70 ratings | 5 reviews | avg rating:4.94

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Deb Olin Unferth

Goodreads Author

Born

The United States

Website

https://www.debolinunferth.com

Genre

Literature & Fiction, Memoir, Contemporary

Member Since

February 2020

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Deb Olin Unferth is the author of six books, including the novel Barn 8 and the story collection Wait Till You See Me Dance. Her work has appeared in Harper’s, The Paris Review, Granta, Vice, NOON, the New York Times, and McSweeney’s. She has received a Guggenheim fellowship, a Creative Capital grant, three Pushcart Prizes, and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. An associate professor at the University of Texas in Austin, she also runs the Pen City Writers, a creative writing program at a penitentiary in southern Texas.

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Deb Olin Unferth’s books

Average rating: 3.65 · 7,210 ratings · 1,285 reviews · 26 distinct works • Similar authors

	Barn 8 3.51 avg rating — 3,120 ratings — published 2020 — 15 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Vacation 3.63 avg rating — 1,107 ratings — published 2008 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wait Till You See Me Dance 3.89 avg rating — 710 ratings — published 2017 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Revolution: The Year I Fell in Love and Went to Join the War 3.52 avg rating — 412 ratings — published 2011 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	I, Parrot: A Graphic Novel by Deb Olin Unferth (Goodreads Author), Elizabeth Haidle (Illustrator) 3.11 avg rating — 344 ratings — published 2017 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Minor Robberies really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 91 ratings — published 2007	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Likeable 3.66 avg rating — 77 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	PANK 5 4.23 avg rating — 26 ratings — published 2011	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Earth 7 4.21 avg rating — 19 ratings — expected publication 2026 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Happy Green Family 3.40 avg rating — 10 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Deb’s Recent Updates

Deb made a comment on Demetri’s review of Earth 7 " this is incredible -- you painted these gorgeous watercolors? I love them. "
Apr 25, 2026 08:47AM · see review
Deb and 4 other people liked Elizabeth's review of Earth 7: "A deeply human speculative fiction novel about the planet we live on and the vastness of space. The is smart science fiction for fans of Ursula LeGuin, Octavia Butler and Simon Jimenez. Uplifting and devastating in equal measure this is a book that r" Read more of this review »
Apr 25, 2026 08:45AM · see review
Deb and 1 other person liked Demetri's review of Earth 7: "Welcome to the Future – Please Place Your Body, Planet, and Feelings in Long-Term Storage In “Earth 7,” Deb Olin Unferth turns preservation culture into speculative comedy, romantic damage, and philosophical argument, all while keeping a wary eye on a" Read more of this review »
Apr 25, 2026 08:45AM · see review
Deb is now following Sarah Gerard and Demetri
Feb 25, 2026 09:14AM
Deb liked Uriel’s status update Uriel Perez has read Simple Passion
Feb 22, 2026 04:02PM
Deb rated a book it was amazing Dwelling by Emily Hunt Kivel	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Brilliant, hilarious, addictive reading. Beautiful storytelling, great energy. Very moving. Her first book, too, which is cool. A new voice. Feels very much in conversation with these dark times.
Feb 02, 2025 12:24PM · 7 likes · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Dwelling by Emily Hunt Kivel. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Dwelling by Emily Hunt Kivel <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Deb rated a book it was amazing The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 15, 2024 06:56AM · 3 likes · like
Deb rated a book it was amazing How Not to Kill Yourself: A Portrait of the Suicidal Mind by Clancy Martin	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 20, 2024 08:08AM · 2 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of How Not to Kill Yourself by Clancy Martin. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — How Not to Kill Yourself by Clancy Martin <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Deb rated a book it was amazing Split Tooth by Tanya Tagaq	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 04, 2024 03:11PM · like

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Quotes by Deb Olin Unferth (?)

“You know how it is to want something. Desire builds like a little house in your head and it sits there, half-constructed in your mind. Women who want children are this way. Artists are this way about pictures. It doesn't go away. You may forget for a few months but then it's back, the unfinished pieces of what you want.”
― Deb Olin Unferth, Vacation

10 likes

“Humans, we just hop out of things, off things. We splatter ourselves in inappropriate places. Because we have nothing to live for. Because we want to destroy what we can. Because we want to be something we can’t. Because we don’t really believe we can die.”
― Deb Olin Unferth, Vacation

tags: humans, life

7 likes

“It takes bravery to care for someone — no matter who he is or what made him, whether he is weak or walking or jumping out of windows. The risk involved is enormous.”
― Deb Olin Unferth, Vacation

6 likes

See all Deb Olin Unferth's quotes »

Polls

March BoTM Nominations ~ A Book On Animals ~ 1st Poll

Top 5 Books Move Onto Final Poll

Watership Down

by Richard Adams

11 votes, 31.4%

The Elephant Whisperer

by Lawrence Anthony

5 votes, 14.3%

The Art of Racing in the Rain

by Garth Stein

5 votes, 14.3%

The Perfect Horse: the Daring U.S. Mission to Rescue the Priceless Stallions Kidnapped by the Nazis

by Elizabeth Letts

4 votes, 11.4%

Holy Cow

by David Duchovny

3 votes, 8.6%

Where the Red Fern Grows

by Wilson Rawls

3 votes, 8.6%

Seabiscuit: An American Legend

by Laura Hillenbrand

2 votes, 5.7%

Rose in a Storm

by Jon Katz

1 vote, 2.9%

The Call of the Wild

by Jack London

1 vote, 2.9%

Barn 8

by Deb Olin Unferth

0 votes, 0.0%

35 total votes

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