In 1960s New Jersey, Andy's quiet life is upended by his mom's obsession with Rabbi Landy. Navigating quirky family, yeshiva life, and a sexy Talmud teacher, Andy's coming-of-age reveals humor, faith, and secrets in a sharp, moving tale.
Dan Meltz was raised in the low-rent reaches of Jersey, 16 minutes from Times Square. He's lived in New York City for fifty years. His stories have appeared in "CrossConnect," "Columbia Review" and the "Jewish Writing Project." His poems have appeared in "American Poetry Review," "Best New Poets 2012," " Jewish Quarterly," "Mudfish," "Salamander," "upstreet" and lots of other journals. He is a retired technical writer and teacher of Deaf young people. He has a B.A. from Columbia (no honors) with a major in English. His book of poems, "It Wasn't Easy to Reach You," was published by Trail to Table in 2025. "Rabbis of the Garden State" is his first novel. His longtime partner Mike Rendino is an award-winning playwright.