Rating: 
Summary: unabashedly sentimental
Review: When we were kids, our grandparents used to take us to Radio City Music Hall for the movie and Christmas Pageant every year. The year I was 12, the movie was a remake of Lost Horizon--my most graphic memory from that night is my horror when the woman suddenly aged after leaving Shangri-La. As it turns out, that version of the movie is pretty dreadful, while Frank Capra's 1937 original is widely considered to be a classic. At any rate, I liked the film enough to read the book and also Hilton's other classic, Goodbye, Mr. Chips, and I loved them both. Recently, our library got a restored edition of the Capra film and we enjoyed it thoroughly. So I went back & reread the books. I assume most folks know at least the rough outlines of the stories. In Lost Horizon, Hugh Conway, a British diplomat, is skyjacked and he & his traveling companions end up in the Himalayas. Eventually they are lead to the hidden Valley of the Blue Moon and the city of Shangri-La, where folks do not age and the powers that be are collecting all of the world's knowledge and greatest artworks, so that it will be safe from the turbulent political storms of the outside world. Eventually, the high lama reveals to the diplomat that he has been chosen to take over leadership of Shangri-La and after an abortive attempt to leave (at the insistence of one of his fellow travelers), Conway returns to assume his destined place in Shangri-La. Good-bye, Mr. Chips, on the other hand, is about an eccentric but lovable British schoolmaster, Arthur Chipping (Mr. Chips). Seemingly destined to be a bachelor for life, he meets and marries a young woman who loosens him up quite a bit, before dying in childbirth. Chips is left alone, except that is for the succeeding generations of boys who pass through Brookfield School. After decades at the school, he retires, telling the assembled alumni, "I have thousands of faces in my mind. ... I remember you as you are. That's the point. In my mind you never grow old at all", only to be called back during WWI, at which point he becomes acting headmaster. One of his duties is to read the list of the school's war dead; for everyone else they are just names, but for Chips, each name has a face attached. After the War he reretires, after 42 years teaching Roman History and Latin at Brookfield. On the surface, these two stories couldn't be more different, but reading them now I realize how similar they actually are. Shangri-La is an oasis of civilzation in a world that was after all between two World Wars. It is a place where the great achievements of our culture will be preserved, even if war consumes the rest of the World, which for much of this Century seemed like a possibility. Mr. Chips, meanwhile, is the living embodiment of institutional memory. The classes of boys, the teachers and headmasters, even the subjects and teaching methods, come and go, but Chips has remained throughout. He "still had those ideas of dignity and generosity that a frantic world was forgetting." He embodies the pre-War world and its values. In his book Mr. Bligh's Bad Language, Greg Dening says that: "Institutions require memory. A memory creates precedent and order." In the very midst of an epoch that was witnessing an unfettered attack on all of the West's institutions and values, Hilton created Shangri-La and Mr. Chips; both represent the conservative ideal--providing a bridge of memory to all that is beautiful and good and decent in our past, lest, in our zeal to create a perfect world, we forget the qualities and accomplishments which bequeathed us the pretty good world in which we live. These books are unabashedly sentimental and I'm sure some would even find them mawkish. But I love them and I appreciate the subtley non-political way in which they make the most important of political points: even as we move forward we must always preserve those things and ideas of value in our past. Mr. Chips GRADE: A+ Lost Horizon GRADE: A
Rating:
Summary: A Stunning, Psychological Piece of Artwork and Pure Genius
Review: Hilton's novel "Lost Horizon" has to be one of the greatest yet most overlooked books known to man. The story is of several British Officials including Robert Conway, the protagonist, are in a plane that is hijacked and forced into the Tibetan Mountains. When they arive in the Karkal valley to a strange monestary named Shangri-La, all the characters want to leave. Soon, the place begins to grown on them and most of them choose not to leave and to stay in the mysterious place forever. And that is what it is: mysterious. Shangri-La is an Eden-like enigma the story of which is never fully explained -- even by the High Lama. A land of carefree relaxation free of evil and suffering, Shangri-La is the closest we will ever come to heaven on earth. All in all a truly psychological book that leaves the reader in full awe. After the High Lama's story, the reader feels a sense of wonder, amazement, as if the facts of life had been revealed to him/her. After Mallison's claims for leaving, you feel lied to, betrayed, and confused. After a certain character dies (I won't say who: spoilers), the reader is left feeling empty, sorrowful, and in a state of mourning. After a certain suprise near the end, you are left in a state of cheery shock. At the end you are left with a suprised yet grim and amazed wonderous feeling that is impossible to explain. Never before has any book filled me with so many emotions, ideas, beliefs, and opinions. Truly a magnificent book that I would (and do) recommend to anyone. I literally change conversations and break into "So I read this book 'Lost Horizon'...have you ever read it? A great book..." I repeat, truly worth reading and honestly fantastic.
Rating:
Summary: nick from Richview Middle School
Review: Lost Horizon is the best book i've ever read.
The story begins with a man named Rutherford tell a story about a man named Conway, who had been apast school mate of his. Rutherford had found him in a hospital by chance and Conway had amnesia.
Rutherford had took him out of the hospital and they took a ship out of China. During their trip Conway regained his memory and began to tell Rutherford about this amazing jouney he had been on.
Rating:
Summary: A Stunning, Psychological Piece of Artwork and Pure Genius
Review: Hilton's novel "Lost Horizon" has to be one of the greatest yet most overlooked books known to man. The story is of several British Officials including Robert Conway, the protagonist, are in a plane that is hijacked and forced into the Tibetan Mountains. When they arive in the Karkal valley to a strange monestary named Shangri-La, all the characters want to leave. Soon, the place begins to grown on them and most of them choose not to leave and to stay in the mysterious place forever. And that is what it is: mysterious. Shangri-La is an Eden-like enigma the story of which is never fully explained -- even by the High Lama. A land of carefree relaxation free of evil and suffering, Shangri-La is the closest we will ever come to heaven on earth. All in all a truly psychological book that leaves the reader in full awe. After the High Lama's story, the reader feels a sense of wonder, amazement, as if the facts of life had been revealed to him/her. After Mallison's claims for leaving, you feel lied to, betrayed, and confused. After a certain character dies (I won't say who: spoilers), the reader is left feeling empty, sorrowful, and in a state of mourning. After a certain suprise near the end, you are left in a state of cheery shock. At the end you are left with a suprised yet grim and amazed wonderous feeling that is impossible to explain. Never before has any book filled me with so many emotions, ideas, beliefs, and opinions. Truly a magnificent book that I would (and do) recommend to anyone. I literally change conversations and break into "So I read this book 'Lost Horizon'...have you ever read it? A great book..." I repeat, truly worth reading and honestly fantastic.
Rating:
Summary: A thought provoking classic
Review: In purchasing books for my sons' from their summer reading lists, I purchased this, for myself, from the high school recommended reading list. My reading is mostly non fiction but occasionally I like to catch up on a classic I should have read years ago. This is such a book. The story is about four individuals' unplanned trip to the mysterious Shangri-La, located in an isolated location in Tibet. Shangri-La is a place where people live stress free and in moderation. This novel, written in 1933, is highly readible and moves quickly. This wistful tale poses many questions such as "is it better to live stress free with time on our hands or to live in the modern world with it's material opportunities?" Another question is "do we believe things based on trust and hope or solely based upon the credible evidence?" A third question might be, "is moderation in a happy, stress free situation better than a world where we feel great passions but also endure periods of unhappiness?" This wonderful tale is a great antidote to the stress of the modern world.
Rating:
Summary: A Magical Reading Experience
Review: I first read Lost Horizon when I was twelve years old. It was my favorite book as a child. Years later I re-read it, a little apprehensive that I would find it dated and contrived. It is neither. Lost Horizon is, quite simply, a triumph of the story-teller's art. A simple tale of idealistic faith in the human spirit, James Hilton's famous novel is crafted in unadorned, crystalline prose. It is, by turns, moving, mysterious, surprising and, ultimately, profoundly inspiring. Lost Horizon may not satisfy those too sophisticated to allow themselves to give in to its sentimental simplicity. But I highly recommend it to readers willing to suspend disbelief and to surrender to the wonder of a transporting fairy tale as they take a magical and unforgettable journey to the Valley of the Blue Moon. I am fifty-four years old now and Lost Horizon is still my favorite book.
Rating:
Summary: "May we all find our Shangri-La!"
Review: Lost Horizon is the type of book which can change a person's life, or, at least give the reader some feeling of hope that things can be better and that, somewhere, there is a place where life is a continual joy and the people living there await the day when they can share the joy of life with a lost and dying world. In a way, the book is quite prophetic--the High Llama's dream of a world of continual war is a mirror of what would occur only a few years ahead. (And think about our own--a continual war against terror, lost jobs, and and a dying culture filled with violence and meaningless sex, and lies.) As one reads this novel, at least for me, I found myself wanting to try and find or, if possible, create a place that could be for me and my friends and family a Shangri-La. The book is not perfect, but its message is one necessary in our modern world and life. Pax.
Rating:
Summary: Fill in the Unstated with Your Imagination!
Review: In the depths of the worldwide economic depression as the war drumbeats began in Germany, James Hilton wrote a quirky, imaginative book about the potential to escape the harsh reality. In so doing, he caused each reader since then to wonder what the right balance of tranquility and challenge really is. Like the best books about possible utopias, Lost Horizon leaves much to the reader's imagination. Undoubtedly, you will conjure up solutions to the riddles left open by the author that will be especially pleasing to you. Although the book is clearly set in the 30's with a British perspective, many of the themes struck me as universal. As the book opens, there's an intriguing prologue that sets just the right tone for the story. You are to read a manuscript about the experiences of one Hugh "Glory" Conway, H.M. consul. The manuscript opens with airplane hijacking that seemed all too realistic. Quickly, the hijacking turns into a surprising adventure as the passengers unexpectedly arrive in a little known part of Tibet and are escorted to Shangri-La, a lamasery sitting atop a hidden valley of peace and tranquility. While there, they await an opportunity to arrange passage with the bearers who are bringing a shipment that is expected in 60 days. Conway, however, learns the secrets of Shangri-La and finds himself faced with an extraordinary set of choices. To me, Shangri-La is a metaphor for the mental tranquility that many spiritual practices can bring. For anyone who has enjoyed these practices, you will know that it can be tempting to withdraw totally into them. To do so can be delicious, especially for the frazzled soul. At the same time, we are made of flesh, blood and boil with emotions that seek their venting through action. How can the two instincts be reconciled? You are left to come to your own conclusions, and that's one of the great beauties of this fine book. The book has several weaknesses that will bother most readers. Except for Conway, the character development is minimal. The book is too conveniently filled with people in Tibet who speak perfect English. Morality is held a little bit too much in suspense for the book to be as spiritual as it had the potential to be. There's a heavy overlay of British Empire perspective that will seem remote to current readers as well. The ideal reader for this book is someone who enjoyed Butler's Erewhon or H.G. Wells's The Time Machine. I was left thinking that we each need our own personal Shangri-La today more than ever. May you find a way to carry it with you!
Rating: 
Summary: Difficult to Follow
Review: I had to read this book for a book report and found it difficult to follow. If I had to stop in the middle of a chapter, I would start reading and be confused. If I had the time to read whole chapters without interruption, I think I would have had an easier time reading and comprehending this book. At first, I wasn't sure if the beginning was the present and Shangri-La was a flashback/narrative or if the beginning of the book was the prelude to ending up at Shangri-La.
Rating:
Summary: The Impossibility of Utopia
Review: This timeless and visionary novel, while inflicted with some British chauvinism that was common at the time, deserves to be called a classic. Here we have the story of four Westerners who in the 1930s are kidnapped by plane and crash-landed in an uncharted Tibetan valley. They are welcomed into a life of ease and luxury at a suspicious lamasery, Shangri-La, where the monks speak English and enjoy Western books and modern technologies. It turns out that the four abductees were recruited to add to the population of the local village and can never leave, while the lead character Conway is ordained to become the new High Lama. It turns out that this apparent Utopia may not be so fulfilling after all, and that is the key message of the novel. Hilton gives us the struggles of a man who has been damaged by the horrors of war and the modern rat race, and just wants to find a place to get away from it all. But even a place as peaceful as Shangri-La is not so wonderful under the surface. Maybe Utopia is truly impossible to find in our world, both geographically and spiritually. This novel does have a few problems in characterizations and politics. Other than Conway the characters are shallow and one-sided. The one female among the Westerners, Miss Brinklow, is very narrow and nearly invisible, while the non-Westerners are mostly anonymous. Most importantly, the book comes close to sinking under what could either be called a lack of political correctness or immense British snobbery from Hilton's writing tradition. The High Lama is a European and actually states that "Europeans of the Nordic and Latin races" are the best candidates for enlightenment, while the Tibetans and Chinese in the story are presented as servants or bureaucrats. This is a condescending and unfortunate slight to Buddhism and the traditions of Tibet. Luckily, higher philosophical insights make this novel much bigger than the sum of its parts. [~doomsdayer520~]
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