Ella Minnow Pea

I first heard of this book at last week's cell group when, for our icebreaker, we were talking about a book we'd currently been reading. Ashley responded with this --> book that she'd borrowed from Landon and Alycia. I was intrigued when she mentioned a bit about it, because as an English teacher, the subject is interesting. So I borrowed it after last night's cell group and read it this afternoon (it's just over 200 pages, but it's a novel in letter form, so it's a quick read). The guy who wrote this is genius...probably one of the most clever books I've ever read. So I went to answer.com and copied the plot summary....maybe you'll want to read it, too...especially if you're a language teacher. :)

Ella Minnow Pea is set on the fictitious island of Nollop, an isle off the coast of South Carolina, and home to Nevin Nollop, the supposed creator of the well-known pangram "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." This sentence is preserved on a memorial to its creator on the island, and is taken very seriously by the government of the island. Throughout the book, tiles containing the letters fall from the inscription beneath the statue, and as each one does, the island's government bans the contained letter's use from written or spoken communication. A penalty system is enforced for using the forbidden characters, with public censure for a first offense, lashing or stocks (violator's choice) upon a second offense and banishment from the island nation upon the third. By the end of the novel, most of the island's inhabitants have either been banished, or have left of their own accord.
The plot is conveyed through mail or notes sent between various characters, though with the banned letters missing, creating passages that become more and more phonetically or creatively spelled, and requiring more effort of the reader to interpret. (Catie's note: this is where it gets entertaining and you can't understand a word they're saying)
The island's high council becomes more and more non-sensical as time progresses and the alphabet diminishes, promoting Nollop to divine status. Uncompromising in their enforcement of Nollop's 'divine will' they offer only one hope to the frustrated islanders: to disprove Nollop's omniscience by finding a panagram of 32 letters (in contrast to Nollop's 35). With this goal in mind "Enterprise 32" is started, a project involving many of the novel's main characters. With but five characters left (LMNOP) the elusive phrase is eventually discovered by Ella in one of her father's earlier letters; "Pack my box with five dozen liquor jugs." The council accepts this, and restores the right to all 26 letters to the populace.

Great idea for a book, huh?