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TacoDave (3994 KP) rated Lost and Found in Books

Oct 3, 2019

Lost and Found

Orson Scott Card | 2019 | Contemporary, Crime, Science Fiction/Fantasy

7.5

(2 Ratings)

Book Rating

Plot (4 more)

World-Building

Characters

Dialogue

Concept

Small focus (1 more)

Plot coincidences

A smaller-scale story by the master of epic sci-fi

"Lost and Found" is a story about micropowers - small, seemingly useless powers that are almost the opposite of superpowers.

The main character, Ezekiel, can touch something that is lost and sense who and where the owner is. A lost toy on the ground might call out to him, asking to be returned to its five-year-old owner. Or a lost shoe might give him the impulse to track down a businessman. The power sounds useful, but since everyone assumes he is a thief (how else would he know where these items belong?), it is more of a burden than a blessing.

Everything changes when a police officer asks Ezekiel to help find a missing child. Could his "power" actually be useful? Or is it impossible to find a person who is "lost?" That's the main story of the book, and it is an intriguing concept, especially when Ezekiel meets other people with odd micropowers.

After saying all of that, how is the book? It's good! It isn't quite as engaging as some of Card's other books, but only because it is smaller in scale and scope. The Ender saga (which is up to approximately 12 books by now) feels important. The themes, moral dilemmas, and human interactions all have weight to them because of how epic the story is.

"Lost and Found" has a bit of adventure and danger, but it is much more grounded. It is focused on (almost) regular humans living their lives in contemporary times. So it is a touch lighter, a touch simpler than some of Card's other books.

Having said that, I thoroughly enjoyed the book from beginning to end and would love to find out more about micropowers and just how inane they might be. The world-building is good enough to make me crave more.

One last note: the micropowers discussed actually *do* relate to the Ender saga, because they seem to be based (intentionally or not) on philotic rays. The main character can "feel" a connection between lost items and their owners. Another character can "feel" where spiders are. And one can "feel" other peoples' navels. It instantly reminded me of the ansible, the hive queen, and philotic webs. So that's something.