Trumping Kafka's Metamorphosis and, believe it or not, smidging just ahead of Team of Rivals, (I know, I know... but it's just that good), this little linguistic jewel has positively taken my breath away. How can this novella via letters have possibly escaped my attention for over a decade? I feel ripped and jipped, completely blighted by my instructors of old to have allowed me to traverse the halls of collegiate enlightenment without once stumbling upon this epiphionic marsh of the vernacular!
In fact, I will venture so far to say that this book of marvel has surpassed even my favorite of omnibuses, none other than P.G. Wodehouse's World of Jeeves... but in all truth, they cannot realistically be compared because one is a compilation of vignettes while the other a light-stepping summative satire.
This book, quite simply put, has promulgated through my cherished lists of literary favorites and quickly surpassed them to the top of the finest examples of sapience and sagacity I can call to name.
And why, you ask, has this novel warranted such praise from this literary critic? Oh to start and never finish the list of esteem that should appear bandiford on sculpted granite! Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn is a zany tale for logomaniacs and lovers of language the world over! I have but ONE REGRET: That I have to read this book in utter and all-encompassing jealous envy at not having written it myself! This book speaks to my soul. It is everything I would want to write. Why can't it have been me who did?!
The Gist:
Ella lives in a country that cherishes the written and spoken word. The founder of her society was Nevin Nollop who coined the shortest pangram (a phrase using all the letters of the alphabet): The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. This phrase adorns his statue in town square but one day one of the letters falls off so the city council decides to ban the use of it forever. Soon more letters fall thus limiting the genomes of the English language even further. Ella and her friends must fight against the council to find a way to release this idiotic linguistic mandate but time is running out as communication all but ceases to exist!
Surprises:
***The book is a lipogram-
meaning that when citizens of
Ella's country lose a letter,
so does the book!
***It's also written completely in letters as
Ella and her friends/family
struggle to communicate with one-another.
Themes:
(which is partly why I LOVE this book- these are my favorite themes!!!):
The Freedom and Power of Language
Freedom of Speech
Totalitarianism
Censorship
False Idols
To read this epistolary novel is to love it! ...and for heaven's sake, don't borrow it- BUY IT!!! Tis one for the shelves!
1 comment:
Okay, I'm intrigued...haven't read a good book in a couple of weeks...I'll go find it! (And then let you know.)
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