Think of a book without a most common ruling in its composition!

Phew! Attempting to write the above one sentence without the most commonly used alphabet in the English language- 'E' itself proved very tricky. Imagine an entire novel being written omitting that letter and yet making complete sense and avoiding any ambiguity in its storyline. That is exactly what Ernest Vincent Wright's novel "Gadsby: Champion of Youth" achieves. Written in the year 1939, the manuscript for this novel was entirely written with the E type-bar of the typewriter tied down thus making it impossible for that letter to be printed. It also served as an inspiration for other authors to write lipogrammatic books, including for the famous novel "A Void" by Georges Perec.

The masnuscript of this novel is available online at the following link: http://www.spinelessbooks.com/gadsby/index.html

The introduction by the author, preceding the story, provides an interesting insight on the evolution of the idea for this novel and fascinating snippets on achieving this seemingly impossible task. Not to take anything away from its plot- a truly enjoyable read!

Found and liked :)

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Happy Birthday Asterix !

October 29th 2009 is the 50th birthday of Asterix !

About Asterix:

Asterix was created by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo in 1959. For millions of readers the world over (more than 325 million albums sold in over 100 languages), this extraordinary day commemorates 50 years of sheer happiness with Asterix.

Created for the Pilote weekly magazine in 1959, Asterix became the most famous Gaul in the world. Brainchild of the dynamic duo Goscinny / Uderzo while weathering a sweltering summer on a balcony in the Paris suburb of Bobigny, the adventures of the little Gaul hero with the winged helmet have since become classics.

With some 400 characters (from Aberdeenangus to Zurix!), the 33 Asterix albums (current series) describe a world teeming in activity and never-ending change, a universe that has spilled over into various media: cinema (8 animated films and 3 live-action films), video games and, of course, the Parc Astérix leisure park.

More dynamic than ever, Asterix and his friends are preparing a great number of events to celebrate a half century of merriment with their readers. They have just one idea in mind: to persist in "laughing and making others laugh".