In the fictional island of Nollop, home to the late, great Nevin Nollop, inventor of the sentence, "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog," a pangram that contains all 26 letters of the alphabet, there's an uprising going on! Seems the monument depicting said sentence (in an effort to memorialize the citizens' esteemed island founder) is falling apart, letter by letter. High Council members determine this as a word from the great beyond, a way of communicating to us Nollop's wishes to eradicate that certain letter from use -- verbally or written. As an island full of people who use letter-writing and communication as an art form, these wishes could only spell 'demise.' If only there was a way to prove the tiles' falling as an act of faulty cement glue....

Ella Minnow Pea is an extraordinary book of letters from one citizen to the next that increase in hilarity and difficulty as each letter of the alphabet is increasingly banned from use. Mark Dunn is an extremely talented writer in my eyes, especially given this amazing task to expand his vocabulary beyond normal conversation. Have your Thesauruses handy -- Ella Minnow Pea will take you on quite an intellectual journey.

19 of 19 found the following review helpful:


Don't overlook the author's message  Mar 10, 2002 By Simon Cross
I am only half way through this book, which I must say reads very quickly, but I decided to have another look at the reviews of this book. After all, it was because of those reviews that I bought this book.

It concerns me, that those few readers who look beyond the humourous aspect of this book, still don't spend much time commenting upon the subtext - the loss of freedom. Not only are certain letters banned from use, but the high-minded governing Council, impose very strict punishments for anyone found using any of the banned letters, and a very strict adherence to those punishments, even to the extent of exiling nationals.

This novel shows how all too easy it is for innocent members of any group to be caught up in the fanaticism of a governing body, when that body believes that it is doing right. Look at any difficult political situation in the world today, and somewhere there is an element of fanaticism.

Whilst I am sure that Mark Dunn is very happy that people are enjoying the comic side to his novel, I guess he did not intend it to overshadow the deeper message.

This is a very enjoyable, very clever novel, but when you read it, don't forget that any of us could find ourselves in a similar situation very easily.

(Also, to the reviewer who suggested keeping a dictionary to hand, working out what is being said is probably supposed to be part of the enjoyment. You do not need a dictionary.)

16 of 16 found the following review helpful:


The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog  Nov 09, 2001 By emt0402
Speak or write the letter "z", first offense-public reprimand, second offense-public flogging or the stockades, third offense-deportment from the island of Nollop. If you refuse to go, death is the punishment.

"Ella Minnow Pea" is quite possibly the most original book I have ever read. Mark Dunn's first novel is highly creative, insiteful, with a touch of political undercurrents. Written in the form of letter correspondences, it is a quick and entertaining read. As letters become outlawed, they do in fact drop from the book, not making it harder to read (as was my worry) but only adding to its charm. "Ella Minnow Pea" will even give you a new appreciation for that wonderful thing we call the alphabet, as well as put a smile on your face. So, find out the fate of the alphabet and the citizens of Nollop and read this book!

8 of 8 found the following review helpful:


Not for the intellectually complacent  Dec 04, 2004 By PKR
The poor reviews of this book reflect a sad tendency: the expectation that novels should tell us exactly what they are about so that we don't have to go to the trouble of figuring it out for ourselves - or, god forbid, that a book should have layered meanings, or leave things open to interpretation.

This book, however, is a finely written treatise in novel form (pun intended) about totalitarianism, repression, the effects of repression on society and what happens when complacent and fearful society doesn't fight back early and hard. A great gift for friends and family who like to think.

6 of 6 found the following review helpful:


CREATIVE, IMAGINATIVE, AND ENTERTAINING  Nov 18, 2001 By Gail Cooke
Creative? Imaginative? Entertaining? A tad absurd? You bet to all of the preceding. Playwright Mark Dunn has crafted his first novel, subtitled, "A Progressively Lipogrammatic Epistolary Fable."

It is a fable and a fantastic one that takes place today on the fictional island of Nollop, which is a stone's throw from North Carolina. The island is named in honor of the great Nevin Nollop who some 100 years ago penned "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog," the revered phrase containing every letter in the alphabet. The more erudite among us know that a verse, phrase or sentence containing all the letters of the alphabet is a "panagram."

Nonetheless, the estimable Mr. Nollop is more than erudite to Nollopians; he is a hero and a statue in his honor sits in the town square. But, one day mysterious doings occur - letters of the alphabet begin to fall from the statue's inscription. First to drop is the Z. Then, oops, a Q followed by a J. And so it goes.

Respected for their sagacity, the Nollop Town Council immediately rules that the dropped letters are banned in both oral discourse and written communication. Forbidden, mind you, on pain of flogging or expulsion from the island. What to do?

It falls to Ella of the Minnow Pea family to discover a panagram using fewer letters in order to return the language they so love to all of Nollop.

The story is told in a series of letters, all of which are written adroitly and show just how ingenious one can be when it comes to communicating with fewer letters of the alphabet.

Wordsmiths will delight in this highly original tale, and all will smile wondering, "How in the world did Mark Dunn ever think of that?"

- Gail Cooke

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