Book Review: Lost in Shangri-La by Mitchell Zuckoff

April 28, 2011

About:

“Lost in Shangri-La” by Mitchell Zuckoff (website) is a non-fiction book about a plane crash in Dutch New Guinea during World War II. This book is narrative history at its best.

  • 400 pages
  • Publisher: Harper
  • Language: English
  • ISBN: 0061988340

Buy Lost in Shangri-La from Amazon.comMy rating for Lost in Shangri-La5
Buy Lost in Shangri-La from Amazon.com*
More Books by Mitchell Zuckoff*

Thoughts:

“Lost in Shangri-La” by Mitchell Zuckoff is a gripping book which takes a hold of you from page one, and doesn’t let go until the very end. Mr. Zuckoff makes history comes alive by introducing the reader to the survivors, those who died, the rescuers, friends and family. I was so engrossed in the book I felt almost as if my friends were the ones on the ground.

Mr. Zuckoff relies on personal diaries, interviews, declassified documents, film footage and more to bring this mesmerizing tale to life. This book is not a glorification of the US Army or World War II, after all – a military plane crashed during a joy ride. But the book is about the human spirit.

Focusing on the survivors, WAC Corporal Margaret Hastings, Lieutenant John McCollom, and Sergeant Kenneth Decker, the author pays particular attention not to tell the story solely from their point of view, but also gives much do credit to the unsung heroes, the paratroopers, medics, support personnel and the natives.

Walters2Medics Cpl. Ramirez and Sgt. Bulatao with WAC Cpl. Margaret Hastings (notice her bandaged legs)
near the crash site.
Picture from
http://www.west-papua.nl

The natives play a huge part in the book, one could say that the rescue wouldn’t have been successful without their involvement. Mr. Zuckoff does a fantastic job researching and trying to understand their complex culture. I don’t know if anyone involved realized how fragile the rescue was due to the terrain and the permanent state of war between the natives.

The real strength of the book is the characterization of the real-life figures, not only of the soldiers involved, but also of the natives whose lives have been forever changed. Each one is written about in a very personal way which makes you want to jump in the pages and shake their hands.

After letting the readers know how each member of the huge cast faired off, the book ends on a very thought provoking note. The natives’ lives were disrupted, even though their way of living seemed primitive to us, it worked for them. In a few short decades their way of life barely exists, proud warriors now pose for photos and their land destroyed for minerals.

So tell me, are all the comforts of life really an advance in culture?
(And please try and do so in more than 140 characters).

Synopsis:

Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea was a strategic area during World War II, General McArthur made it his headquarters before the Philippines invasion. However, life was rough in Hollandia and the soldiers worked hard. To raise moral Colonel Peter Prossen gave the soldiers a treat – a sightseeing tour, from the air, of a lost valley unknown to cartographers complete with natives.
The valley was nicknamed Shangri-La

During one trip the transport plane crashed, killing almost everyone on board. The others had to fend for themselves in a hostile environment hoping rescue is on its way.

Buy Lost in Shangri-La from Amazon.com*
More Books by Mitchell Zuckoff*

TLC Book Tour for “Lost in Shangri-La”
Tuesday, April 26th: Acting Balanced
Tuesday, April 26th: Silver’s Reviews
Wednesday, April 27th: Wordsmithonia
Thursday, April 28th: Man of La Book
Monday, May 2nd: The Lost Entwife
Tuesday, May 3rd: Chaotic Compendiums
Wednesday, May 4th: Dreaming About Other Worlds
Monday, May 9th: Reading Lark
Wednesday, May 11th: Life is Short. Read Fast.
Thursday, May 12th: Wandering Thoughts of a Scientific Housewife
Tuesday, May 17th: Chocolate & Croissants
Wednesday, May 18th: The Serpentine Library
Thursday, May 19th: Among Stories
Monday, May 23rd: Sarah Reads Too Much
Tuesday, May 24th: Layers of Thought
Wednesday, May 25th: A Blog About History
Thursday, May 26th: My Reading Room

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer: I got this book for free from TLC Book Tours
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account, the money is usually spent on books

BOOK BLOGGERS – Have you read “Lost in Shangri-La”? If so link up your review below:

--- Please like and follow ManOfLaBook.com ---
Summary
recipe image
Review Date
Reviewed Item
Lost in Shangri-La by Mitchell Zuckoff
Author Rating
51star1star1star1star1star
Product Name
Lost in Shangri-La by Mitchell Zuckoff

Wrap Up

Lost in Shangri-La by Mitchell Zuckoff

Lost In Shangri La

12 Comments

  • 5a9a71e62343a90d94243b4db36a573b
    bookspersonallyApril 28, 2011 at 12:07 pm

    Fascinating story- probably one many of us have never heard about. Sounds very thought- provoking.

    • 86c0a0f97ec725b64c693cd9b30e3aa1
      zoharApril 28, 2011 at 12:35 pm

      Isn’t it amazing how many stories about WWII we haven’t heard?

  • 6e731209ad84c44a07e2316a81e2f59d
    BookquoterApril 28, 2011 at 9:46 pm

    Sounds pretty amazing for a non-fiction. Great review.

  • 9103a1771d28397bf776d863e883a413
    Heather J. @ TLC Book ToursApril 29, 2011 at 1:18 pm

    Wow, I hadn’t considered how the natives’ lives would be forever changed by their willingness to help the survivors … makes you think about the whole situation in a very different light.

  • 5447526322e9813d959b0b8716d56896
    RyanApril 29, 2011 at 2:42 pm

    I loved this book, especially how the author was able to capture the humanity of all the parties involved. Great review.

  • 71c84fe4b5d06e739bd3086096a84766
    AthsApril 29, 2011 at 3:00 pm

    The synopsis of this book sounded awesome to me when I first checked it out. I was shocked that this could have really happened.

  • 0ed757ddc192e44558baa03bf0f02284
    BenMay 1, 2011 at 8:21 am

    It looks good. Thanks for sharing.

  • 3e31d2acf5eaaf0313f4e9a8e89972da
    Hira Hasnain (Enamored Soul)May 2, 2011 at 3:01 pm

    I just recently read a book called “Radio Shangri-La” and for a moment I thought that that’s the book you were referring to, and was like, “what!?!? are we reading two different books!?!?” Turns out, we were! *facepalm* But that being said, thank you for sharing your thoughts on this book with us. I think good characterization is key to ANY good story/book. I will definitely be looking into this one! 😀

  • B610bee4ad84be4e53b2b7447ac3ed77
    Enrique SanchezJune 7, 2011 at 9:20 am

    Please correct the spelling of the author’s name in the title. There is a C before the K.

    Thanks…and by the way…this is an awesome account.

    • 86c0a0f97ec725b64c693cd9b30e3aa1
      zoharJune 7, 2011 at 9:47 am

      Oh man, how embarrassing, thanks for the correction.

      • B610bee4ad84be4e53b2b7447ac3ed77
        Enrique SanchezJune 7, 2011 at 10:34 am

        Not to worry… you can delete my entry if you like.

  • 7939e839b3dfba66215e3d3ab5d1c2e3
    ElenaJuly 30, 2011 at 3:19 am

    This is a book I’ve heard a bit about and would like to read one of these days. Thanks for the recommendation.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

+ 53 = 56

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Social media & sharing icons powered by UltimatelySocial
RSS
Twitter
Visit Us
Follow Me
Post on X
Pinterest
Pinterest
fb-share-icon
Default Instagram