Dot Dash - Jonathan Pinnock

About the Book

Title: Dot Dash
Author: Jonathan Pinnock
Publication: Salt (November 2012)
Summary: A delightful collection of micro and flash fiction. 

What I Think

Ranging from remote tribes in South America who measure success and happiness in yellow rubber ducks (A Plague of Yellow Plastic Ducks) to boiling frogs (Frogs) to the every day, Dot Dash has something for everyone. Bordering on the weird, and always ever so slightly abnormal, Pinnock makes you think whilst reading his stories, and for quite some time after as well.  

One of my favourites was The Last Words of Emanuel Prettyjohn, the story about a mute boy. There are a lot of different characters in it, all with distinct voices: "He were a funny wee babby, that one." (Alison Fish, midwife), "Oh, I remember him all right. Bloody nuisance." (Harry Philpott, schoolteacher), "We all thought he was a bit of a freak, to be honest." (Jack Wilson, classmate). It was also very funny in parts and made me laugh out loud. 

Another favourite was Proper Job, a micro fiction piece about shoes which made me chuckle (and sing a bad rendition of the Spandau Ballet song in my head on the way home from work). 
Proper Job
"Get a proper job," said old man Blahnick. "Shoes will never make you rich." But young Manolo knew better. "Gold!" he thought. "Always believe in your sole."  

Highly recommended for anyone who likes to read short, shorter and the very shortest of stories, preferably with a tendency towards the slightly peculiar. 

About the Author

Jonathan Pinnock was born in Bedford, England. After reading Mathematics at Clare College, Cambridge, he drifted into the world of software and has remained there ever since. He has written one book on software development and co-authored a further dozen, most of which are now almost entirely obsolete.


In the last few years he has turned to writing fiction and poetry and has won a number of prizes and has had work read on BBC Radio 4. His novel Mrs Darcy versus the Aliens was released last year to mostly universal acclaim. Dot Dash is his first collection of short stories.

He is married with two slightly grown-up children and a 1961 Ami Continental jukebox.