A Void – Georges Perec

A Void against a background of perplexing Durness geology. "What's that?" exclaimed someone sarcastically, "extremely pink reading?"

A Void is known for being the novel without an ‘e.’ In both the original French and in Gilbert Adair’s skilful and impressive translation into English. I wonder what it would be like to read the book lacking this foreknowledge (having just denied you, dear blog reader, that pleasure!) but ‘e’-lessness is stated on the back cover, and you only have to mention Georges Perec to provoke a chorus of “no ‘e’s!”

The absence of ‘e’ did provide some much looked for continuity, in a novel which at times proved something of a slog.