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Jon Ronson
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Lost at Sea: The Jon Ronson Mysteries Hardcover – 30 Oct. 2012

by Jon Ronson (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,378 ratings
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The New York Times–bestselling author of The Psychopath Test, Jon Ronson writes about the dark, uncanny sides of humanity with clarity and humor.Lost at Sea reveals how deep our collective craziness lies, even in the most mundane circumstances.

Ronson investigates the strange things we’re willing to believe in, from lifelike robots programmed with our loved ones’ personalities to indigo children to hypersuccessful spiritual healers to the Insane Clown Posse’s juggalo fans. He looks at ordinary lives that take on extraordinary perspectives, for instance a pop singer whose life’s greatest passion is the coming alien invasion, and the scientist designated to greet those aliens when they arrive. Ronson throws himself into the stories—in a tour de force piece, he splits himself into multiple Ronsons (Happy, Paul, and Titch, among others) to get to the bottom of credit card companies’ predatory tactics and the murky, fabulously wealthy companies behind those tactics. Amateur nuclear physicists, assisted-suicide practitioners, the town of North Pole, Alaska’s Christmas-induced high school mass-murder plot: Ronson explores all these tales with a sense of higher purpose and universality, and suddenly, mid-read, they are stories not about the fringe of society or about people far removed from our own experience, but about all of us.

Incisive and hilarious, poignant and maddening, revealing and disturbing—Ronson writes about our modern world, the foibles of contemporary culture, and the chaos that lies at the edge of our daily lives.
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  1. Print length
    400 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Riverhead Books
  4. Publication date
    30 Oct. 2012
  5. Dimensions
    15.24 x 3.81 x 21.59 cm
  6. ISBN-10
    9781594631375
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1594631375
  8. See all details
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Product description

About the Author

Jon Ronson’s books include the New York Times bestseller The Psychopath Test, andThem: Adventures with Extremists and The Men Who Stare at Goatsboth international bestsellers.The Men Who Stare at Goats was adapted as a major motion picture, released in 2009 and starring George Clooney. Ronson lives in London and New York City.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 1594631379
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Riverhead Books (30 Oct. 2012)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9781594631375
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1594631375
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.24 x 3.81 x 21.59 cm
  • Customer reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,378 ratings

About the author

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Jon Ronson

Jon Ronson

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Jon Ronson is an award-winning writer and documentary maker. He is the author of many bestselling books, including Frank: The True Story that Inspired the Movie, Lost at Sea: The Jon Ronson Mysteries, The Psychopath Test, The Men Who Stare at Goats and Them: Adventures with Extremists. His first fictional screenplay, Frank, co-written with Peter Straughan, starred Michael Fassbender. He lives in London and New York City.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,378 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book enjoyable and entertaining. They describe the stories as intriguing, quirky, and thought-provoking. Readers praise the writing style as well-written with a sense of perspective and empathy. The pacing is described as steady and never boring. Overall, customers appreciate the human touch and engaging content.

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ReadabilityHumorThought provokingStory qualityWriting stylePacingHumannessCollection
45 customers mention ‘Readability’45 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book. They find it fascinating and fun to read, with a great content and writing style that appeals. The writing style is described as childlike wonderment.

"A really fun collection of essays from Ronson about the kind of subjects that would struggle to carry a whole book, all of which are both..." Read more

"...My favourite piece in the book, "Santa's Little Conspirators", is the story of a group of 13 year old high-school students in the town of North Pole..." Read more

"...unfolds with a perfect balance of humor and depth, making it an enjoyable read that prompts reflection on the quirks of society." Read more

"...Loved the book !" Read more

27 customers mention ‘Humor’27 positive0 negative

Customers find the book entertaining and witty. They describe it as an interesting collection of oddball human stories written in an accessible and compelling way. Readers appreciate the author's gentle and sympathetic approach to the subjects.

"...Lost at Sea" is a fascinating collection of oddball human stories that offers hours of riveting reading pleasure and is a must-read for all readers..." Read more

"...Each mystery unfolds with a perfect balance of humor and depth, making it an enjoyable read that prompts reflection on the quirks of society." Read more

"Great book! Covers a variety of interesting essays some funny some sad some thought provoking...." Read more

"Some extremely interesting stories, Ronsons's style is very engaging and highly enjoyable to read...." Read more

23 customers mention ‘Thought provoking’23 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and informative. They appreciate the author's insights and wit, which engage them in a wide range of subjects. The book covers topics relevant to the current moment.

"...is able to pick an extraordinary subject to write about in an interesting and engaging way...." Read more

"Ronson seamlessly blends thought-provoking insights with his signature wit in "Lost at Sea."..." Read more

"I enjoyed this book enough and had some interesting articles, quite a lot of them are very old and maybe less relevant..." Read more

"...Sea is more of a collection of stories that have become very relevant to this moment in time, covering celebrity paedophiles, credit card debt,..." Read more

22 customers mention ‘Story quality’22 positive0 negative

Customers find the stories intriguing and engaging. They appreciate the mix of strangeness and truth that adds to the readability. Readers praise the author as a good storyteller who always covers unusual and intriguing subjects. The short stories are just right for bedside reading, with an interesting style.

"...the articles feel too strange to be real, this mixture of strangeness and truth adding to the readability of the articles and lending them an air..." Read more

"...to find special people and special circumstances and tells the story in around 15 pages which makes the book easy to drop in and out of...." Read more

"...Real superheroes, UFO conspiracies (with Robbie Williams of all people), born again Christian hardcore rappers, from Jon Ronson you'd expect nothing..." Read more

"...I found the majority of the stories engaging and off-kilter as ever...." Read more

18 customers mention ‘Writing style’18 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the writing style. They find the book well-written with a sense of perspective, sympathy, and astuteness. The articles are easy to read, with truth adding an air of surrealism. Readers describe the author as a good journalist who writes with his trademark dry humor. Overall, they find the book a compelling read on interesting subjects.

"...real, this mixture of strangeness and truth adding to the readability of the articles and lending them an air of surreal-ness. "..." Read more

"...one or two character crossovers, but is a lot more in depth and better written - Ronson's penchant for simple present tense really grates..." Read more

"...He has a highly idiosyncratic writing style that really appeals; he is half childlike wonderment and half neurotic, sceptical journalist...." Read more

"This is a well-written and funny book but if you've already bought OUT OF THE ORDINARY by Jon Ronson and WHAT I DO this is just a collection of the..." Read more

9 customers mention ‘Pacing’9 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book's pacing. They find the stories interesting and well-described. The writing style is engaging and enjoyable to read. Readers mention that the book is in good condition.

"...would struggle to carry a whole book, all of which are both fascinating jn themselves and fascinatingly described." Read more

"...Real superheroes, UFO conspiracies (with Robbie Williams of all people), born again Christian hardcore rappers, from Jon Ronson you'd expect nothing..." Read more

"Some extremely interesting stories, Ronsons's style is very engaging and highly enjoyable to read...." Read more

"Arrived quickly and in great condition. If you like Jon Ronson you'll love this book...." Read more

8 customers mention ‘Humanness’8 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book's humanistic tone. They find it entertaining and engaging, bringing out commonplace aspects of human life. The stories are described as eye-opening and humorous, with an air of surrealism. Readers appreciate the expose on clairvoyants.

"...and truth adding to the readability of the articles and lending them an air of surreal-ness. "..." Read more

"...humor and depth, making it an enjoyable read that prompts reflection on the quirks of society." Read more

"...Louis Theroux's about him - but I find his stories enjoyable, a little eye-opening and generally a good description of the different types of..." Read more

"An entertaining read, brings out the humanness of being human !" Read more

5 customers mention ‘Collection’5 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the collection. They find it a good selection of Jon Ronson pieces covering many interesting topics. They consider it one of the best collections by the author.

"...Great selection and I don’t see where others are coming from with their poor reviews. Patchy? What does that even mean?" Read more

"...A great collection, some of which are familiar having read them originally in the Guardian." Read more

"A good collection of articles. Some of the articles are quite funny, some are pretty dark, but they are all very interesting." Read more

"Interesting, varied collection of Jon Ronson pieces, covering many incredibly wild and also commonplace facets of human life...." Read more

Thought-Provoking and Humorous
5 out of 5 stars
Thought-Provoking and Humorous
Ronson seamlessly blends thought-provoking insights with his signature wit in "Lost at Sea." Each mystery unfolds with a perfect balance of humor and depth, making it an enjoyable read that prompts reflection on the quirks of society.
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Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • angrypierre
    5.0 out of 5 stars A collection of oddballs
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 September 2024
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    A really fun collection of essays from Ronson about the kind of subjects that would struggle to carry a whole book, all of which are both fascinating jn themselves and fascinatingly described.
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  • Sam Quixote
    4.0 out of 5 stars Lost in a good book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 October 2012
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    In nearly every article of the book, journalist Jon Ronson is able to pick an extraordinary subject to write about in an interesting and engaging way. I loved reading about real life "superhero" Phoenix Jones as he patrols the streets of Chicago, trying to make drunk drivers eat tacos before getting behind the wheel, or discovering that the rap duo Insane Clown Posse have been covert Christians their entire careers, believing they were making converts of their listeners subliminally for 20 years. Other subjects are equally fascinating such as finding out pop star Robbie Williams is a UFO enthusiast and that Stanley Kubrick was a hoarder of everything related to his film career.

    There are some really funny pieces included such as Ronson's recreation of James Bond's car journey from Ian Fleming's "Goldfinger", eating and drinking everything Bond did on the journey and making himself very sick (Bond, it turns out, was a glutton alcoholic chain smoker who rarely exercised). Ronson also goes on a cruise to meet psychic Sylvia Browne, a woman who goes on TV to tell parents of missing children (often incorrectly) their kids are dead, and finds out, surprise surprise, she's not just a fake but an unpleasant old bag as well.

    Religion and pseudo-religious beliefs play a big part in the articles where Ronson meets the Jesus Christians, a fringe Christian group with a membership of 24 people worldwide, most of whom have decided that as well as giving away most of their possessions that they will give away a kidney as well! He meets the UK's biggest atheist-converter Nicky Gumbel, meets TV hypnotist Paul McKenna and his colleague Richard Bandler who admits to being a sociopath and has a sketchy past involving murder but who now makes millions teaching people something called neurolinguistic programming (NLP) which promises to make you a better salesperson.

    The other side of the book take a sobering look at the dark side of humanity. They include a couple of murder/suicide cases, the economic class issues in America, and the sad story of Richard Cullen who committed suicide after becoming hopelessly in debt. Richard Cullen took out numerous credit cards which gave him money with crippling interest rates and was approved for various loans different banks approved, leaving Richard with a six figure debt and no way out. From this one man, Ronson follows the trail back to the banks and exposes the fiasco that was the sub-prime market. This article came out 2 years before the sub-prime crash of 2007.

    My favourite piece in the book, "Santa's Little Conspirators", is the story of a group of 13 year old high-school students in the town of North Pole, Alaska, accused of conspiring to commit a Columbine-style massacre at their school (they were stopped before anyone was hurt). North Pole is unique as a town where it is Christmas 365 days of the year and everything in the town is Christmas themed. The would-be killers, like all students in North Pole high school, answered letters from children all over the world addressed to "Santa, North Pole" under elfish pseudonyms. Some of the letters written by small children and given to them to answer are heart breaking like "please make mummy and daddy stop fighting" and "I would like to wear more clothes this year".

    While parts of "Lost at Sea" have been published in Ronson's other books - more than half have been printed in "Out of the Ordinary" and all but one have been printed in "What I Do" - and numerous other articles have appeared in GQ magazine and the Guardian newspaper, for those who've not read Jon Ronson extensively, this is an excellent collection of his journalism in one handy volume. Like most of Ronson's journalism, the articles feel too strange to be real, this mixture of strangeness and truth adding to the readability of the articles and lending them an air of surreal-ness. "Lost at Sea" is a fascinating collection of oddball human stories that offers hours of riveting reading pleasure and is a must-read for all readers looking for extraordinary and entertaining non-fiction stories written in an accessible and compelling style.
    49 people found this helpful
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  • Conker
    5.0 out of 5 stars Thought-Provoking and Humorous
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 January 2024
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    Ronson seamlessly blends thought-provoking insights with his signature wit in "Lost at Sea." Each mystery unfolds with a perfect balance of humor and depth, making it an enjoyable read that prompts reflection on the quirks of society.
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    Conker
    5.0 out of 5 stars Thought-Provoking and Humorous
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 January 2024
    Ronson seamlessly blends thought-provoking insights with his signature wit in "Lost at Sea." Each mystery unfolds with a perfect balance of humor and depth, making it an enjoyable read that prompts reflection on the quirks of society.
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  • superman
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Wonderful World of Jon Ronson
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 May 2015
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    A collection of writings by Jon Ronson,an author I really enjoy. He seems to find special people and special circumstances and tells the story in around 15 pages which makes the book easy to drop in and out of. In this book he looks at the TV show Deal or No Deal, it's contestants and Noel Edmonds. Robbie Williams and his interest in alien beings. The tragedy of people in debt which can lead to suicide ect. Ronson manages to get into people's lifesand extract amazing,weird and interesting "stuff" about them. If you've read him before this is as good as his other books,if you hav'nt this would be a great way to start. Loved the book !
    3 people found this helpful
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  • David Campbell
    4.0 out of 5 stars For the Jon Robson Completionist, not for the starter
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 November 2024
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    I enjoyed this book enough and had some interesting articles, quite a lot of them are very old and maybe less relevant (few kind of related to 2008 crash)

    I'm a big fan of Jon's work especially psychopath test, so you've been publicly shamed, and things fell apart. I would read those (and even some ones I like less like 'the men who stare at goats') before giving this a go
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  • Julie Kilburn
    5.0 out of 5 stars There is something for everyone !
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 September 2022
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    Great book! Covers a variety of interesting essays some funny some sad some thought provoking. My brother in law is not a reader but I know he will enjoy the different quirky stories with Robson’s inimitable take on things. Great selection and I don’t see where others are coming from with their poor reviews. Patchy? What does that even mean?
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Mr Ben Fox
    3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but the articles are too shot and lack detail. I preferred Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 August 2015
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    It's a fun read when you've 30 mins spare and want to wind down with some interesting content. However, the articles are just too short! You get in to them then they abruptly end with one of the author's mundane comments about how that person/people/organisation applies to or affects his life and family, and no closure to the actual story at hand. Frustrating!

    I'd strongly recommend Louis Theroux's Weird Weekend book instead. It's the same concept, and even has one or two character crossovers, but is a lot more in depth and better written - Ronson's penchant for simple present tense really grates (in my view) and makes it read like the witterings of a madman more often than not.

    Don't get me wrong, I am enjoying this, just often left feeling cut short at the end of each and every chapter.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Renée B.
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in Canada on 12 October 2015
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    The best book I read so far. Perfect!
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  • Newspeak
    5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious and Sad
    Reviewed in the United States on 13 May 2013
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    The people Jon Ronson chronicles in this book are all so intriguing and all so sad. The book is amazing and wonderfully written. It is goofy and funny, and awkward, and contemplative. The more I read of it, though, the more melancholly I became, as I began to feel the deep longing these people have inside of them. The yearning to belong, and to be special. It makes the people in this book do crazy things.

    Read the book, it is really really good. Just get and give some hugs along the way.
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  • TiM
    5.0 out of 5 stars Eines der lustigsten Bücher 2012
    Reviewed in Germany on 30 November 2012
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    In diesem Buch sind viele Kolumnen von Jon Ronson gesammelt, die er im Guardian bereits veröffentlicht hat. Teilweise ein wenig aufgearbeitet und aktualisiert.

    Von echten Superhelden bis zu Teenagern, die von Kreuzfahrtschiffen verschwinden, sind die skurrillsten Geschichten mit dabei. Sehr lesenswert!
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  • L-Rez
    4.0 out of 5 stars Funny at first, but sad by the end
    Reviewed in the United States on 18 July 2013
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    I'm a big fan of Jon Ronson's work; I loved Them and The Men Who Stare at Goats. Those books were funny looks at some truly strange things that go on in the world of the military and conspiracy theorists.

    This book is more of the same-inquiring looks into some truly puzzling people, places, and ideas-but there's a sadness that sort of settles over the book by the end. One of the stories involves a man who killed himself because he got in way over his head with credit card debt; another story involves an inventor who murdered his whole family after his fortune evaporated. A third talks about "Indigo Children", AKA kids affected with ADD whose parents are convinced that they are advanced spiritual beings.

    These stories add up to a picture of people who live under a deliberately constructed veil of self-delusion because they are unwilling to face the realities of their lives. You can argue that's what all of Ronson's books are about, but in this case, it stops being funny and starts being depressing.

    It's still a great read, and a great job by Ronson to find these people and situations and write about them. I just wish there were fewer examples of insanity and willful self-deception out there for him to write about.
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  • D. Florek
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in Canada on 21 June 2015
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    A great interesting read!
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