The cover of the 1961 paperback edition

Lost Horizon is a fantasy adventure novel by James Hilton. Hugh Conway, a veteran member of the British diplomatic service, finds inner peace, love, and a sense of purpose in Shangri-La, a utopian lamasery high in the Himalayas in Tibet whose inhabitants also enjoy longevity. It is said to have been inspired at least in part by accounts of travels in Tibetan borderlands, published in the National Geographic by the explorer and botanist Joseph Rock. The remote communities he visited, such as Muli, show many similarities to the fictional Shangri-La. One such town, Zhongdian, has now officially renamed itself as Shangri La (Ch: Xianggelila) because of its claim to be the inspiration for the novel. 1961 Pocket Book paperback image Lost Horizon This image is a book cover. ... 1961 Pocket Book paperback image Lost Horizon This image is a book cover. ... DeFoes Robinson Crusoe, Newspaper edition published in 1719 A novel (from French nouvelle, new) is an extended fictional narrative in prose. ... James Hilton (September 9, 1900 - December 20, 1954) was a popular English novelist of the first half of the 20th century. ... Shangri-La is a fictional place described in the novel, Lost Horizon, written by British writer James Hilton in 1933. ... Buddhist monastery near Tibet A monastery is the habitation of monks. ... Perspective view of the Himalaya and Mount Everest as seen from space looking south-south-east from over the Tibetan Plateau. ... Tibet (Tibetan: བོད་, Bod, pronounced pö in Lhasa dialect; Chinese: 西藏, pinyin: XÄ«zàng; older spelling Thibet) is a region in Central Asia and the home of the Tibetan people. ... Longevity is long life or existence. ... The National Geographic Society was founded in the USA on January 27, 1888, by 33 men interested in organizing a society for the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge. ... See also explorations, sea explorers, astronaut, conquistador, travelogue, the History of Science and Technology and Biography. ... Botany is the scientific study of plant life. ... Joseph Francis Charles Rock, (1884 – 1962) was an Austrian-American explorer, geographer, linguist and botanist. ... Xianggelila (Chinese: 香格里拉, English: Shangri-La) is a primarily Tibetan city in North-West Yunnan Province in South-West China. ...

The book, published in 1933, was a huge success. In 1939 it was chosen to be the first novel published in paperback form, as Pocket Book #1. President Franklin D. Roosevelt named the Presidential hideaway in Maryland after Shangri-La (it has since been renamed Camp David.) 1933 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Paperback may refer to a kind of book binding by which papers are simply folded without cloth or leather and bound - usually with glue rather than stitches or staples - into a thick paper cover; or to a book with this type of binding. ... Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882–April 12, 1945), 32nd President of the United States, the longest-serving holder of the office and the only man to be elected President more than twice, was one of the central figures of 20th century history. ... State nickname: Old Line State; Free State Other U.S. States Capital Annapolis Largest city Baltimore Governor Robert L. Ehrlich (R) Senators Paul Sarbanes (D) Barbara Mikulski (D) Official languages English Area 32,160 km² (42nd)  - Land 25,338 km²  - Water 6,968 km² (21%) Population (2000)  - Population 5,296... Main Lodge at Camp David during Nixon administration, February 9, 1971. ...

The book has been made into two films:

• 1937, directed by Frank Capra
• 1973, directed by Charles Jarrott (musical version)

Another very different film with the same title Lost Horizon (2000) has the original Spanish title La Cabecita rubia, and is the work of Argentinian director Luis Sampieri. It has been compared to Fellini's La Strada. Lost Horizon is a 1937 film directed by Frank Capra starring Ronald Colman, Jane Wyatt, John Howard, Margo, Thomas Mitchell, Edward Everett Horton, Isabel Jewell, H.B. Warner, and Sam Jaffe. ... Frank Capra Frank Capra (May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an American film director and a major creative force behind a number of highly popular films. ... Lost Horizon is a 1973 musical film directed by Charles Jarrott and starring Peter Finch, John Gielgud and Liv Ullmann. ... La Strada is a 1954 Italian motion picture produced by Dino De Laurentiis and Carlo Ponti and directed by Federico Fellini. ...

Hilton's novel was adapted for BBC Radio 4 in three hour-long episodes. BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station which broadcasts a wide variety of chiefly spoken-word programmes including news, drama, comedy, science and history. ...

External links

• Clues to real Shangri-La point to China