6 ratings | 7 reviews | avg rating:4.50

David’s Year In Books

David’s 2024 Year in Books

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N. Moss

874 books | 494 friends

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152 books | 9 friends

Jacob Appel

417 books | 2,996 friends

Mia Siegert

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Robin Helweg-Larsen

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David Galef

Goodreads Author

Born

New York, The United States

Website

https://davidgalef.com/

Twitter

dgalef

Genre

Fiction, Humor and Comedy, Fantasy

Member Since

April 2014

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I’ve published extremely short fiction in the collections Laugh Track and My Date with Neanderthal Woman (Dzanc Short Story Collection Prize), extremely long fiction in the novels Flesh, Turning Japanese, and How to Cope with Suburban Stress (Kirkus Best Books of the Year), and a lot in between. My latest is Brevity: A Flash Fiction Handbook, from Columbia University Press. Day job: professor of English and creative writing program director at Montclair State University. I’m also the editor in chief at Vestal Review, the longest-running flash fiction magazine on the planet.
@dgalef
https://davidgalef.com/
https://www.vestalreview.net/

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Combine Editions
David Galef’s books

Average rating: 3.86 · 1,453 ratings · 272 reviews · 37 distinct works • Similar authors

	Brevity: A Flash Fiction Handbook 3.92 avg rating — 149 ratings — 4 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
	Japanese Proverbs: Wit and Wisdom: 200 Classic Japanese Sayings and Expressions by David Galef (Goodreads Author), Jun Hashimoto (Illustrations) 3.76 avg rating — 126 ratings — published 2012 — 4 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
	Tracks by David Galef (Goodreads Author), Tedd Arnold (Illustrator) 4.06 avg rating — 67 ratings — published 1996 — 6 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
	Even Monkeys Fall from Trees: The Wit and Wisdom of Japanese Proverbs by David Galef (Goodreads Author), Jun Hashimoto (Illustrator) 3.68 avg rating — 38 ratings — published 1987 — 6 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
	My Date With Neanderthal Woman 4.44 avg rating — 16 ratings — published 2011 — 6 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
	Flesh 3.73 avg rating — 15 ratings — 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
	How to Cope With Suburban Stress 4.08 avg rating — 12 ratings — published 2006 — 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
	Where I Went Wrong 3.73 avg rating — 11 ratings — 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
	Even a Stone Buddha Can Talk: The Wit and Wisdom of Japanese Proverbs 2.79 avg rating — 14 ratings — published 2000	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
	Laugh Track really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2002 — 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

More books by David Galef…

David is Currently Reading

David Galef is currently reading

Trespassers at the Golden Gate: A True Account of Love, Murder, and Madness in Gilded-Age San Francisco

by Gary Krist (Goodreads Author)

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May 16, 2025 06:29AM

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David’s Recent Updates

David Galef rated a book liked it The Compound by Aisling Rawle	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
clean and tight and airless At first, I wished that the premise were more original, since this survival setup with an ever-diminishing group has been done and done, in so many different ways. I hoped for at least interesting prose, but the description ...more
Sep 18, 2025 12:03PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Compound by Aisling Rawle. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Compound by Aisling Rawle <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
David Galef made a comment on Sonnet: RHL, ‘An Observation’ " RHL never disappoints! "
May 16, 2025 06:30AM · see blog post
David Galef is starting Trespassers at the Golden Gate Trespassers at the Golden Gate: A True Account of Love, Murder, and Madness in Gilded-Age San Francisco by Gary Krist (Goodreads Author) progress:	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 16, 2025 06:29AM · like · see status · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Trespassers at the Golden Gate by Gary Krist. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Trespassers at the Golden Gate by Gary Krist <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
David Galef is currently reading Trespassers at the Golden Gate: A True Account of Love, Murder, and Madness in Gilded-Age San Francisco by Gary Krist (Goodreads Author)	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 16, 2025 06:29AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Trespassers at the Golden Gate by Gary Krist. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Trespassers at the Golden Gate by Gary Krist <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
David Galef rated a book it was amazing While Visiting Babette by Kat Meads	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
While Visiting Babette is one of the most perfect novellas I've ever read, starting with a woman accidentally locked inside a mental health facility with her cousin, Babette, who belongs there. Practically defines the term "quirky sensibility." Highl ...more
May 14, 2025 12:46PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of While Visiting Babette by Kat Meads. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — While Visiting Babette by Kat Meads <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
David Galef rated a book it was amazing The Fun Parts by Sam Lipsyte (Goodreads Author)	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
Sam Lipsyte's story collection The Fun Parts came out years ago, and I'm just sorry that I didn't get to it sooner. The Dungeons and Dragons story alone is worth the modest price of admission. Whip-smart and scathing, which I gotta say, is what I'm i ...more
Mar 29, 2025 01:20PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Fun Parts by Sam Lipsyte. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Fun Parts by Sam Lipsyte <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
David Galef has read Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke	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
Few books can put me in another world believably rather than just as a temporary escape from what's going on in mine, but Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell did it, with such a carefully worked-out background that I don't see why it couldn't be true. And ...more
Mar 29, 2025 01:20PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
David Galef rated a book it was amazing While Visiting Babette by Kat Meads	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
While Visiting Babette is one of the most perfect novellas I've ever read, starting with a woman accidentally locked inside a mental health facility with her cousin, Babette, who belongs there. Practically defines the term "quirky sensibility." Highl ...more
Mar 29, 2025 01:16PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of While Visiting Babette by Kat Meads. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — While Visiting Babette by Kat Meads <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
David Galef is now following Miriam Gershow's reviews
Nov 26, 2024 06:36PM · like
David Galef rated a book it was amazing Closer by Miriam Gershow (Goodreads Author)	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
Miriam Gershow's new novel, Closer, presents such a dynamic, absorbing, at times frighteningly intimate close-up of school life and beyond that at times it's hard to stop reading and reassure yourself that you're not enrolled at West High School and ...more
Nov 26, 2024 06:17PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Closer by Miriam Gershow. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Closer by Miriam Gershow <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">