show and considers themselves a true fan.
To this day, Lost remains one of my all-time favorite television shows. An intriguing story, wonderfully written, with a talented cast, all shot in the beautiful locale of Hawai’i. As a huge fan of the show, I was excited to learn about this book, which I had read would delve deeper in the mythos of the world of Lost. So I picked it up with great anticipation.
My excitement was increased after reading the introduction from Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, the brains behind this amazing show. They mentioned that what the viewers saw on screen was just the tip of the iceberg that was the Lost story, intimating that the rest of the story would be found in the pages that followed.
As someone who was more than happy with the Lost finale, I could not understand the sense of disappointment that many felt about the final episode. Then I read this book, and I understood how they felt.
Having watched every episode of the show, this book adds very little. There are a couple of interesting areas that are explored, such as the origins of Alvar Hanso, a character that is briefly alluded to on the show. But just about everything else in the book is pretty much what you saw.
Not only does this book not really provide any new or interesting insights into the show, the writing itself is really quite mediocre. In more than one instance, a sentence will be repeated. And the whole thing is fraught with basic spelling and grammatical errors.
In all honesty, I should give this book one start, but it does have a great deal of information about all the various characters, props, locations, and other aspects of Lost that people who are unfamiliar with the show could learn from. That is the only reason this book gets it second star.
I would recommend this book to those people who are currently watching Lost for the first time. But I certainly wouldn’t recommend this for anyone who’s already seen the show and considers themselves a true fan.
March 29, 2013
I can't find my extensive review from several years ago, so I'll try to keep this short. "The Lost Encyclopedia" is an excellent but flawed resource. It's a high-quality and colourful coffee-table book. Inside, the reader will find clarifications for some of the more puzzling mysteries, but doesn't outright tell you that x + 42 = 108. The content is very interesting and detailed but vague in a manner to be expected from "Lost". The book is well-designed and the layout is carefully considered. The pages are peppered with countless images from the series (some never before seen). Unfortunately, the book isn't without errors. There are several factual inaccuracies (not as many as Lostpedia cites), a number of image inaccuracies and low-resolution images, some erroneous conclusions (or retcons on part of the "Lost" writers) and most frustratingly for me, numerous copy editing errors. I know the writers put a huge amount of effort into this book, for them it was a labour of love. On the other hand, the copy editors seem to have rushed the book through to the printers, which is a damn shame. I hope there's a 2nd edition in the future to rectify these issues. For the most part, I loved reading the book. Yes, some entries were dry but that's to be expected from an encyclopedia. They're designed to be read entry by entry and savoured, not read from front to back. Don't misunderstand me, I really did enjoy "The Lost Encyclopedia", it's just that poor copy-editing decisions mar the final product. The encyclopedia is a worthwhile addition to the bookshelf of any die-hard Lost fan.
8/10
8/10
February 27, 2011
A simply great book for LOST fans! The thick and colourful images are gorgeous and it's a joy flipping through the book. However, with my stubbornness, I decided to read the book from cover to cover. I mostly have time for that in bed before going to sleep. I don't recommend anyone to do this! It's definitely the type of book to just read up on your favourite characters, or if some questions rise while you're watching the show et cetera, but reading it thoroughly got pretty exhausting for me.
There were also a few factual errors and some quotes that I felt were questionable, but there's not much I can criticize. Because no matter what, this book really IS a work of art and a good way to further experience LOST!
Namaste!
There were also a few factual errors and some quotes that I felt were questionable, but there's not much I can criticize. Because no matter what, this book really IS a work of art and a good way to further experience LOST!
Namaste!
February 2, 2020
I just watched Lost for the first time ever, and I was completely hooked by probably the second episode. It was so much fun to watch, and once I finished the very last episode I was already wanting to go back and revisit the whole thing again. So, when I saw this book at the library it gave me the perfect opportunity to do so.
This book has every single person or thing that appeared in the six seasons of the show, listed alphabetically from A-Z. Unfortunately it doesn’t give any updates on things that took place after the series finale, and sometimes things are written as “why so-and-so did this remains a mystery” which is frustrating, but it is incredibly informative and leaves nothing out.
This took me forever to read, because it’s physically a huge book (coffee-table book size) with relatively small writing, and just has so much material stuffed in it that it’s basically impossible to try and read through it too quickly. I noticed a few typos and occasionally entire sentences were repeated in a paragraph, but overall it was the next-best thing to watching the entire show again.
This book has every single person or thing that appeared in the six seasons of the show, listed alphabetically from A-Z. Unfortunately it doesn’t give any updates on things that took place after the series finale, and sometimes things are written as “why so-and-so did this remains a mystery” which is frustrating, but it is incredibly informative and leaves nothing out.
This took me forever to read, because it’s physically a huge book (coffee-table book size) with relatively small writing, and just has so much material stuffed in it that it’s basically impossible to try and read through it too quickly. I noticed a few typos and occasionally entire sentences were repeated in a paragraph, but overall it was the next-best thing to watching the entire show again.
June 18, 2020
A very helpful guidebook to the many places, people, creatures and things from Lost. It did get quite repetitive in some parts, but I guess that helps the information really seep into the reader's brain. There were multiple typos throughout the book which makes me question the ability of whoever the editor was. There are also a few incorrect statements, but nothing major. Overall, it was a very enjoyable read. I definitely recommend it to anyone who, like me, is absolutely obsessed with Lost.
February 10, 2018
5/5 only because it's about LOST. But truthfully, it reads pretty dry like any encyclopedia would.
May 30, 2018
Ma série préférée ! Très bon livre, mais avec quelques erreurs dans le texte.
December 11, 2020
Read in conjunction with my 2020 marathon.
dnf
April 6, 2022DNF for now because I can't find this book anymore? Hopefully it's just in storage? Will probably finish it once a) I've rewatched the show again, and b) I've located the book.
November 29, 2023
Mi serie fav omg
November 16, 2022
Wow ! Excellent!
August 31, 2016
There are Trekkies.
There are Gleeks.
And there are....Losties? (really, what else would you call fans of Lost?)
Seems every popular TV show has its own unique little clique whose members devour every bit of info they can on said show...whether that info comes in a formally-published book, wikipedia (or some equally informative website), or fan sites (including Fan Fiction). While I haven't delved into the (probably very weird) realm of Lost Fan Fiction, I admit I have picked through the results of a few internet searches.
I was first introduced to Lost on the night of the series finale. My husband and his friend were putting new spark plugs on the car, and I was inside hanging out with my husband's friend's wife and some of her buddies, each one a die-hard Lostie. The ladies had gathered in the TV room to watch the final episode on the new Uber Flat Screen. Not wanting to hang out in the Man Cave, I joined them.
Beforehand, they briefly attempted to give me the lowdown on everything that happened before. To which my response was, "It sounds like Gilligans Island filtered through the X Files."
They were shocked. And maybe a little insulted.
"Oh no! It's, like, SO much more than that..."
"It's not like that AT ALL!"
"OMG! I can't believe you just mentioned Gilligan's Island!" (Side Note: Never mind that a character pretty much builds a radio transmitter out of coconuts in Season One...but I've already said too much)
Then the show started and we all shut up. Even the usually-hyper dog settled in. All I remember about that night was the characters going into this underground cave and messing around with this glowing rock. There was some sort of earthquake. And a LOT of action and drama involving an elderly-looking gentleman who looked more like Daddy Warbucks than someone who could kick someone's ass. Plus there was this whole alternate storyline that caused the In-The-Know crew to squeal and shriek and cry.
Basically, it was like reading the last chapter of what you just know was a most excellent, but extremely complex, novel. It left me with this feeling of "huh?" and was such a curious thing that I promptly went back to season 1 (thanks to my local library) and began watching from the beginning...just so I could know why those characters were in that cave and what was up with that glowing rock (was it like The Dark Crystal? Were a bunch of creepy vulture-looking puppets going to appear? Or maybe like the One Ring/Precious? Was it going to drive the characters insane?). I HAD to know!
It took me all summer and several sessions of binge watching, but I finally made it to the final moments of the final episode. And this time I had all the background info I needed.
Or so I thought.
Now I wasn't confused by the flashbacks/forwards/sideways/alternate realities or any of that super trippy stuff others (not Others, but just others) have griped about. I can totally follow stuff like that. Easy. Compared to other scifi-worthy stuff I've read, watched, and speculated upon during quiet moments throughout the years, the stuff on Lost is pretty elementary. Still entertaining, though. In fact, my favorite book involves an extremely complex flash-sideways...AND it has an ending where
But the details. The Details. And the little connections that are so minute they can easily get overlooked.
I've got to say that The Lost Encyclopedia (thank you Local Library) makes a nice suppliment to the TV show. My husband and I are currently re-watching it, and there is SO much happening. And SO much that was missed in the first watching. And even the in the second. Too, I've found there was a lot I'd forgotten about from the first go-around. And this book, regardless of spelling and grammar issues others (again, not Others) have mentioned, has been really helpful. Although it doesn't really provide any shocking new insight to the show, it does take things slower. With the book, there is no rapid-fire delivery of information, no corner-of-the-eye flashes that cause the reader (me) to think things like, "Hey--did she just..." or "Wasn't that..." or "Isn't that where..." or "What the..." With the show, these viewer (me) questions can't be answered adequately because things on screen have already moved on to the next WTF moment.
With the book, though... With the book, the reader (again, me) can take her time and browse at her own pace. She can look something up if she needs. And sometimes make connections between seemingly unrelated events that she, otherwise, might have missed just in watching. I'm enjoying the show all the more because of the book. And that's a good thing!
Spoiler: I think Lost is pretty much the ONLY case where the answer is NOT 42.
There are Gleeks.
And there are....Losties? (really, what else would you call fans of Lost?)
Seems every popular TV show has its own unique little clique whose members devour every bit of info they can on said show...whether that info comes in a formally-published book, wikipedia (or some equally informative website), or fan sites (including Fan Fiction). While I haven't delved into the (probably very weird) realm of Lost Fan Fiction, I admit I have picked through the results of a few internet searches.
I was first introduced to Lost on the night of the series finale. My husband and his friend were putting new spark plugs on the car, and I was inside hanging out with my husband's friend's wife and some of her buddies, each one a die-hard Lostie. The ladies had gathered in the TV room to watch the final episode on the new Uber Flat Screen. Not wanting to hang out in the Man Cave, I joined them.
Beforehand, they briefly attempted to give me the lowdown on everything that happened before. To which my response was, "It sounds like Gilligans Island filtered through the X Files."
They were shocked. And maybe a little insulted.
"Oh no! It's, like, SO much more than that..."
"It's not like that AT ALL!"
"OMG! I can't believe you just mentioned Gilligan's Island!" (Side Note: Never mind that a character pretty much builds a radio transmitter out of coconuts in Season One...but I've already said too much)
Then the show started and we all shut up. Even the usually-hyper dog settled in. All I remember about that night was the characters going into this underground cave and messing around with this glowing rock. There was some sort of earthquake. And a LOT of action and drama involving an elderly-looking gentleman who looked more like Daddy Warbucks than someone who could kick someone's ass. Plus there was this whole alternate storyline that caused the In-The-Know crew to squeal and shriek and cry.
Basically, it was like reading the last chapter of what you just know was a most excellent, but extremely complex, novel. It left me with this feeling of "huh?" and was such a curious thing that I promptly went back to season 1 (thanks to my local library) and began watching from the beginning...just so I could know why those characters were in that cave and what was up with that glowing rock (was it like The Dark Crystal? Were a bunch of creepy vulture-looking puppets going to appear? Or maybe like the One Ring/Precious? Was it going to drive the characters insane?). I HAD to know!
It took me all summer and several sessions of binge watching, but I finally made it to the final moments of the final episode. And this time I had all the background info I needed.
Or so I thought.
Now I wasn't confused by the flashbacks/forwards/sideways/alternate realities or any of that super trippy stuff others (not Others, but just others) have griped about. I can totally follow stuff like that. Easy. Compared to other scifi-worthy stuff I've read, watched, and speculated upon during quiet moments throughout the years, the stuff on Lost is pretty elementary. Still entertaining, though. In fact, my favorite book involves an extremely complex flash-sideways...AND it has an ending where
But the details. The Details. And the little connections that are so minute they can easily get overlooked.
I've got to say that The Lost Encyclopedia (thank you Local Library) makes a nice suppliment to the TV show. My husband and I are currently re-watching it, and there is SO much happening. And SO much that was missed in the first watching. And even the in the second. Too, I've found there was a lot I'd forgotten about from the first go-around. And this book, regardless of spelling and grammar issues others (again, not Others) have mentioned, has been really helpful. Although it doesn't really provide any shocking new insight to the show, it does take things slower. With the book, there is no rapid-fire delivery of information, no corner-of-the-eye flashes that cause the reader (me) to think things like, "Hey--did she just..." or "Wasn't that..." or "Isn't that where..." or "What the..." With the show, these viewer (me) questions can't be answered adequately because things on screen have already moved on to the next WTF moment.
With the book, though... With the book, the reader (again, me) can take her time and browse at her own pace. She can look something up if she needs. And sometimes make connections between seemingly unrelated events that she, otherwise, might have missed just in watching. I'm enjoying the show all the more because of the book. And that's a good thing!
Spoiler: I think Lost is pretty much the ONLY case where the answer is NOT 42.
April 23, 2012
This is a huge coffee-table style book that is probably more meant to be used as a coffee-table book than to read for a few reasons:
1. It's huge. This book should come with a warning that dead-lifting it can result in a back injury. The size makes it pretty inconvenient to try to balance on your lap and read too. Also, for as big as it is, you'd think it would have tons of big, glossy, full-page pictures in it. There are a handful of those, but not nearly enough to justify the heft of this thing.
2. No editing appears to have occurred in the publication process. There are plenty of sentences that just don't make sense or are missing key words. There are also sentences that mysteriously also sentences that mysteriously restart in the middle and repeat themselves. This gets pretty frustrating if you're trying to actually read your way through this book.
3. It's more useful as a reference book than for new or more in-depth information. Which is to be expected from a book that calls itself an encyclopedia. However, when the preachy, self-righteous introduction tells you that what you saw on TV was only the 10% of the iceberg that's visible and that most of the time spent on the show was spent crafting the other 90% that viewers never got to see, it'd be nice to have been able to read or see examples of that 90% to better explain the 10%. Just like the last three seasons of LOST, I think the iceberg analogy sounded good but had little substance to back it up.
Overall, I'd recommend getting this if you're going to be re-watching LOST and want a handy reference book in case you forgot what happened earlier in the show with a particular character/setting/plot device. If you're wanting to figure out what the other 90% of the iceberg looks like though (to borrow the douchey analogy from the show producers), it's probably best to stick to internet message boards. There aren't any answers here.
1. It's huge. This book should come with a warning that dead-lifting it can result in a back injury. The size makes it pretty inconvenient to try to balance on your lap and read too. Also, for as big as it is, you'd think it would have tons of big, glossy, full-page pictures in it. There are a handful of those, but not nearly enough to justify the heft of this thing.
2. No editing appears to have occurred in the publication process. There are plenty of sentences that just don't make sense or are missing key words. There are also sentences that mysteriously also sentences that mysteriously restart in the middle and repeat themselves. This gets pretty frustrating if you're trying to actually read your way through this book.
3. It's more useful as a reference book than for new or more in-depth information. Which is to be expected from a book that calls itself an encyclopedia. However, when the preachy, self-righteous introduction tells you that what you saw on TV was only the 10% of the iceberg that's visible and that most of the time spent on the show was spent crafting the other 90% that viewers never got to see, it'd be nice to have been able to read or see examples of that 90% to better explain the 10%. Just like the last three seasons of LOST, I think the iceberg analogy sounded good but had little substance to back it up.
Overall, I'd recommend getting this if you're going to be re-watching LOST and want a handy reference book in case you forgot what happened earlier in the show with a particular character/setting/plot device. If you're wanting to figure out what the other 90% of the iceberg looks like though (to borrow the douchey analogy from the show producers), it's probably best to stick to internet message boards. There aren't any answers here.
December 6, 2011
It has its pros and it has its cons, but it is pretty entertaining for a book based on a show that has been off the air for close to two years now.
It is at its best when it is showing us the connections between the survivors (and bit players elsewhere) that you didn't know were there and didn't pick up on. It is at its worse when it picks a random object to expound upon. Am I really interested in learning about the zodiac boats that were used on the island and freighter. Do I need to know which people used the zodiacs and where they were going?
I enjoyed the full color images of some of the things that went on in the show that you just caught a glimpse of (blast door map) and I really enjoyed learning some of the 'official' backstories of the characters that weren't delved into in the show itself. But some of the plot points were repeated and became tiresome. Because lots of characters crossed each others paths throughout the show's evolution, we get a lot of information repeated or explained only slightly differently. Sun and Jin's stories were so intertwined that they should have been combined into one entry, and so on.
There were quite a few typos and repeats of identical sentences within the same paragraph. There were quite a fe typos amd repeats of identical sentences within the sae paragraph. It seems like a cursory proofreading by professionals should have caught this.
Overall, the book ranged from four stars to two stars and so a three star is given, but not because it was a three star book throughout, only because the highs averaged out the lows; meaning there are parts that you will probably love and parts that you will just skip, or at the very least read and scratch your head.
It is at its best when it is showing us the connections between the survivors (and bit players elsewhere) that you didn't know were there and didn't pick up on. It is at its worse when it picks a random object to expound upon. Am I really interested in learning about the zodiac boats that were used on the island and freighter. Do I need to know which people used the zodiacs and where they were going?
I enjoyed the full color images of some of the things that went on in the show that you just caught a glimpse of (blast door map) and I really enjoyed learning some of the 'official' backstories of the characters that weren't delved into in the show itself. But some of the plot points were repeated and became tiresome. Because lots of characters crossed each others paths throughout the show's evolution, we get a lot of information repeated or explained only slightly differently. Sun and Jin's stories were so intertwined that they should have been combined into one entry, and so on.
There were quite a few typos and repeats of identical sentences within the same paragraph. There were quite a fe typos amd repeats of identical sentences within the sae paragraph. It seems like a cursory proofreading by professionals should have caught this.
Overall, the book ranged from four stars to two stars and so a three star is given, but not because it was a three star book throughout, only because the highs averaged out the lows; meaning there are parts that you will probably love and parts that you will just skip, or at the very least read and scratch your head.
December 31, 2011
Ermmm... Well, the pictures are nice.
I was really excited about this book coming out, but didn't want to read it until I'd finished rewatching the entire series. As soon as it came out and people started reading it, though, I began hearing not-so-great things about it, mostly examples of things the authors got wrong (e.g. http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Lost_...). So reading the book, I was taking it all with a grain of salt. Things I was reading and things I was learning may or may not be true, and how good of a review can you give a book that may or may not be correct?
Plus, there were lots of editing issues. There were way too many times when chunks of text were repeated within an entry. It's really annoying to read the same text over and over, and it made me wonder why no one noticed such obvious issues. Additionally, there are also punctuation and grammar errors, and poorly- and confusingly-worded sentences. Picky things, I know, but publishing companies are supposed to have editors -- where were the editors when this was being put together?!?
I'd still recommend this book to fans of Lost, but I would warn readers (especially people who don't know Lost inside and out) to proceed cautiously and not take everything in the book as gospel (even though it's endorsed by Damon Lindleof and Carlton Cuse!).
I was really excited about this book coming out, but didn't want to read it until I'd finished rewatching the entire series. As soon as it came out and people started reading it, though, I began hearing not-so-great things about it, mostly examples of things the authors got wrong (e.g. http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Lost_...). So reading the book, I was taking it all with a grain of salt. Things I was reading and things I was learning may or may not be true, and how good of a review can you give a book that may or may not be correct?
Plus, there were lots of editing issues. There were way too many times when chunks of text were repeated within an entry. It's really annoying to read the same text over and over, and it made me wonder why no one noticed such obvious issues. Additionally, there are also punctuation and grammar errors, and poorly- and confusingly-worded sentences. Picky things, I know, but publishing companies are supposed to have editors -- where were the editors when this was being put together?!?
I'd still recommend this book to fans of Lost, but I would warn readers (especially people who don't know Lost inside and out) to proceed cautiously and not take everything in the book as gospel (even though it's endorsed by Damon Lindleof and Carlton Cuse!).
April 12, 2015
For photos/video of this book, please visit my blog: http://www.movieartbook.com/2015/04/p...
I recently purchased this book on sale. Having not seen "Lost" in several years, the book actually has inspired me to revisit the series. I think this is a must-own for Lost fans, and it would make a great gift.
Like a regular encyclopedia, the entries are arranged in alphabetical order. Everything is included - characters, locations, props, companies/organizations, etc. The book also makes use of the show's extensive collection of memorable imagery and includes a variety of pictures on each page. The authors clearly wanted to place as much of an emphasis on the visual aspect of the book as the written aspects.
There are a few factual errors and odd omissions here and there, and these are detailed more closely in other customer reviews. But I would say that the authors had a very tough job here in rounding up all the information and mythology from Lost - not only was the show very dense in general, but it's non-linear presentation made keeping track of things all the more difficult. Overall, they did a good job compiling and editing content for this encyclopedia.
I recently purchased this book on sale. Having not seen "Lost" in several years, the book actually has inspired me to revisit the series. I think this is a must-own for Lost fans, and it would make a great gift.
Like a regular encyclopedia, the entries are arranged in alphabetical order. Everything is included - characters, locations, props, companies/organizations, etc. The book also makes use of the show's extensive collection of memorable imagery and includes a variety of pictures on each page. The authors clearly wanted to place as much of an emphasis on the visual aspect of the book as the written aspects.
There are a few factual errors and odd omissions here and there, and these are detailed more closely in other customer reviews. But I would say that the authors had a very tough job here in rounding up all the information and mythology from Lost - not only was the show very dense in general, but it's non-linear presentation made keeping track of things all the more difficult. Overall, they did a good job compiling and editing content for this encyclopedia.
June 3, 2012
I liked this book, because it made me super nostalgic for LOST. But I didn't love it. Because it's written as an encyclopedia, there's no indication of when a piece of information is a real fact or a LOST fact. Example: the article on Australia - what of that is real (population, probably) and what isn't? There were also several editing mistakes where the same sentence would be there twice in a row. At least six of these, which is disappointing because it's something that should have been caught if anyone just read the book.
It was a nice little companion book to the show, has great images of screenshots from the show or props, and goes into great detail about backstories and connections. If you're looking for behind the scenes trivia about filming or actors, you won't get it. But if you want to know details about character backstory, locations, etc., this is the place.
I also find it oddly appropriate that the book starts with Aaron Littleton (an integral character) and ends with Zoe (the Tina Fey wannabe that showed up in the last three or four episodes).
It was a nice little companion book to the show, has great images of screenshots from the show or props, and goes into great detail about backstories and connections. If you're looking for behind the scenes trivia about filming or actors, you won't get it. But if you want to know details about character backstory, locations, etc., this is the place.
I also find it oddly appropriate that the book starts with Aaron Littleton (an integral character) and ends with Zoe (the Tina Fey wannabe that showed up in the last three or four episodes).
April 30, 2014
Being a LOST fanatic, Of course I was going to love this coffee table book and I may add to fans and collectors that is a licensed official product.
If you're looking for a tell-all mystery solved/symbolism explained, you wont get a solid breakdown of everything (although there are some great insights into such entities as the Hanso foundation)but it is one hell of an Encyclopedia. A full A-Z reference guide of the people, events and even inanimate objects that contributed to the wholeness of 'Lost'.
For eg: Yes you get main character insight and explenations.
Your John Locke is under L and your Benjamin Linus is under B, but you get much more than that, with the cabin under C, and even Appolo bars are under A.
(Creepy cabin from season 3 where Christian Shepard and Claire were in - and appolo bars are the chocolate bar that kept coming up in the show.)
It would have been nice to have a bit more explaination to certain things (instead of highlighting a character with 'origin unknown' etc) but on the whole a great book for the lover of all things Lost.
If you're looking for a tell-all mystery solved/symbolism explained, you wont get a solid breakdown of everything (although there are some great insights into such entities as the Hanso foundation)but it is one hell of an Encyclopedia. A full A-Z reference guide of the people, events and even inanimate objects that contributed to the wholeness of 'Lost'.
For eg: Yes you get main character insight and explenations.
Your John Locke is under L and your Benjamin Linus is under B, but you get much more than that, with the cabin under C, and even Appolo bars are under A.
(Creepy cabin from season 3 where Christian Shepard and Claire were in - and appolo bars are the chocolate bar that kept coming up in the show.)
It would have been nice to have a bit more explaination to certain things (instead of highlighting a character with 'origin unknown' etc) but on the whole a great book for the lover of all things Lost.
November 21, 2010
This is a must-have for fans of the television show LOST (on for six seasons). It is the ultimate in listing who the characters on the show were and their connections as well as the important objects and myths from the series. Since mythology and fate vs. coincidence were a huge part of the show, this really enhances the experience, and clearly explains what is known to be true in the show world. It is very organized and detailed. I saw a panel on the production of the book at Comic-Con in 2010 and to see the completed version, it truly lives up to what the fans deserve. The pictures are also gorgeous and the authors are friendly and available on Facebook and Twitter if you have any questions.
It is an encyclopedia so it is fun to look up things you suddenly remembered having a question about but it is also worth reading cover to cover.
It is an encyclopedia so it is fun to look up things you suddenly remembered having a question about but it is also worth reading cover to cover.
May 10, 2011
I've been skipping around but will soon return to read in sequence, to be sure not to miss anything. One article already disappointed me: the Ancient Dagger. I already know what I saw, but I wanted to know the why behind this. I hope this isn't a harbinger of things to come.
Layout, photographs are all first rate.
I finally finished! This isn't the kind of thing you can read much of at once. I tried to read 6 - 10 pages per day and couldn't always manage that. I expected to learn some new things about Lost, but read very little that wasn't already clear to someone watching the show. One great exception: Nikki and Paulo were bit by spiders were really the Man in Black! I never knew or forgot that. Also, the articles on Sawyer and Sayid are quite wonderful.
This is a good book to have around for freshening the memory. It is beautiful and a pleasure to have on the shelf.
Layout, photographs are all first rate.
I finally finished! This isn't the kind of thing you can read much of at once. I tried to read 6 - 10 pages per day and couldn't always manage that. I expected to learn some new things about Lost, but read very little that wasn't already clear to someone watching the show. One great exception: Nikki and Paulo were bit by spiders were really the Man in Black! I never knew or forgot that. Also, the articles on Sawyer and Sayid are quite wonderful.
This is a good book to have around for freshening the memory. It is beautiful and a pleasure to have on the shelf.
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