Rating: 
Summary: A fun, alphabetic frolic
Review: This epistolary novel is probably not for everyone. But if you enjoy sophisticated language and language manipulation (read: English majors), this is a wonderfully creative book. Dunn creates an idyllic island nation, Nollopton (formerly Utopiana), that quickly descends to a military state reminiscent of Orwell's 1984, with neighbor turning in neighbor and students reporting teachers when letters from that famous panagram, "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog," start falling off the statue to honor the sentence and the man who created it, Nevin Nollop. The High Council, politicians elected for life, take this as a sign from Nollop himself, disregarding the fact that the glue that holds the letters on is over 100 years old. And so, the people of Nollop, who because of inconsistent phone service are a letter-writing people, must, one by one, eliminate letters from their lives or face serious punishment, including banishment for the third offense. The letters become truly hilarious as more of the alphabet disappears--just imagine a world with no "D"! Dunn manages, despite all of this alphabetical mayhem, to build in love interests for the two young cousins who most consistently write to one another. A completely enjoyable afternoon read that I think has found a place as one of my favorite books.
Rating: 
Summary: A fascinating and totally weird experience.
Review: This is a challenging experiment in word play written entirely in letter (epistle) format. Plot-wise, as the letters of the alphabet disappear from the monument, the citizens are ordered to stop using them -- in writing OR in speech. (The speech part fails me -- you don't use letters in speech unless you spell aloud. But for the sake of the story, it increases the frustrating need to comunicate.) I would compare the plot to that of "The Emperor Has No Clothes" -- that is, what's real and what isn't, and who is willing to stand up and admit it? ELLA MINNOW PEA becomes an interesting look at what a fanatic oligarchy can do to a society if the pople don't fight back. Because this was sold as a play on words, I thought it was going to be much more fun. But quite frankly it was pretty heavy plodding in the beginning. I do applaud the author for his attempt at word play, but I wish he'd been more consistent. For example, at one point, character Mittie decides she's going to make up for the loss of some letters by overusing the others ("Robbed of two letters, I now chooooose to overuuuuse the twenty-four which remaaaain"), but then she never does again. Had she kept that up, it would have been fun and something to set her apart. There was otherwise nothing distinguishing these "characters." I initially felt that the writing was terribly awkward -- why does the author make it sound as if the people had swallowed a thesaurus and spewed it forth in their unreal letters to each other? But a couple of days later, as the story was still swimming in my head, I realized, no -- the beginning establishes how much the people cherish the words. They play with them, eat, sleep, and practically bathe in them, making their loss even more painful. And if they did NOT have such a familiarity with the use of alternate words, they couldn't have continued communicating as long as they did. They had to leave their home, their country, because they couldn't give up their ability to communicate. An interesting read that keeps coming back to my mind. (Extra fun: the new names for the months, subtly shown at the top of each letter.)
Rating:
Summary: Original and Fun
Review: This is one of the most unique novels I've ever read.It's about life on a small island off the coast of South Carolina where the residents practically worship the author of the famous sentence "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." But when the letters start to fall off the sign in the town square, they are forbidden. As the book progresses and more and more letters are banned, the author gets creative with his spelling and word usage. The island's government decides that whoever can write a sentence like the famous one using all the ltters of the alphabet, will be honored. The resulting sentence is surprising and delightful. This is a must-have for anyone who loves reading and writing, or for that matter, the freedom of speech. It will make you feel lucky to live in America."Ella Minnow Pea" is short, well-written, and memorable.
Rating:
Summary: Original and Fun
Review: This is one of the most unique novels I've ever read.It's about life on a small island off the coast of South Carolina where the residents practically worship the author of the famous sentence "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." But when the letters start to fall off the sign in the town square, they are forbidden. As the book progresses and more and more letters are banned, the author gets creative with his spelling and word usage. The island's government decides that whoever can write a sentence like the famous one using all the ltters of the alphabet, will be honored. The resulting sentence is surprising and delightful. This is a must-have for anyone who loves reading and writing, or for that matter, the freedom of speech. It will make you feel lucky to live in America."Ella Minnow Pea" is short, well-written, and memorable.
Rating:
Summary: If you love English, you -need- this book.
Review: This is quite possibly the greatest book I have ever read. The writing style is nothing short of genious. Usually, it takes me forever to finish a book, but I flew straight through this one. I can't emphasize enough how wonderful this author's mastery of our language is. So, I won't bother trying. But, seriously, read it.
Rating:
Summary: Funny and Thought-Provoking
Review: This was an excellent book. The letter format made for quick reading while the subject kept you constantly thinking. I found myself trying to resolve the challenge set forth in the story before I allowed myself to read the end. Although the vocabulary is quite challenging, I am considering using this story with my middle school students. It is a great exericise in developing a broader vocabulary by learning terms in context. The story also created a sense of political awareness and caused me to ponder the needs of a successful society. This is a book that should not be missed.
Rating:
Summary: Quirky quick read
Review: This was such a fun book and a must read for book lovers. If you love the written word then this is a fascinating and different book in which Mark Dunn pulls off a novel told through written correspondence as slowly different letters of the alphabet are elimated from legal use. On the small island of Nollop named after the man who invented the sentence "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog" residents superstitously avoid using the letters of this sentence as the tiles from the monument commemorating it slowly fall one after the other. Eventually an uprising races to come up with an even shorter sentence using all the letters of the alphabet. As dry and constraining as the premise sounds this was a funny, quirky and highly enjoyable read. I give it 4 1/2 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Original and Entertaining
Review: What a great little gem this book is. Told through letters between the characters, the text gradually loses bits of the alphabet until Dunn must be extremely creative in word choice and spelling. Ella Minnow Pea is an easy read and very funny, but it also contains some food for thought on fanaticism and conformity, as well as the function of language as a tool for civilization. While the message is evident, it is thankfully not beaten to death in that "look at me! I'm intellectual!" way. This is one of those books that puts a smile on your face as you're reading because it's so clever in parts, and you'll be thinking about the implications long after you've finished.
Rating:
Summary: A Book for Scrabble Enthusiasts
Review: What a strange,imaginative, and creative reading experience!A fable told in letters, Mark Dunn's book shows us the sometimes hilarious and more often sad results of censorship as the island of Nollop,begins to lose their alphabet. Named after Nevin Nollop who phrased the line: The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog, the council of the island feel he's speaking to them from the dead when the letters of the phrase begin to fall off a memorial statue of him in the town square. They then ban the falling letters from the alpahabet and so they also disappear from the pages of the book causing a creative bit of wordplay as more letters drop. Both fun and frustrating the book can be digested in one wordful sitting as the heroine tries to save the town. A really inventive and fun read!
Rating:
Summary: If you are in love with words and ideas read THIS book.
Review: What an astounding read and what a delight for any one who loves to devour a book in one bite. This is a five course gourmet meal that will have you chasing all of our friends down hallways screaming "Read this book, NOW!!!"
The way the letters disappear from the book when they disappear in the plot is fantastic and it is fun to see the dates when the letters disappear and the characters improvise...e.g. when the law is passed banning the letter "B" someone resorts to referring to the month of October as Onomotopoeia, November becomes Novempoopy etc...
You will end up reading out loud just to make sure that you don't miss anything.
If you have kids you MUST read this to them, it is such a tremendous gift to literature.
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