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David Donachie
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The Night Alphabet Kindle Edition

by David Donachie (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 out of 5 stars 20 ratings
Have you ever had a dream so wonderful it followed you into the waking world? Do you lie awake, listening to the creaks and groans of a settling building, and believe that something strange and terrible is happening? Have you ever been unable to tell the dream from reality?

The Night Alphabet is a collection of 26 short stories dragged from the edges of sleep: marrying nightmares to detective fiction, ghosts to science, and the weird to the nonsensical. Author David Donachie weaves stories together from the ideas that cross the dozing mind, creating fantastical tales which will take you deep into the dream world and beyond. Inside you will find: cloud castles, flooded cities, haunted dreams, aliens, talking heads, insomniacs, and lots of cats.

About the Author:

David M. Donachie is an artist, programmer, and writer of roleplaying games. He has written short stories of countless types since he was old enough to hold a pencil — many are very embarrassing. He lives in a garret (really a top-floor flat, but a garret sounds a lot more romantic) in Edinburgh with his wife Victoria, 2 cats, more reptiles than mammals, and more invertebrates than either.
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  1. Reading age
    12 - 18 years
  2. Print length
    173 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Accessibility
    Learn more
  5. Publication date
    February 26, 2018
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07B3NYRQ3
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Solipsist Press
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ February 26, 2018
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 1st
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.5 MB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 173 pages
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 12 - 18 years
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 out of 5 stars 20 ratings

About the author

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David Donachie

David Donachie

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David Morvryn (Sylvanus, Keith) Donachie is a writer, artist, game designer, and IT professional living in Edinburgh, Scotland. He lurks in a draughty garret (it is really a normal upstairs flat, but it is genuinely draughty), with his wife, and a large variety of scaly, furry, and chitinous pets.

David has written stories of every kind since he was old enough to hold a pencil. When he was little he used to make his own short story books out of loose paper and sellotape — it was always his dream to be a published author. Although he has written for a number of games (Solipsist, Starblazer, Mindjammer), The Night Alphabet is his first published work of fiction.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
20 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Jason Bradley Thompson
    5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Fragments and Stories of Dreamlike Fantasy/ SF / Horror
    Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2021
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    26 beautifully written stories organized loosely alphabetically, "The Night Alphabet" is most of all dreamlike -- some stories are literally about dreams or parallel realities, while others *feel* like snippets from a dream diary, vignettes that go on just as long as they have to.

    The shorter stories read like descriptions of symbolist paintings: the man who feeds milk to the Wind, the girl who collects other people's memories in the form of seaweed on the beach, or "Rain City," a vision of an ephemeral city contained in a drop of falling water. Other stories flesh out the encounter with the unreal in more whimsy and detail: invisible dogs, mythical Salamanders kept as pets, world-saving cats (a story told from the cat's perspective). The longer stories range from science fiction to fantasy to horror: the Ballardian apocalypses of "The Persistence of Memory", "The Vanishing World" and "The Green" (in which the world is transformed into a carnivorous jungle); the whimsy of "Mr. Martello and the Cloud Castle" or the cheerfully silly "My Powerstation Wife"; or nightmare horror, as in "The Gap," "Solomon's Gate" and many others.

    In short, this is a great collection that establishes Donachie as a fantasy writer to look out for (since fantasy is as close a genre as this comes to). I wish, like in Dr. Seuss's "On Beyond Zebra", there were 26 more letters.
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  • E Will Do
    5.0 out of 5 stars A vivid assortment of fantasy and SciFi gems exploring and blurring the lines between dream and reality.
    Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2018
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    This is a must-have for lovers of SciFi and fantasy short fiction. Donachie evokes emotion with great skill, leaving readers emotionally invested in his characters. His stories are imaginative, insightful, and very relatable, allowing readers to easily fall into the worlds he paints so vividly and eloquently. Readers can identify with the characters, scenarios and conflicts in these stories. His skill at crafting other worlds and dreamscapes is on par with such great authors as Asimov, L'Engle, Heinlein and Vonnegut. Buy this book, and get ready to dream.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Kate Robinson
    5.0 out of 5 stars An Alphabetical Compendium of Dreamlike Tales
    Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2018
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    David Donachie amazes and delights with this collection of 26 evocative magical realist, slipstream, dark fantasy, and other fantasy-genre short stories - one for each letter of the alphabet. While some of the stories may have improved had he fleshed them out past their narrative form, the lyrical prose and magnetic situations,similar to the work of masters such as Ray Bradbury and Haruki Murakami, save the day. My favorite is Z is for Zugzwang: The Detective, a metafictive noir tale with Twilight Zone overtones.
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  • Leslie "The Upstream Writer"
    5.0 out of 5 stars David Donachie 100% Understood The Assignment!
    Reviewed in the United States on September 28, 2021
    Format: Kindle
    Donachie does very well with setting the stage for each story. With a few deft sentences, the reader gets a sense of whether this story is going to be creepy, pleasant, mystical, comical, or just plain ordinary. There were a handful that made my skin crawl with their vivid descriptions of horrific creatures and scenarios--but that just means that fans of horror stories will likely relish the same sensation as they read! Reading the whole collection straight through, I saw a few instances of name-borrowing, even character-hopping, as a character from one story shows up in another... but what author hasn't borrowed from past stories as they create new ones?

    I have done an A-to-Z challenge before, and while on the one hand, coming up with 26 distinct and unique stories sounds like a daunting challenge, Donachie meets the challenge with unfettered inspiration, coming up with terms for each letter of the alphabet that range from mundane to esoteric--and each story centers around the concept used with admirable skill. Out of 26 stories, there was not one that I didn't at least find intriguing, and four that stand out as thoroughly enjoyable! In particular, my top 4 favorite stories were the ones for the letters F, J, W, and Y.
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  • Joshua Grant
    5.0 out of 5 stars A great and varied collection of short stories!
    Reviewed in the United States on August 17, 2019
    Format: Kindle
    What exactly are dreams and why do we have them? David Donachie answers this and more in his creative, mysterious, terrifying, and intriguing collection of short stories The Night Alphabet. Each story was written in its own diverse style and covered everything from ghosts to aliens to even floating castles. I loved the variety and just getting to see what would roll off Donachie’s pen next! Check this one out next time you’re experiencing a bit of insomnia and looking for something interesting to dream about!
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  • Jaysen S Headley
    5.0 out of 5 stars An anthology of things that go bump in the night
    Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2018
    Format: Paperback
    A fantastic collection of bite size short stories. Just about every single one leaves you wanting more. Some are incredibly high concepts that made me wish we could have a whole book to explore it. The Night Alphabet is an anthology of things that go bump in the night and even the stories that are super short manage to create a haunting sort of ambiance and mood as you read them. Great to binge read or as a "one a day" read. I, for one, cannot wait to see what else David dreams up in his next book!
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  • william glidden
    5.0 out of 5 stars great imagination at work drawing in the reader
    Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2018
    Format: Kindle
    This book of 26 short stories, one for each letter in the alphabet, evidences a wonderful imagination at work. Some of the stories are a bit scary, some are sad, some are humorous, and all have interesting lead characters. I found myself trying to predict an outcome part way through a story, an evidence that the author has captured me for the moment.
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  • Amy's Bookshelf Reviews
    4.0 out of 5 stars Great collection!
    Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2018
    Format: Kindle
    There are 26 short stories in this collection, (one for every letter in the alphabet) all from the grand imagination of the author, Donachie. He tackles a range of topics and each one is interesting and delves into the fantasy of the dream world. I enjoyed reading each story, all piquing my interest. I bet it was as fun to write as it was for me to read. I look forward to reading more of his work in the future. My favorite was "Q" for "The Quarry".

    I received this book free in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. ~Amy's Bookshelf Reviews
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Mel B
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very unique!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 20, 2018
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    This book is a very unique book consisting of 26 short stories that are dive deep into the worlds of fantasy, nightmares and dreams.
    The stories are all short which is nice, but some of these are an acquired taste and you really need to have an open mind to fully appreciate the writers enthusiasm.
    The stories are well written and thought out and the author also makes use of very deep and powerful imagery which only adds to the intensity of each story.
    Guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat!
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  • Luke Slater
    5.0 out of 5 stars An alphabetical smorgasbord
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 11, 2018
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    The Night Alphabet, a collection of twenty-six short stories on a loose theme of dreamed inspiration. There's a broad range of works on offer here, from the Gaimanesque whimsy of 'Mr Martello and the Cloud Castle' to the Lovecraftian horror of 'Solomon's Gate' or 'The Gap', to more distinctly unique chapters such as 'The Cherry Tree' and 'The Sandwich Thief'. The bad news is that this means that few readers will get on with every story in the book, but the good news is that is that - unlike with, say, Lovecraft himself - there is no danger of tedium setting in, and that there is something for most palates within. Some of the stories are very short, others a little bit longer, and the writing it strong throughout, even in the simplest works. Generically, the book is broadly described as horror, although 'dark fantasy' is probably more apt, with only a few of the stories slipping into full-blown chiller mode.
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  • Michel Flor-Henry
    5.0 out of 5 stars "The Night Alphabet" heralds the arrival of a brilliant new 'man of letters' (
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 28, 2018
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    "The Night Alphabet" heralds the arrival of a brilliant new 'man of letters' (!) . . .
    . . . this is an intensely lovely book, full of vivid imaginings from the liminal zone between wakefulness and sleep, full
    of deeply compelling visual imagery and quirky narrative . . . The best book of fiction I've bought in recent years.
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  • Christian Jones
    5.0 out of 5 stars Superb debut
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 22, 2018
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    A confession: I love short stories, with their instant hit for the imagination and the ability to pick up and go when the rare opportunity to read for pleasure arises. This wonderful debut from David Donachie doesn't disappoint on either measure. Donachie's writing is vivid and superbly crafted, with these stories being fantastically creative, yet varied. Bravo!
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  • KayG
    5.0 out of 5 stars Well worth a look
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 15, 2018
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I was amazed at the strange and compelling stories Donachie created in this collection. He does an excellent job of evoking the weirdness of dreaming, coupling it with mystery, horror, or bittersweet joy in scarily effective ways.

    The stories are nice and short, perfect if you're not looking to get entrenched in a long narrative - though I'd hesitate to read them right before bed!
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