Lost at Sea

This collection of Jon Ronson's best adventures (collated from original sources such as The Guardian and GQ) is a glimpse into the weird and wonderful world around us. Jon Ronson writes like Louis Theroux presents. He gets involved in the action, frees himself to get spirited away on wacky adventures and then sites down to document the humans at the centre of these.

Most famously, he went UFO-spotting in the desert with pop star Robbie Williams, and what he found, instead of aliens, was a man so disconnected from reality and normal life, he had to invent the fantastical just to feel excited about anything. Ronson also follows around the hard nut Phoenix Jones, a real life vigilante and superhero who protects Seattle from purse snatchers and thieves, has been beaten up to within an inch of his life more times than he actually has teeth and still has the verve and zeal of a man on a mission. Elsewhere, Ronson seeks out bankers, robots who are on the cusp of artificial intelligence and a man who tried to split an atom in his kitchen.

These stories are written with charm, authenticity and never judge their subjects. Ronson is the consummate documentarian, opening the curtain on to worlds and lives that we would never appreciate exist around us.