Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Book Review: The Gospel According to Lost

The Gospel According to Lost

The Gospel According to Lost by Chris Seay intrigued me. We have rented/borrowed four seasons of Lost, and have had some interesting conversations in this household about it. When I saw the book available for Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers, I thought it would be interesting to see what Biblical messages we've been missing, and (I have to confess) maybe to rationalize continuing to watch the series.

The basic premise is that Lost is more than just a television show, it is an epic -- a narrative that demands your participation, not just your viewership. That following Lost is a vehicle for exploring "life, faith, history, science, philosophy, hope, and the basic questions of what it means to be human."

Obviously, Chris Seay spends more time thinking about the implications of what happens in this series than I do, but that was part of the appeal to the book.

The book is accessible, organized and an easy read. Much of the book is devoted to chapters exploring individual characters. The last third of the book focuses on the "lost" parables of Luke 15 (lost sheep, lost coin, lost son) and viewing the series in light of what Jesus had to say about lost stuff.

If you are a Lost fan, I think this book is well worth a read. I couldn't put it down. Though I have to confess, my next stop after writing this will be to see if my library has Season 1 available. Reading the book has me wanting to rewatch the series, and we will be having some serious philosophical, historical, and theological conversations based on it.

Disclaimer:  As Thomas Nelson Book Review Blogger, I did receive this book for free from Thomas Nelson.  The fact that I received a complimentary product does not guarantee a favorable review.  It does guarantee a review. A fair review. But I am not going to praise something unless I think it deserves the praise.  If I don't like it, you'll hear that.  And hopefully with enough detail as to why so you can decide for yourself if what I hate about it makes it perfect for your family.  For more about my take on reviews, visit my blog post here.

3 comments:

Sheri said...

oh, I will have to get this for my LOST lovin daughter. Thanks for the review!

Debra said...

Sheri -- oh, I hope she enjoys it! :)

lostfans said...

I came past a few bloggers that have to re-watch some episodes back too.

I am no blogger but an avid fans of the show, also needs to re-watch back some. It is exciting.