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6th out of 49 books
—
21 voters
Found: The Best Lost, Tossed, and Forgotten Items from Around the World
by
Davy Rothbart (Goodreads Author)
Discarded valentines. Ransom notes. To-do lists. Diaries. Homework assignments. A break-up letter written on the back of an airsickness bag. Whether they are found on buses, at stores, in restaurants, waiting rooms, parking lots, or even prison yards, these items give readers an uncensored, poignant, and often hilarious peek into other people's lives. By collecting them in...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
May 1st 2012
by Fireside
(first published April 19th 2004)
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47th out of 415 books
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68 voters
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The bad news about this book is that it looks like it was made on a copy machine (and not a very good one). I'm sure that was supposed to be part of the charm, but still - it's a bit rough. The good news is that you can get past that pretty quickly just checking out all the scraps, lists and notes that the author has collected. He's the creator of Found Magazine, and this book represents some of the best finds over the years, all "litter" or found material gathered by the author himself or submi...more
There's nothing I enjoy more than reading things that are none of my business. Each and every time I've encountered somebody's diary in my life, I've picked it up and flipped through, and ten times out of ten the contents are far more compelling than a bookcase full of acclaimed literary classics. Yes, I will read your diary, if you leave it lying around. I'm just that good a friend. Now that tiny locks and keys and lame hiding places have been replaced by a simple click of the mouse for the mos...more
Mar 23, 2007
Jay
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
People who believe one man's trash is another man's treasure
I know I'm in the minority, but I had a real problem with Found. The actual "found" content is entertaining, but the layout of the pages was atrocious (lots of photo-ready pages with intentionally visible Scotch tape to mimic the aesthetic of the concept). I had a hard time getting past that. The commentaries that "finders" submitted was equally distracting and unnecessary. I felt the "found" notes, letters, etc. would be more special without knowing the who, what, when, where, and why of how th...more
I liked the book because Davy Rothbart is from Ann Arbor and many of the finds are from Michigan; I'm always down for supporting the local home team, so to speak. That said, it's difficult to "read" and becomes somewhat tedious. The book, itself, is like a scavenger hunt, which is cool in a way, but after a few pages the collage of found "stuff" that each page holds can also be overwhelming. I guess it's best to look at the book in short bursts just a few pages at a time, which would make it the...more
Sometimes, it is AMAZING the ideas that people have that make them money. In the "oh man, WHY DID I NOT THINK OF THIS FIRST!?" kind of way. See, basically, this guy picks up trash. For a living. Even better, he has other people pick up trash and mail it to him.
Davy Rothbart put a magazine together, basically a scrap book of scraps of paper, notes, drawings, signs, etc that he found. this book is basically a best of the best collection. And it is FASCINATING. Seriously. It's like digging through...more
Davy Rothbart put a magazine together, basically a scrap book of scraps of paper, notes, drawings, signs, etc that he found. this book is basically a best of the best collection. And it is FASCINATING. Seriously. It's like digging through...more
I got this book at the Spring '09 Friends of the Library book sale. SCORE!
This book has really great stuff in it: notes of love, notes of anger, letters that will break the heart, shopping lists, lists of things to do, photographs, art by kids and art by adults, interviews (including one with Lynda Barry, who is one of my heroes), stories, and lots more.
I love finding stuff. I love hearing about/reading about stuff other folks have found. This book is awesome!
This book has really great stuff in it: notes of love, notes of anger, letters that will break the heart, shopping lists, lists of things to do, photographs, art by kids and art by adults, interviews (including one with Lynda Barry, who is one of my heroes), stories, and lots more.
I love finding stuff. I love hearing about/reading about stuff other folks have found. This book is awesome!
This book was fun to read. Some of the notes made me laugh, some made me cry. Most all of them made me frustrated about the American public's inability to write proper English. Davy himself seems like a pretty annoying person -- his affected gangsta commentary seemed out of keeping with the overall effect of the book. But the interviews were interesting -- I liked getting more background on some of the finds. Definitely worth flipping through.
Oct 05, 2008
Kevin
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
people who have short attention spans; people who are pooping
This book was interesting, and there were times when I got a good laugh out of the found stuff. The problem is, some of the letters sent in were hard to read (bad handwriting), or just so long that after the first 2 or 3, I decided that I'd just skip them altogether.
All in all, it's a good book for when you need something quick and easy to look at... like while you're taking a shit.
All in all, it's a good book for when you need something quick and easy to look at... like while you're taking a shit.
I love the concept of this book- Davy Rothbart made a 'zine of cut-and-pasted items people find anywhere. Out of context, the items are often hilarious and poignant. My millenial brain finds it difficult to read handwriting though, so I skipped over some notes/lists/letters that were written too sloppily. My loss, though, I'm sure.
I don't even know which category to place this marvelous book, but I absolutely loved it. It's a great book to share with someone; I wanted to show almost every page to Nik, who picked it up to browse anytime he saw it lying around. It's the kind of book you can read from any page you open to, but I think it's best cover-to-cover. I didn't want to miss a thing.
It's a collection of found letters, notes, drawings, and photos. Everything packed with meaning and mystery, everything created for some...more
It's a collection of found letters, notes, drawings, and photos. Everything packed with meaning and mystery, everything created for some...more
I am reading this slowly...fascinating read actually. Amazing the things/notes especially/ that get found. But I wanted to be sure to note page 83 - a note reading "It Devours From Beneath" was found. The folks at the magazine (now book) decided it was a small craft warning, and have a lovely photo of a giant fish about to eat a small fishing boat -- but really --- for Buffy Fans, we of course know this is a reference to Season 7 -- the last TV season of Buffy. Kinda cool really.
I was not overly...more
I was not overly...more
You might not believe this, but I literally FOUND this book today on the street. I was already a big fan of FOUND the zine but I just couldn't bring myself to pay $14 for the book (I know - I'm a terrible person). Low and behold, there it was, in close to perfect condition, on Liberty Street in Petaluma, CA, lying next to a dead plant and an old, broken juicer. If I were a smart cookie, I would have taken a photo, to capture this genius moment, but I was so excited to find this book that I had b...more
I have gotten this book in an effort to "discover" a jewel such as PostSecret.
Unfortunately, I have found myself going over numerous pages while reading this book and oftentimes thought that the items found were boring.
Unfortunately, I have found myself going over numerous pages while reading this book and oftentimes thought that the items found were boring.
1 like · like · see review
Not heavy reading by any means... But the first note I opened it to said "It Stayed on the grill BITCH." I am now addicted.
God almighty, WHAT IS THE CONTEXT for that note???
God almighty, WHAT IS THE CONTEXT for that note???
entertaining, emotional, and sometimes haunting...take a peek into the lives of people around the world by just taking a peek at their trash...
The Washington Post calls Found a “treasury of trash, a wonderfully weird collection.” I can think of no better way to describe this intriguing book, which is a collection of “lost, tossed, and forgotten” notes, flyers, and photographs on every imaginable subject. Some hilarious, some poignant—all are worth preserving.
I’m giving this book five stars for the presence of the “Loss Cat” alone—my very favorite item in the found universe. Every time I see the little scamp, I can’t stop giggling unco...more
I’m giving this book five stars for the presence of the “Loss Cat” alone—my very favorite item in the found universe. Every time I see the little scamp, I can’t stop giggling unco...more
This book is exactly what you think it is. It is a complilation of letters and pictures people all over the US have found and sent in to the author. Some are funny, quite a few are sad. Alot of the time I was reading this I would find myself wondering why the person who wrote these things didn't tear them up or flush them. Glad I didn't find anything I've left behind. So remember, embarrising love letters/rejection letters should be disposed of by fire so you don't find yours somewhere among the...more
This book is addictive. I found it on a list of books for reluctant readers, and thought it sounded interesting. I thought it would contain all sorts of found stuff – you know like the found art movement where you go out into the world and find stuff and then use that in your art. This was a bit different. It has mostly letters, scraps of paper, lists, pictures, drawings, and photographs, along with commentary from people who found these things about where they found them and stories that go alo...more
I don’t know about you, (really, I don’t) but when I was little, I was one of those kids that LOVED finding stuff. Especially if it was on the ground, with a few shoe prints embedded in it, maybe torn, OOH! Gum wrappers!
Anything shiny set off a Pavlovian response and I’d scamper towards it gleefully. Fastened to a gutter? No problem. Sticky? Bring it on. Drifting across a busy street? Set me free.
Now, my Mom… Oh, yeah.. Mom. I think I gave her a mini cardiac infarction every time I dropped her...more
Anything shiny set off a Pavlovian response and I’d scamper towards it gleefully. Fastened to a gutter? No problem. Sticky? Bring it on. Drifting across a busy street? Set me free.
Now, my Mom… Oh, yeah.. Mom. I think I gave her a mini cardiac infarction every time I dropped her...more
12 likes · like · see review
Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com
I don't read non-fiction all that often, but I was intrigued by FOUND when it was nominated as a 2007 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults. And I'm very glad I picked up a copy!
FOUND is, quite simply, a book filled with notes, letters, lists, pictures, and other miscellaneous items that have been found--either in the trash, on a sidewalk, stuck on a windshield, or just about anywhere else--that people have sent to the editors of FOUND Magazine for inclusion.
Th...more
I don't read non-fiction all that often, but I was intrigued by FOUND when it was nominated as a 2007 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults. And I'm very glad I picked up a copy!
FOUND is, quite simply, a book filled with notes, letters, lists, pictures, and other miscellaneous items that have been found--either in the trash, on a sidewalk, stuck on a windshield, or just about anywhere else--that people have sent to the editors of FOUND Magazine for inclusion.
Th...more
It's not hard to see why people like this book. After all we're a country that loves its reality TV. And that's what this is, in book form. It reminded me both of Was She Pretty? and PostSecret Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives, both of which I enjoyed more. I found it very hard to read, especially in terms of deciphering handwriting and making sense of snippets of text and poorly written pieces. It has the feel of something that should be quickly read, but is too dense to breeze thr...more
This book is kind of amazing. Yes, it's filled with assorted found items (mostly handwritten notes), but what gets me is how it looks like the whole thing was laid out by hand and photocopied, like a higher-quality version of a zine. It's also not the sort of thing you can just casually flip through. I found myself repeatedly sucked into the stories of these strangers, at times sad and hilarious and maddening - sometimes simultaneously. It's inspired me to look down from time to time to see what...more
This compilation of "STUFF" is awesome! It's like rubbernecking, or going through someone's secret stash in a closet at an estate sale. Some of the stuff "found" is very intimate, and makes one feel a bit voyeuristic and naughty, but most of it is just f'in HILARIOUS! The little cutesy kid ones made me go "AWWWW", and made me feel terribly nostalgic for all those loopy long lost love letters from Jr. High School.
One of the reason I love buying used books is finding the little notes that people leave inside them. "Found" is Davy Rothbart's collection of the very best of these from around the world. The notes are funny, sad, strange, touching, etc. But in the end it all comes down to the fact that human beings are pretty messed up, and that's what makes us interesting.
Fascinating concept. There are some bits and pieces that are very funny and interesting. There are also pages that I wish I never read and are disturbing and sad. Yes it is a peek into other people's minds but I'm beginning to think ignorance is bliss in terms of knowing what goes on in many of these people's lives. The writer's a true Ann Arbor original.
I'm not really reading this book (out-takes from the first 3 issues) - I'm reading FOUND Magazine #6 which I just got in the mail, and I'm almost too excited to read it. If you haven't heard of this magazine and its movement which has become a phenom of sorts, check it out (www.foundmagazine.com) - it's fascinating, poignant, and hilarious, sometimes all at the same time.
I don't know, maybe I was expecting too much because of all the hype, but I just wasn't as moved/intrigued/humored by this book as I was hoping. I had such visceral reactions when reading the Post Secret book and I thought this book would elicite the same response. It feel short of my expectations. I enjoyed it, just not as much as I was expecting.
It's interesting to look at other people's random thoughts and experiences. This book allows readers to do exactly that. There are some very random/weird items, some really sweet stuff, and some that just doesn't make any sense. If you like weirdness this book is for you. However, I would not recommend this to more sensitive readers, there is quite a bit of language, not to mention other stuff.
Aug 15, 2012
Sarah Eldridge
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
humor fans, over 12 (profanity)
Recommended to Sarah by:
Bumbershoot & Story Pirates
I discovered the Found series after seeing a presentation about it at Bumbershoot in 2009.
Basically, this group of people take letters, notes, etc. that are "found" by people and speculate on what the story behind it is. It's funny and interesting! A great coffee table book, but you'll want to read it cover to cover when you first get it.
Basically, this group of people take letters, notes, etc. that are "found" by people and speculate on what the story behind it is. It's funny and interesting! A great coffee table book, but you'll want to read it cover to cover when you first get it.
I love Found and have been a fan of the magazine since 2004. For some reason have never picked up the two book collections until now. Both are on Amazon used for almost nothing - do yourself a favor and pick them up.
What I love about each collection is it makes you think - what is the story behind each item? Sometimes funny, sad, amazing, profound and always entertaining.
What I love about each collection is it makes you think - what is the story behind each item? Sometimes funny, sad, amazing, profound and always entertaining.
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Davy Rothbart's magazine Found is dedicated to discarded notes, letters, flyers, photos, lists, and drawings found and sent in by readers. The magazine spawned a best-selling book, Found: The Best Lost, Tossed, and Forgotten Items from Around the World, published in April 2004. A second collection was published in May 2006. The magazine is published annually and co-edited by Rothbart's friend Jaso...more
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Aug 27, 2008 07:59am
Aug 27, 2008 08:25am