In 1939 an author named Ernest Vincent Wright wrote a 50,000 word novel called Gadsby. The only thing unusual about the novel is that there is not a single letter e in the whole thing.

Why Did He Write It?

To Prove Critics Wrong: Wright was inspired after discovering that “e” is the most frequently used letter in English (occurring roughly five times more often than any other letter). When he brought up the idea of writing a book without it, colleagues told him it was impossible to accomplish without writing complete nonsense or breaking basic rules of grammar. He took on the challenge specifically to prove it could be done.

As a Technical “Lipogram” Challenge: Wright wanted to test the flexibility of the English language. A work written while deliberately omitting a specific letter or group of letters is known as a lipogram.

How He Pulled It Off

Physical Constraint: To avoid typing the letter by accident, Wright physically tied down the “E” key on his typewriter so it couldn’t strike the ribbon.

Grammatical Hurdles: Omitting “e” meant he could not use common pronouns (he, she, they, them, it), articles (the), or standard past-tense verbs ending in -ed.

Creative Substitutions: He had to heavily alter vocabulary and phrasing—for instance, changing famous quotes like “A thing of beauty is a joy forever” to “A charming thing is a joy always.”

Was it a Popular Book?

When it was first published, Gadsby was an absolute commercial and critical flop, though it eventually became a famous cult curiosity and rare book collector’s item.
Initial Reception & Sales

Rejected by Traditional Publishers: Wright spent over two years trying to find a mainstream publisher, but none would take it. He ultimately had to pay a vanity press (Wetzel Publishing Co.) in Los Angeles to print it in 1939.

Virtually Ignored: The book received almost no attention or serious literary reviews upon release. The public had little interest in reading a story whose primary selling point was an awkward constraint.

Tragic Timing: Wright died in October 1939 at the age of 66—just months after the book was printed—and never saw his work gain any recognition.

The Warehouse Fire

Shortly after the book was printed, a fire broke out at the publisher’s warehouse, destroying most of the unsold stock. Because the original print run was already very small and few copies were sold prior to the fire, surviving first-edition physical copies became extremely scarce.
Modern Cult Status

While it was a commercial failure in 1939, Gadsby gained a legendary reputation in niche literary circles decades later:

Literary Curiosity: It became famous among word-game enthusiasts, lexicographers, and fans of “constrained writing” (lipograms).

Collector’s Item: Because so few copies survived the warehouse fire, original first editions of Gadsby are highly valuable, with rare copies selling anywhere from $4,000 to $9,000+ depending on condition and whether they retain the original dust jacket.

Public Domain Classic: Since the copyright was not renewed, the text entered the public domain and is now widely available to read online for free.

The Author

In addition to writing several books, Ernest Vincent Wright was a dance instructor, musician, typewriter salesman, and newspaper editor.

The First Two Paragraphs

Here are the first two paragraphs of Chapter 1 of Gadsby by Ernest Vincent Wright:

“If Youth, throughout all history, had had a champion to stand up for it; to show a doubting world that a child can think; and, possibly, do it practically; you wouldn’t constantly run across folks today who claim that ‘a child don’t know anything.’ A child’s brain starts functioning at birth; and has, amongst its many faculties, an ability to assimilative thought.

Up to about its primary school days a child thinks, naturally, only of play. But many a form of play contains disciplinary factors. ‘You can’t do this,’ or ‘that puts you out,’ shows a child that it must think, practically, or fail. Now, if, throughout childhood, a brain has no opposition, it is plain that it will attain a position of ‘status quo,’ as with our ordinary animals. Man knows not why a cow, dog or lion was not born with a brain on a par with ours; why such animals cannot add, subtract, or obtain from books and schooling, that paramount position which Man holds today.”