Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Mother Talk Review: Lost and Found

When I first heard the premise of the book "Lost and Found", I was delighted! See, it's about a fictional "Reality TV" show--very similar to The Amazing Race, but it includes a scavenger hunt. The two-person teams travel around the globe, finding clues and locating objects, then racing to the next point.


I am, admittedly, a 'reality' TV junkie. I like to watch those shows as long as I can...well, bond with a few of the people featured. I have to become interested in them, or their situations, before I can enjoy the show.

That's one of the reasons I loved this book; Carolyn Parkhurst takes the reader not only behind the scenes of a Reality TV show, but also gives a close up and personal look into the lives of the contestants, the host, AND the people responsible for the show--producers & camera-men included.

I rarely read the chapter titles when I read a book; however, it was a necessary thing in this particular case because each chapter was the voice of a different contestant.
And OH! The contestants! There was a mother-daughter team, an ex-gay married couple (and THAT was definitely a fascinating situation), a team of brothers, and high-school sweethearts reunited after many years.

I was drawn into the complex relationships--not just between the members of each team, but how they interacted all together. I became involved.

It is bittersweet, funny, sad, and lovely...and in my opinion gives a pretty accurate depiction of exactly how much 'reality' goes into a 'reality tv' show. Take a look to see why some contestants may be chosen and others passed over...I have no doubt that producers actually do delve that deeply into a person's background to find the ones that are likely to create the most drama.

Even were I not a fan of "Reality TV", I would highly recommend this book. Try it, you'll be entertained.

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