Finally, a book for people who get lost a lot

Finally, a book for people who get lost a lot

MUSKEGON, Mich. — Are you one of those people with no sense of direction?

Do you exit your hotel room and have no idea which way the elevator is located? Do you panic if a detour forces you to take an unfamiliar route home? Do you have to turn a map around in order to read it?

If getting lost is your normal way of getting from one place to another, no matter how many times you stop to ask for directions, a new book out will help you realize you’re not alone and even give you some pointers for solving your problem.

“Never Get Lost Again: The Complete Guide to Improving Your Sense of Direction” by Linda Grekin (RDR Books, $14.95) is an entertaining and useful book about the hard-core directionally impaired — the kind of people who get lost even with GPS devices, MapQuest and Google Maps.

“I had never seen a good article about it, let alone a book,” said Roger Rapaport, publisher of the Michigan-based RDR Books, in an afterword explaining why he decided to publish the book.

Grekin, the author, designed a survey to figure out what traits are common to people who get lost a lot. One thing stood out in her research: Most of those with a poor sense of direction also have trouble visualizing and mentally rotating objects. They have to turn a map around so that it’s facing the way they’re going; they have to write directions out in reverse; and if they are on the lower floor of a two-story house, they can’t be sure what room is above them.

The book includes some interesting quizzes to test your spatial ability, along with tips for the directionally impaired, including highlighting your route on a map, noting landmarks so you can find your way back more easily, and allowing extra time so that if you do get lost, you won’t be late.