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The Dyke and the Dybbuk
Dybbuk Kokos, a feisty soul-stealing demon of medieval Jewish folklore, has been trapped in a tree for two hundred years. When lightning strikes and Kokos is released, she finds herself in the world of the 20th century -- as the disgruntled employee of the multinational corporation, Mephistco. In order to keep her job and fulfill an ancient curse, Kokos must hunt down the descendant of the woman she was instructed to haunt centuries ago. No easy task, as that descendant happens to be Rainbow Rosenbloom -- London taxi-driver, film critic, lesbian, and niece to a pack of formidable aunts.
As the hilarious tale unfolds, both Rainbow and her dybbuk discover that History still holds a few tricks up her sleeve.
As the hilarious tale unfolds, both Rainbow and her dybbuk discover that History still holds a few tricks up her sleeve.
248 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
22 people are currently reading
1532 people want to read
About the author
Ellen Galford
33 books19 followersEllen Galford is a Scottish writer of fiction and nonfiction.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews
February 10, 2017
Review originally appeared in The Lesbrary. Ellen Galford’s The Dyke and the Dybbuk is, for only being eighteen years old, fairly iconic and hallowed in the tiny subgenre in which I spend most of my writing time. In other words, it may very well be the first great piece of sapphic Jewish fantasy. If I’m wrong, I’d love to know about more! In any case, it was a pleasure to read–sarcastic, sardonic, hopeful, enthusiastic, both a love story to our culture and a sharp criticism of some of its more tiresome features.
The initial premise stems from a trope some people may find painful, but is all too realistic thanks to the way society overwhelmingly pressures cis women to marry cis men. Namely, two young women in historical Jewish Eastern Europe are in love, until one of them leaves to marry a man. The jilted woman (herself somewhat of an outcast for her mixed parentage) responds by cursing the bride with demon possession. Thus enter our “what if Loki was a lesbian” demon, the hilarious–and also sapphic–dybbuk of the title. But she winds up imprisoned in a tree instead of being able to haunt the married woman and her daughters and granddaughters per the curse’s instructions, so it isn’t until the ninth generation of offspring that she gets a chance to escape and begin her assignment.
And this ninth generation is a British lesbian film critic who drives a taxi for her day job.
Rainbow Rosenbloom’s more at odds with her Judaism than I am, but, firstly, the book was written in an earlier generation, and secondly, there are pretty much twice as many ways to be Jewish as there are actual Jews in the world. I am confident that her experiences accurately reflect many other people’s relationship with their Jewishness. She’s surrounded by paternal aunts and she’s over-aware of the ways her preference for women—as well as her self-chosen first name, and also eating treyf–puts her in direct opposition to the way they want her to live.
The dybbuk decides that Rainbow’s already weird enough and has already maxed out ‘acting out’, so she can’t possibly make her look any weirder by ordinary possession. Therefore, she decides as her project she’s going to give Rainbow a massive crush on–Riva, a married Orthodox woman with six children! So suddenly, she’s super interested in her faith in a way she never was before (the irony being that it’s only because of a demon’s influence.) In comes an intense crush that I totally recognized from various straight girls I’ve crushed on.
Now, I have a soft spot for pious women, so like the sucker I am, I did fall hook line and sinker for the Rainbow/Riva ‘ship in this book. Spoiler warning: the author went somewhere else, but that’s okay. The book does deliver happy f/f endings, and even the demon herself gets to have some fun.
As far as the issue of how the book made me feel as a bisexual woman — the line “trendy bisexual” was used at one point in dialogue, but I do feel like any criticism of bi women’s choices was intended as unreliable narrator because from what I can remember it’s followed up with a reminder that they don’t actually know if the olden-days bride was bi or if she just married a man to appease cultural traditions which is extremely possible, given the circumstances. I beg of those reading this review to please be gentle with me if your experiences lead you to feel differently, because the week after I read the book my spouse ended our thirteen year relationship and so 1. I am not particularly able to hold my own in discourse at the moment and 2. I am writing this a month after reading the book and after a considerable amount of pain, so my memory isn’t perfect.
Either way, if you’re a Jewish woman who likes women, it’s worth checking out even if you aren’t a fan of spec fic. The speculative elements are lighthearted and easy to process–among themselves, the demons’ society is a parody of modern corporate culture and office politics. It’s out of print right now but worldcat.org has it listed in libraries all over the place, and I had no trouble getting a hold of it through interlibrary loan, so if you don’t mind using the system—and plenty of librarians told me that using a library actually helps libraries and isn’t a strain on them at all—it should be relatively easy. Besides, used copies are not hard to find.
Content warning: I have vague memories of there being the g-slur (for Rromani) in there someplace.
The initial premise stems from a trope some people may find painful, but is all too realistic thanks to the way society overwhelmingly pressures cis women to marry cis men. Namely, two young women in historical Jewish Eastern Europe are in love, until one of them leaves to marry a man. The jilted woman (herself somewhat of an outcast for her mixed parentage) responds by cursing the bride with demon possession. Thus enter our “what if Loki was a lesbian” demon, the hilarious–and also sapphic–dybbuk of the title. But she winds up imprisoned in a tree instead of being able to haunt the married woman and her daughters and granddaughters per the curse’s instructions, so it isn’t until the ninth generation of offspring that she gets a chance to escape and begin her assignment.
And this ninth generation is a British lesbian film critic who drives a taxi for her day job.
Rainbow Rosenbloom’s more at odds with her Judaism than I am, but, firstly, the book was written in an earlier generation, and secondly, there are pretty much twice as many ways to be Jewish as there are actual Jews in the world. I am confident that her experiences accurately reflect many other people’s relationship with their Jewishness. She’s surrounded by paternal aunts and she’s over-aware of the ways her preference for women—as well as her self-chosen first name, and also eating treyf–puts her in direct opposition to the way they want her to live.
The dybbuk decides that Rainbow’s already weird enough and has already maxed out ‘acting out’, so she can’t possibly make her look any weirder by ordinary possession. Therefore, she decides as her project she’s going to give Rainbow a massive crush on–Riva, a married Orthodox woman with six children! So suddenly, she’s super interested in her faith in a way she never was before (the irony being that it’s only because of a demon’s influence.) In comes an intense crush that I totally recognized from various straight girls I’ve crushed on.
Now, I have a soft spot for pious women, so like the sucker I am, I did fall hook line and sinker for the Rainbow/Riva ‘ship in this book. Spoiler warning: the author went somewhere else, but that’s okay. The book does deliver happy f/f endings, and even the demon herself gets to have some fun.
As far as the issue of how the book made me feel as a bisexual woman — the line “trendy bisexual” was used at one point in dialogue, but I do feel like any criticism of bi women’s choices was intended as unreliable narrator because from what I can remember it’s followed up with a reminder that they don’t actually know if the olden-days bride was bi or if she just married a man to appease cultural traditions which is extremely possible, given the circumstances. I beg of those reading this review to please be gentle with me if your experiences lead you to feel differently, because the week after I read the book my spouse ended our thirteen year relationship and so 1. I am not particularly able to hold my own in discourse at the moment and 2. I am writing this a month after reading the book and after a considerable amount of pain, so my memory isn’t perfect.
Either way, if you’re a Jewish woman who likes women, it’s worth checking out even if you aren’t a fan of spec fic. The speculative elements are lighthearted and easy to process–among themselves, the demons’ society is a parody of modern corporate culture and office politics. It’s out of print right now but worldcat.org has it listed in libraries all over the place, and I had no trouble getting a hold of it through interlibrary loan, so if you don’t mind using the system—and plenty of librarians told me that using a library actually helps libraries and isn’t a strain on them at all—it should be relatively easy. Besides, used copies are not hard to find.
Content warning: I have vague memories of there being the g-slur (for Rromani) in there someplace.
September 5, 2024
Very very witty fiction from Ellen Galford. This had me cackling along to the story of Rainbow the London cabbie dyke and her own "disgraced" dybbuk.
A highly imaginative and original story with some great meaty characters including the feisty interfering Jewish aunties!
Classic 5 star fiction.
A highly imaginative and original story with some great meaty characters including the feisty interfering Jewish aunties!
Classic 5 star fiction.
January 3, 2009
One of my all-time favorite books -- I re-read it once a year or so. Whimsical weaving together of Judaism and lesbian culture. Always makes me laugh out loud as the Dybbuk increasingly takes over the main character's life. I think it's out of print now -- wish it weren't!
October 31, 2021
As a queer Jew, I've never felt so catered to in my life. While I do think this outlandish story would pique anyone's interest, there were scores of details, and oh-so-very specific jokes that won me over, even when things got a little convoluted. Kokos the Dybbuk is a delicious narrator who, despite being stuck in a tree for a two hundred years, has astute political commentary - constantly blowing my mind that this book was published in 1993 (the year I was born!) when it feels so contemporary. And while the whole demons climbing the corporate ladder schtick is a little overdone now, that probably wasn't the case in the 90s. So props to Galford for writing what feels to me a timeless book; one that I can't wait to share with my lefty, queer, Jewish friends.
May 23, 2021
For years I have been saying to anyone who'll listen that the dybbuk is a perfect vehicle to explore gay/trans themes. Imagine my delight, then, to learn that a lesbian dybbuk novel was already written almost 30 years ago. And even better, it's outrageously funny and impossible to put down. If the title doesn't already pique your curiosity then I guess some of the humor might not land quite as well for you. But for me, this was one of the best novels I've read in a long time.
You could situate this book by saying: take The Master and Margarita but make it gay, and Jewish, and make the social farce about late-20th century capitalism rather than Soviet bureaucracy. But there's an even deeper change you have to make because while Bulgakov exposed the ways that humans behave demonically to one another, Galford lets demons have their own humanity. That's shown of course by making the titular dybbuk the narrator for the story. Her snarky, sharp tone (and the fact that she's an enthusiastic agent of evil) does not feel in contradiction to the compassion and warmness that she feels for the Jewish people and community who are her special victims.
That's not just an interesting narrative choice as a question of literary style, but it helps thematically show the connection between the hated outsider status of demons, Jews and queers. As Kokos remarks at one point (commenting on another character telling stories about Jews banishing demons):
"Has our charming storyteller forgotten that, once upon a time, the Christian world made no distinction between Jews and demons -- knowing both had horns?"
Conveniently, Kokos also has access to the thoughts of her victim Rainbow Rosenbloom (the other titular character). Thus we know, and the writing makes it easy to believe, that the kinship (coalition?) between those categories can be appreciated from both/all sides, even if warily and never resulting in a total loss of differentiation.
While the main story follows Kokos and Rainbow in contemporary (now slightly past) London, parallel plots are happening at Mephistco (Kokos' demonic megacorp employer) and in the shtetl where Rainbow's many-great-grandmother came from. At a breezy 250 pages, the novel does a nice job knitting those stories together and giving the space and pacing to let each one have its own style and charm. The satire of capitalism at Mephistco is delightful and so is the very Jewish family squabbling of Rainbow and the Rosenbloom aunts, but balancing them tonally so well is a real accomplishment. If I'm critical of anything, I would say it's just in the last act and denoument of the book where this feels a little rushed, and neither the dramatic sex-and-guns-and-magic finale in England, or the corporate drama in the Unseen World, get quite enough time to play out in as much detail as we would like to see. (Or maybe I was just hungry to read more about these characters by then?)
Some favorite bits:
* Rainbow and her Jewish dyke friend recovering from the ordeal of a family seder by eating the most treyf-y meal in London.
* The amused, sometimes mocking, but also compassionate descriptions of the Limnititzker Jews (past and present)
* Kokos responding to a threat against Jews overriding Rainbow's "liberal guilt" and enacting, literally, baroque Yiddish curses on the offending mortals
* Lil and Nick Thumb, Kokos' besties (and sometimes enemies) at the corporate wilderness of Mephistco
In short, I'm delighted to have stumbled across this book. No book has made me laugh so hard in a long time and I know this is one I'll come back to. If any part of this review is intriguing then you should definitely give the book a read. You won't regret it!
You could situate this book by saying: take The Master and Margarita but make it gay, and Jewish, and make the social farce about late-20th century capitalism rather than Soviet bureaucracy. But there's an even deeper change you have to make because while Bulgakov exposed the ways that humans behave demonically to one another, Galford lets demons have their own humanity. That's shown of course by making the titular dybbuk the narrator for the story. Her snarky, sharp tone (and the fact that she's an enthusiastic agent of evil) does not feel in contradiction to the compassion and warmness that she feels for the Jewish people and community who are her special victims.
That's not just an interesting narrative choice as a question of literary style, but it helps thematically show the connection between the hated outsider status of demons, Jews and queers. As Kokos remarks at one point (commenting on another character telling stories about Jews banishing demons):
"Has our charming storyteller forgotten that, once upon a time, the Christian world made no distinction between Jews and demons -- knowing both had horns?"
Conveniently, Kokos also has access to the thoughts of her victim Rainbow Rosenbloom (the other titular character). Thus we know, and the writing makes it easy to believe, that the kinship (coalition?) between those categories can be appreciated from both/all sides, even if warily and never resulting in a total loss of differentiation.
While the main story follows Kokos and Rainbow in contemporary (now slightly past) London, parallel plots are happening at Mephistco (Kokos' demonic megacorp employer) and in the shtetl where Rainbow's many-great-grandmother came from. At a breezy 250 pages, the novel does a nice job knitting those stories together and giving the space and pacing to let each one have its own style and charm. The satire of capitalism at Mephistco is delightful and so is the very Jewish family squabbling of Rainbow and the Rosenbloom aunts, but balancing them tonally so well is a real accomplishment. If I'm critical of anything, I would say it's just in the last act and denoument of the book where this feels a little rushed, and neither the dramatic sex-and-guns-and-magic finale in England, or the corporate drama in the Unseen World, get quite enough time to play out in as much detail as we would like to see. (Or maybe I was just hungry to read more about these characters by then?)
Some favorite bits:
* Rainbow and her Jewish dyke friend recovering from the ordeal of a family seder by eating the most treyf-y meal in London.
* The amused, sometimes mocking, but also compassionate descriptions of the Limnititzker Jews (past and present)
* Kokos responding to a threat against Jews overriding Rainbow's "liberal guilt" and enacting, literally, baroque Yiddish curses on the offending mortals
* Lil and Nick Thumb, Kokos' besties (and sometimes enemies) at the corporate wilderness of Mephistco
In short, I'm delighted to have stumbled across this book. No book has made me laugh so hard in a long time and I know this is one I'll come back to. If any part of this review is intriguing then you should definitely give the book a read. You won't regret it!
July 24, 2015
I originally read this book in the mid-90's and loved it, but had a somewhat condescending attitude toward it, thinking of it almost as "fluff" and even "outdated" shortly after it was written. After re-reading it now, I'm surprised by my reaction. I think the only real problem with this book is its title, which probably has limited its readership. Although I can't come up with a great title, some possibilities might be "The dybbuk's dilemma" or "The troublesome legacy of Gittel and Anya."
This book is not only hilarious and tender, but is well-written and learned. The plot and characters are extremely well-developed, and the concept of an ambivalent, flawed dybbuk who loves the cinema is priceless. This book is a treasure which I will hopefully not wait another twenty years to re-read.
This book is not only hilarious and tender, but is well-written and learned. The plot and characters are extremely well-developed, and the concept of an ambivalent, flawed dybbuk who loves the cinema is priceless. This book is a treasure which I will hopefully not wait another twenty years to re-read.
November 30, 2021
don’t want to be dramatic but this is probably one of my favorite books of all time now
February 6, 2022
this was a delight ! i am delighted !
August 11, 2024
i love lesbians! i love dybbuks! i love london!
August 14, 2017
I understand why the ending was what it was but it didn't quite work for me. There was something lacking about anya. But otherwise, a delight.
August 18, 2025
loving this goofy narration
February 2, 2021
“Beloved, this may be news to you. To your Aunt Becky, you’re Jewish. To your old Rabbi Whatsisface, you are - just possibly - still Jewish. To Hitler and his henchmen, may their memory be cursed in all the languages of the world, you’d be Jewish. And, to me, of course, you are - or wouldn’t be here to begin with - Jewish.”
The Dyke and the Dybbuk is a 1993 satirical novel which explores contemporary Judaism and Jewishness. It is heavily influenced by Jewish folklore. The narrative is told from the perspective of an ancient dybbuk, a demonic possessing spirit, who returns to haunt a modern-day London lesbian.
It was a good change - not to mention important to me - to read a book which explored my cultural heritage in a context outside of Antisemitism, such as the Holocaust and Pogroms. Being raised in a family of lapsed Jews, as well as having my own issues with orthodox attitudes towards gender roles and sexuality, I’m glad to have discovered a piece of LGBT Jewish fiction which... I’ll admit, makes me feel less of a bad Jew!
I’ve seen other reviews compare the style of Galford’s writing to Gaiman and Pratchett. I would say that’s a pretty fair comparison! I’m a little sad to see that this was her last published novel, but if I can keep my TBR pile in check, I’m tempted to give her earlier works a go at some point in the future. She’s definitely made it on my radar for Queer Fiction!
The Dyke and the Dybbuk is a 1993 satirical novel which explores contemporary Judaism and Jewishness. It is heavily influenced by Jewish folklore. The narrative is told from the perspective of an ancient dybbuk, a demonic possessing spirit, who returns to haunt a modern-day London lesbian.
It was a good change - not to mention important to me - to read a book which explored my cultural heritage in a context outside of Antisemitism, such as the Holocaust and Pogroms. Being raised in a family of lapsed Jews, as well as having my own issues with orthodox attitudes towards gender roles and sexuality, I’m glad to have discovered a piece of LGBT Jewish fiction which... I’ll admit, makes me feel less of a bad Jew!
I’ve seen other reviews compare the style of Galford’s writing to Gaiman and Pratchett. I would say that’s a pretty fair comparison! I’m a little sad to see that this was her last published novel, but if I can keep my TBR pile in check, I’m tempted to give her earlier works a go at some point in the future. She’s definitely made it on my radar for Queer Fiction!
May 22, 2020
I think the comparison's already been made in the other reviews, but this book is a bit like if Terry Pratchett or Neil Gaiman wrote a Jewish lesbian romcom. The story is written from the point of view of a dybbuk (a demon from Jewish lore) who has attached herself to a London taxi driver/film critic in fulfilment of an old family curse. It's a fun, light read and I learnt a lot of Yiddish words (my favourite is tsatskeleh, which means bimbo).
August 7, 2020
FIVE STARS: I look forward to when it's time to read this one again.
I WILL ADMIT, I got a little thrown by the choice of narrator and how her perspective shaped my perception -- those last hundred pages, man, I was bobbing and weaving, I was thrown wondering how it would end and that never happens to me.
But this? This was charming in ever way. Gosh. I laughed, I adored, I even teared up in spots. What a gorgeous book.
I WILL ADMIT, I got a little thrown by the choice of narrator and how her perspective shaped my perception -- those last hundred pages, man, I was bobbing and weaving, I was thrown wondering how it would end and that never happens to me.
But this? This was charming in ever way. Gosh. I laughed, I adored, I even teared up in spots. What a gorgeous book.
May 14, 2024
LOOOOOOVED!!! I feel I have so much to say but no words to describe. I’ve never read a book quite like this. A hilarious and funny book that feels like a love letter to community. Jewish, gay, and all that overlaps. I’m gonna think about this book for the rest of my life.
July 20, 2022
Ancestral longing, benkshaft, demonic romance and an incredibly satisfying ending.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 17, 2023
top 10 of all time i feel
February 9, 2024
This absolute gem had me laughing out loud and is as smart as it is funny.
August 22, 2025
I wanted to like it more than I did…it was silly and weird and at some point like 60% of the way through I wanted to know what would happen at the end but I didn’t feel super connected with any of the characters…I liked who ended up with Rainbow at the end and also I wish there had been a bit more development or explanation but I guess it did the job of a satire??? Corporate dybbukry anyone?
August 18, 2023
I liked the book until the ending. The book was very interesting and I found myself wanting to read more and more. I loved how gay it was and I enjoyed learning a bit about Jewish culture and lore. But the ending was not my cup of tea. Rainbow falls in love too quickly and it annoyed me. The whole book she is obsessed with Riva and then as soon as Anya admits her feelings she is in love with her. Even after Anya held her at gunpoint. She also completely forgot about Kokos at the drop of a hat even though they seemed to be becoming friends. I liked Kokos character though and I guess her decided to go into movies wasn't a horrible ending for her even though it was a bit strange to me as she seemed to like possessing people.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 4, 2023
Really great portrayal of Jewish women, both older and contemporary generations. I enjoyed the dialogue of traditional Judaism versus more lax contemporary practices. I enjoyed the references to culture and tradition.
Slow paced - couldn't decide if I enjoyed the narration stye or not, too many references - most of the dialogue and scenes seemed unimportant
Slow paced - couldn't decide if I enjoyed the narration stye or not, too many references - most of the dialogue and scenes seemed unimportant
February 19, 2023
This book was hilarious. I started reading it only because it was assigned to me for a class, but i quickly fell in love. Galford expertly weaves Jewish folklore with corporate nonsense and questions of identity. Having read S.Ansky’s “The Dybbuk,” and several other dybbuk tales, I found it really interesting to read a novel from the perspective of the dybbuk itself (a feminist one nonetheless).
March 13, 2008
funny little fantastic story. espcially for the Jews. especially, especially for the Jew dykes!
July 23, 2008
I loved this book. It was one of the first lesbian books I read.
July 18, 2015
I love this book! Reread it this summer and it was just as good as when I first read it. I wish Ellen Galford wrote MORE books. Love her work!
March 10, 2017
Excellent! A must read. Helps if you have a good Jewish background knowledge: more "zaftig".
June 18, 2020
I found this book in a charity shop in the middle of nowhere in Scotland and had to buy it. I wish everyone could read it.
January 8, 2021
buying all of my friends a copy of this book because i need them all to read it
Read
September 2, 2021ME AND ME
October 10, 2022
Exactly what I needed right now. It's quick and witty, with a thread of anger at society running steady behind everything. It's just- it's all so smart and funny and grouchy and I loved it so much.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews