Will Robinson, holding up a copy of the memoir
"So, um... Penny's been writing kind of a memoir about our experience. It's really good, so I published it."
- Will Robinson, handing out copies of the memoir to his family and Don West, "Shipwrecked"
Lost in Space was a memoir created by Penny Robinson on the Netflix Lost in Space series.
History[]
At some point following the launch of the 24th Mission, Penny Robinson began writing a memoir of her and her family's adventures in space. Her brother Will Robinson thought it was really good. He created several handbound copies and gave them out to his family and Don West on Christmas. It was a surprise to Penny, who hadn't known that he had done this. He titled the memoir himself, Lost in Space.
The memoir apparently made Penny's sister Judy look good, something which Penny called "artistic license." Don West, however, was disappointed he wasn't in it more. ("Shipwrecked")
When Penny asked her mother Maureen what she thought of it, she said after hesitating that she thought she showed great growth as a writer. Later, when the two of them were in danger together, she admitted to not having read it at all, but promised to do so at the first opportunity. "Dr. Smith" also obtained a copy of the memoir and claimed to have enjoyed it. ("Precipice")
"Dr. Smith" later showed Captain Radic a copy of the memoir, which he described as "a little girl's diary," in an attempt to prove that she was Dr. Zoe Smith and not the murdering criminal he believed her to be. The memoir contained within it toxic kelp which, when he touched it, caused him to pass out, forcing him to be placed in a medically induced coma. ("Scarecrow")
After the Robot completed a risky repair of the Resolute, Penny commented that it was "definitely going in the book." ("Unknown")
As Penny and Will prepared to leave the Resolute aboard a Jupiter spacecraft, Maureen handed Penny a copy of the memoir. At the end of what she had written was a page with handwritten note from Maureen - "Fill these," referring to the remaining blank pages. ("Ninety-Seven")
Sample contents[]
"Our Jupiter was hurtling through the atmosphere at 25 times the speed of sound. We were going to crash, but for me, this wasn't the scary part. The scary part happened long before anything went wrong, when we were sailing merrily on a trip to Alpha Centauri, because the idea of space has scared me for as long as I can remember. I always thought space was darker than dark and colder than cold, and worst of all, empty. I can't think of a lonelier place. My mom thinks that space isn't empty after all. That it's filled with dark matter we just can't see. I'm not a scientist like her. I don't believe in things just because they make the equations add up. I need to learn things for myself and that's where the trouble always starts. But I'm getting ahead of myself. This is the story of discovery, but not of strange new worlds. It's about discovering what's in the places you thought were empty. Sometimes it's the invisible force of my family pulling at me even when I can't see them, reminding me that I'm never really alone. And sometimes it's about discovering horrible monsters that want to bite your face off." ("Shipwrecked")
"The irony of all this is I almost died trying to get somewhere I never even wanted to go." ("Precipice")
"I guess it's my job to write the epilogue. That's fine. As jobs go, it's pretty easy. I just sit in a chair and scribble on a piece of paper while Mom's in orbit building another spaceship to replace the Resolute. She's assisted by super-advanced beings whose technology still seems like magic. And also Don. Once the Robots were finally freed from their old programming, they could do whatever they wanted. Most left and didn't feel the need to tell us where they were going. Now that they're writing their own commands, they're all different. Just like we are. For her part, once she was reassembled, again, Sally left almost immediately. I was disappointed at first, then I realized she's just a girl who's not afraid to go find her place in the universe. I like to think she got that from me. I've never seen Dad this relaxed. They say that, more than anyone else, soldiers appreciate the value of peace. Judy hasn't slowed down, but I think she finally realized that she nothing to prove to anyone. I haven't seen Dr. Smith for a while, which makes me nervous. Will said, 'Don't worry. I promise I'll be home for Christmas.' But we all know things don't always work out the way we plan. THE END. OF CHAPTER ONE" ("Trust")