Reviews
OF THE MUSEUM OF LOST WONDER

From the San Francisco Chronicle
Where in a bookstore does The Museum of Lost Wonder belong? With graphic novels? It has dazzling visuals and some narrative elements. With esoterica? It borrows its seven-part structure from alchemy's stages of transformation from matter to wisdom. With books on cosmology? It contains vividly illustrated thought experiments about the design of universes, among other ultimate considerations.

The Museum of Lost Wonder opens up a new category of intellectual entertainment. It will appeal to the young because it contains the makings of seven models for such things as “A Theater of the Mind,” a “Scrying Mandala” and a “Path of Destiny Peep Show.” It will captivate adults by providing inroads to profound questions that come naturally to children, such as how to distinguish “what you're looking at from the 'you' that's looking” and “Can you choose how you feel?”

Jeff Hoke, senior exhibition designer at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, has thought hard about how to present information and ideas. With The Museum of Lost Wonder he undoes what he sees as the dulling effect of museum practice across disciplines.

—Kenneth Baker

The Museum of Lost Wonder