Join me every other week as I talk to Jewish creators and clergy about what life might be like for us... in space! We'll explore the burning questions of Jewish life on an spaceship. Could Kohanim be allowed on the crew? How would you build a mikvah?
jewsinspace.substack.com (https://jewsinspace.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast)
In this episode of ‘Jews in Space,’ host Sarah Einstein converses with author Zeeva Bukai about her new book ‘The World Between,’ and her debut piece ‘The Anatomy of Exile,’ which was recently shortlisted for the Jewish Book Award. They delve into the themes and complexities of Bukai’s work, emphasizing the intricacies of Jewish life and identity, the dynamics of intercultural marriages, and the significance of secrets. Additionally, they discuss the conceptualization of a future Jewish community in space, and how cultural and linguistic diversity could be maintained. Bukai also shares readings from her novels, offering listeners a glimpse into her intricate storytelling.
00:00 Introduction and Author Praise
03:51 Discussing ‘The World Between’
10:04 Reading from ‘The World Between’
15:28 Exploring Themes and Characters
21:14 Discussing ‘The Anatomy of Exile’
32:43 The Burden of Secrets
34:08 Creating Dramatic Tension in Writing
35:18 Epistolary Novels and Their Unique Appeal
37:40 Reading from ‘The Anatomy of Exile’
40:49 The Importance of Pre-Orders
41:48 Envisioning Jewish Life Beyond Antisemitism
42:52 Cultural Preservation on a Jewish Ark Ship
44:14 The Fusion of Jewish Cultures in Israel
48:22 The Role of Language in Cultural Identity
54:26 Maintaining Cultural Traditions on the Ark Ship
55:07 Unique Seder Traditions
56:53 Concluding Thoughts
Preorder The World Between here:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-world-between-zeeva-bukai/2cd28fe78e55ed63?ean=9781953002679&next=t
Order The Anatomy of Exile here:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-anatomy-of-exile-a-novel-zeeva-bukai/593f26619d10e035?ean=9781953002464&next=t
Get full access to Jews in Space at jewsinspace.substack.com/subscribe (https://jewsinspace.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)
16 Dec 2025
Jews in Space: Season 2, Episode 1
In this episode of ‘Jews in Space,’ host Sarah Einstein engages in a thoughtful conversation with author Tom Balazs. They discuss his literary journey from social realism to speculative fiction and horror, explore the impact of writing within various genres, and reflect on the importance of speculative fiction in understanding the human condition. They contemplate the complexities of maintaining Jewish identity and tradition on an ark ship while considering which essential works of Jewish literature and legacy should accompany them on their journey. Together, they also emphasize resilience and creativity as core aspects of Jewish history and storytelling.
Read Tree Candles (https://www.feignlit.com/featured/tree-candles-by-thomas-p-balazs) by Tom Balazs.
00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction
00:27 Reflecting on Loss and Current Events
02:46 Discussing Writing and Speculative Fiction
04:10 Journey from Social Realism to Horror
11:40 Teaching Speculative Fiction
15:33 The Emissary and Jewish Vampires
16:36 Speculative Fiction and Jewish Tradition
17:42 Comic Books and Influences
22:59 Tree Candles and Parenting
25:10 Life on the Ark Ship
28:55 Debating Jewish Diversity in Space
31:58 Personal History: From Holocaust to Christianity
34:07 Rediscovering Judaism in Israel
34:50 The Importance of Jewish Stories Beyond the Holocaust
47:51 Building a Jewish Library for Space
54:27 Concluding Thoughts and Hanukkah Plans
Get full access to Jews in Space at jewsinspace.substack.com/subscribe (https://jewsinspace.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)
14 Nov 2025
How Jewish Practice Could Teach Us About AI
My research into AI lead me to a surprising conclusion… Jewish practice might actually give us the most effective model for thinking about how we, as end-users interested in keeping AI aligned with humanist values, might best engage with AI in our daily lives.
We’ll be back in December with new episodes talking with Jewish writers, creators, and scholars to think about what Jewish life might look like on an ark ship. Until then, Shabbat shalom, live long and prosper, and nano-nano!
Get full access to Jews in Space at jewsinspace.substack.com/subscribe (https://jewsinspace.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)
14 Jul 2025
Jews in Space, Season 1, Episode 2
Well, podcasting is a lot harder than writing. It’s taken so long to get this episode up because I kept trying to fix the audio, and have finally been told definitely that the audio isn’t fixable. Why is the audio worse this time than last time? Because I bought fancy equipment and software so it would be better, of course. From here on out, we3’re sticking with what works.
But here, what really matters is that you can hear Darlene P. Campos, author of the new book The Center of the Earth, which you can order here:
Bookshop.org (https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-center-of-the-earth/c881e03047102d8f?ean=9781955058285)Barnes & Noble (https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-center-of-the-earth-darlene-p-campos/1147493966?ean=9781955058285)Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Center-Earth-Darlene-P-Campos/dp/1955058288/)
Join me in celebrating both Darlene’s new book AND her recent conversion and bat mitzvah!
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21 May 2025
Rabbi Phil Cohen on A.I. and his novel Nick Bones Underground
Are you a Jewish writer, artist, or scholar? Would you like to be on the podcast? I would love to hear from you! Email me at jewsinspacepodcast@gmail.com and we’ll schmooze!
Join Rabbi Phil Cohen (https://philmcohen.net/about/) and me as we discuss A.I. and Jewish thought. Can A.I. become human? Could it be Jewish, either because it was built on the writings of a rebbe or because it (or, in this case, she) decided to convert? Should we look to A.I. that uses Jewish texts as its data for our new sages, or does real Jewish thought require human abilities A.I. doesn’t have, such as discernment? We will explore all this and more in the context of Phil’s novel, Nick Bones Underground. It’s a rollicking good read—half gumshoe adventure, half deeply considered questions on issues of Jewish thought in a science fictional New York—and I encourage you to pick it up! You can buy a physical copy here (https://bookshop.org/a/112090/9781633939226) or the ebook here (https://bookshop.org/a/112090/9781633939219). (And, of course, elsewhere.)
Thanks for joining us, and I’d love to hear what you think about the questions we raise and, of course, aren’t able to fully answer. Why? Because we’re Jews. Every answer to a question just leads to more questions… it’s one of our superpowers!
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8 May 2025
The History of Jewish Science Fiction
For this episode, I have asked the program Notebook LM to generate a two person discussion of the history of science fiction. This is ahead of a conversation I will be having with a rabbi who has written a fascinating novel in which an AI not only falls in love, but converts to Judaism! I promise that I won’t be using AI often, but it seems fitting with our idea of space travel because no doubt our ship will be assisted by AI systems.
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17 Mar 2025
Author Sarah Blake on Ark Ships and Life in Space
Shalom, mishpocha! Welcome to the first episode of Jews in Space, where I talk to Sarah Blake (https://blakesarah.com/), the author of several of my favorite books, about what life is like on an ark ship. She has two books that deal with this directly. The first, a collection of poems titled Let’s Not Live on Earth (https://bookshop.org/a/112090/9780819577665), includes an epic poem about life on just such a spaceship. She’s also written about Naamah (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FLXBG21?tag=randohouseinc7986-20), Noah’s wife, in a novel reimagining her life on the original ark. (Note: where possible, I’ll use links to Bookshop to support independent book sellers. When a book is not available through them, I will post a link to Amazon.) Join me while we talk about those books and what goes in to imagining life in the confined space of an ark ship!
As always, your support means a great deal. Subscribe to keep the podcast going and to allow me to pay our guests.
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24 Feb 2025
Will We Have Space Lasers?
A little bit more about my vision for this web series? Podcast? (Can someone PLEASE tell me what this is!) Now with subscriber comments turned on!
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17 Feb 2025
Welcome to the soft launch of Jews in Space!
Welcome to the soft launch of Jews in Space, a bi-weekly podcast in which I’ll talk to different Jewish creators, writers, artists, and clergy about what life would look like aboard an ark ship populated entirely by Jews! I hope you’ll join me on this science fictional exploration of mitzvot, minhag, and mishpocha in space…
Get full access to Jews in Space at jewsinspace.substack.com/subscribe (https://jewsinspace.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)
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