Lost

by: Alice Lichtenstein

Published by: Scribner

Reviewed by Beth Cummings

Lost, the first novel by Alice Lichtenstein has nothing to do with the recent television series of the same name. That being said, they do have excellence in common.

Lost, the novel, gives meaning to the word in several different ways. First, an elderly man who suffers from severe dementia wanders away from home on a cold and snowy winter day. His wife, Susan, discovers his absence within twenty minutes and searches for him in the places he usually goes, but had no luck finding him. The authorities are called in to do a search for the lost person.

Secondly, Susan discovers that she is lost without the presence of her missing husband as well as their son, who is working in Africa. Her identity as wife and mother seems to be escaping her grasp.

Thirdly, an emergency worker, Jeff, has been emotionally lost since his service in the Vietnam conflict. He is excellent at search, rescue and recovery, but has major trouble finding himself.

Finally, a young neighbor boy has been rejected by his family at the age of thirteen due to a fatal fire he caused as a small child. He, too, has lost direction and the ability to communicate successfully with others.

All of these elements of Lost come together in a page-turning yet lyrically written story. The plot is both engrossing and endearing. While I started out thinking that I wouldn't enjoy a book about a man with dementia, the story took so many interesting turns that I could hardly set it down. It is a book that would be great as a book club discussion selection too.