Lost: Signs of Life – Frank Thompson

Rating: 4/5

Lost References:

Again, this book took place during the first season of Lost, though it didn’t include the crash like the others did. This one includes the motifs of art, dreams/visions, and ghosts.

Thoughts:

I liked that it actually added to the Island mysteries, as opposed to Endangered Species, which was basically about a jungle adventure. I liked that, unlike the other two books, it actually incorporated the show characters into the actual plot instead of using them as props to frame the scene and convince us we were in Lost. However, it does miss out on the use of original secondary characters on the Island, which Hapka’s works at least tried to do. Besides that, it annoyed me that Jeff spent half his flashback time sleeping around, which I consider especially wasted space because he’s otherwise the most developed and realistic of the three books’ main characters. The most obvious flaw in the book, though, is its serious need for editing. There were many technical errors, like referring Jeff as Jack within the book and Nick on the back cover blurb, of all places. There were times when the author did things like suddenly jump between character perspectives or break from the Island-flashback-Island chapter structure. Then there was the ending. Just like the Return of the King movie, this book suffered from several false endings after the climax. All in all, this book had more promise than the other two character-wise and plot-wise, but it comes across as a very unfinished product.

The Cricket on the Hearth – Charles Dickens

Rating: 2/5

Lost References:

Desmond has read it.

Thoughts:

I don’t mind the occasional domestic novel (Alcott’s Little Women, for example). This one, however, was overly simplistic, even taken by itself and not compared to Dickens’s other works. It does suffer enormously by comparison. For instance, the antagonist experiences an instant, unbelievable transformation from grumpy miser to lonely old man, and the instant change is completely out of the blue, unlike the change in Scrooge from Dickens’s Christmas Carol. If I were to say one good thing about the book, it would be that Dickens continues in his solid command of the English language; he knows how to turn a phrase. But his talents are better displayed elsewhere.

Great Expectations – Charles Dickens

Rating: 3/5

Lost References:

Desmond’s read everything by Dickens.

Thoughts:

As usual, Dickens cleverly connects his storylines. Unfortunately, I couldn’t stand the protagonist and his obsession with the cold and unpleasant girl who was clearly toying with him.

Watership Down – Richard Adams

Rating: 5/5

Lost References:

Boone had this book in Australia, but Sawyer found it and is seen reading it in a few scenes. (“It’s about bunnies.”) Also, the book has a big bunny motif, largely thanks to Ben and DHARMA.

Thematically, the novel has the ongoing idea of home, which is important to all the various rabbit communities. Some of the rabbits are lead to find this home through one rabbit’s prophecies.

One group of rabbits is reminiscent of the Others, as a military state from which no one is allowed to leave. They practice kidnapping and murder (and at one point, they even have some of the protagonists captive). This group also has difficulties with childbirth.

As in Lost, Watership Down has some Smoke Monsters. One is a train, and the other is the legendary Black Rabbit of Inlé who brings fear and sickness, lives in a cave (where no time exists), and plays a game with stones.

Thoughts:

When I was a kid, Tales From Watership Down was one of my favorite books. I had a thing for rabbits, and this book seemed a little edgier than other bunny books. Some parts of the book even genuinely freaked me out, like the White Blindness (which, incidentally, is a real rabbit disease known as Myxomatosis and is used by humans to control their population). The rabbit characters were more fleshed out here than in other rabbit books. They have a very complete culture of their own, and I loved the side stories about their folk hero, El-ahrairah.

Looking back years later, I have no reason to change my opinion. The original novel, Watership Down, has the same charm and originality, so it was a pleasant foray into children’s literature.

A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens

Rating: 5/5

Lost References:

This book shares a title with a Jack episode. The title, according to a podcast by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, refers to the two main Island settlements – of the Losties and the Others. Also, Desmond’s read it.

Thoughts:

Unrequited, sacrificial love and mindless, bloody hatred. This novel touches on some pretty big themes and does so with dignity and style.

Lord of the Flies – William Golding

Rating: 4/5

Lost References:

There are many similarities here, some big, some trivial.

• PLOT: In both stories, a group of strangers crashes on an island and devolves into violent behavior against each other (though Lord of the Flies is about boys and Lost has men and women and a few kids). Both stories have the characters dividing into factions based on beliefs [LotF – Ralph (civilization) vs. Jack (savagery), Lost – Jack (reason) vs. Locke (faith)… LotF’s Ralph and Lost’s Jack are both initially reluctant leaders], and this leads to a lot of reader/viewer speculation on the nature of man and/or the universe.
• CHARACTERS: Both stories have a character peculiarly connected with his island (LotF – Simon, Lost – Locke). Both have a character whose death is seen as a sacrifice to the Island by another (LotF – Jack on Simon’s death, Lost – Locke on Boone’s death). Both have a parachutist arrive on an island, get stuck in a tree, and get discovered by the castaways (LotF – the paratrooper, Lost – Naomi).
• OTHER: Sawyer and Charlie both mention people acting all “Lord of the Flies.” Both the Island and this book’s island are filled with boar. Hurley finds a boar swarming with flies, and in the book, a boy finds a fly-infested boar head on a stick. Both Islands also have rumors of a monster in the jungle. Both have plot points concerning asthma (LotF – Piggy, Lost – Shannon) and a side story about someone’s glasses (LotF – Piggy, Lost – Sawyer).

Thoughts:

Unfortunately, I had to read this book for three separate classes, and in each of those classes, we analyzed it to DEATH. I actually enjoyed this book the first time through, but now I can’t stand it. It’s actually a well-written story about how people create government and society based on crises. It’s also shares many similarities with Lost, so I wish I’d seen this show before suffering through those classes. At the very least, I could have whipped up a decent paper on comparisons and links between the two. And it really is worth reading… I just don’t want to read it myself right now.

Lassie Come-Home – Eric Knight

Rating: 3/5

Lost References:

Sawyer tells Kate that “Timmy fell down a well,” the ultimate Lassie cliché.

Thoughts:

Since there are lots of Lassie books, I went with Lassie Come-Home, Eric Knight’s first novel-length Lassie story. It was your average book about a super-loyal dog that is too perfect to exist in real life. I know it was probably innovative back when it was written, like a lot of things that seem overused to us now. Still, some heartstrings were tugged. I can’t help it. And there was a decent side-story with Lassie’s family.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams

Rating: 5/5

Lost References:

 One of the numbers of Lost is 42, which could very well be related to Hitchhiker’s. In this book, the number 42 is the meaning of “life, the universe, and everything.” (Sawyer also mentions the book in The Lost Experience.)

 Thoughts:

 If you like your scifi but can’t stand how serious it usually is, DON’T PANIC! Hitchhiker’s is the book for you. I haven’t gotten around to the rest of the series yet, but I have definite plans to pick up the rest of the Douglas Adams ones, at least. (Other authors have kept the series going, but I don’t think it’d be the same.) Anywho, Douglas Adams is just amazing. Clever, hilarious, brilliant.

And if you’ve already read this one and love it, I’d recommend Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency. He also did some Doctor Who, which made me quite happy.

Harry Potter – J.K. Rowling

Rating: 5/5

Lost References:

Hurley, seeing Sawyer in his new glasses, says, “Dude, looks like someone steamrolled Harry Potter.” Book Three, The Prisoner of Azkaban, is also on Jack’s shelf (the one with time travel).

Thoughts:

Since the final movie just came out earlier this month, it’ll be difficult to avoid comparing books to movies. Except the last one. I’m going to see Deathly Hallows Part Two later this week. As far as the books go… they cover a wide scale of quality and a hefty amount of plot, come to that. I guess that means I’ll be dealing in broad strokes.

One through Three were amazing. These three books make up some of the best literature I have ever read, with Prisoner of Azkaban at the peak of excellence. (Oddly, I find this one the worst of the movies, thanks to poor CGI, directing, and acting. Gary Oldman was a great choice for Sirius, being an incredible character actor, but even he couldn’t save this flick.) Then the books started going downhill. Four and five were readable, but they started the trend of door-stopper novels that abandoned concise storytelling and indiscriminately included extraneous scenes and information. Six was pretty bad. I want to forget Seven ever happened. Plot-wise, it lacks creativity (which is disappointing, since creativity was one of Rowling’s strong suits previously. Essentially, the characters, in the middle of their Book-Six-introduced quest to find a bunch of magical artifacts find out that they have to… find more magical artifacts. The resolution was poor, too. Half the cast died random, weightless deaths. Everyone who survived married each other and had kids named for all the dead people.

But even this blight of a book can not make the first three any less wonderful. The mix of serious plots and lighthearted moments, the originality, the flawless pacing, the fact that children in trouble at least consulted adults, the unique characters, and just the writing, all make these three novels worth the reading. In fact, it’s practically worth reading the whole series to find out what happens. Even if you’re disappointed in the end.

Our Mutual Friend – Charles Dickens

Rating: 5/5

Lost References:

Desmond plans to read this book before he dies. Penny leaves a letter for him in the back. Later, the two of them own a boat of the same name. It works since a major life event for Desmond is Charlie’s drowning, and in the book, the main character’s major life event is his own supposed drowning.

Thoughts:

Dickens is, in short, a genius. He has an amazing way of weaving a huge cast of fascinating characters and several subplots into one coherent story. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Our Mutual Friend. Not as well known of some of his books, it’s the best of them I’ve read so far. The history of a miser’s death and the dispersing of his fortune is not only a savvy dissection of human character, but it also makes a surprisingly fun story.

Side note… Desmond wants to read this book just before he dies. If his death is imminent, what makes him think he can get all the way through it? It’s pretty thick.