Author Topic: PC448:Shaina Rubin Keeps Her Head Under Circumstances Nobody Could Have Expected  (Read 5201 times)

Ocicat

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PodCastle 445: 448: Shaina Rubin Keeps Her Head Under Circumstances Nobody Could Have Expected

by Rebecca Fraimow

read by Barbara Krasnoff

A PodCastle original!

Rated PG.

People in our neighborhood are always saying what a pity it is that two such fine-looking people as my cousin Bluma and her husband have no children yet. I don’t see that they’re so fine-looking as all that. Still, I’ve often thought that if Bluma had a little bit more business of her own to worry about, she might have less time to waste getting into mine.

Click here to continue reading.

This story is the sequel to “Further Arguments in Support of Yudah Cohen’s Proposal to Bluma Zilberman,” which originally ran at Diabolical Plots and also ran on PodCastle.

Rebecca Fraimow is an author and archivist living in Boston.

Barbara Krasnoff has had stories appear in over 30 print and online publications. The most recent include Clockwork Phoenix 5, Space and Time, Abyss & Apex, Triptych Tales and Mythic Delirium. When not writing short stories, she works as Sr. Reviews Editor for Computerworld magazine; for fun, she publishes a captioned photo every weekday (in Twitter and Facebook) under the title Backstories.

Listen to this week’s PodCastle!
« Last Edit: January 17, 2017, 04:33:05 PM by Talia »



SpareInch

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Here I am again poked out of forum retirement to comment because I just have to.

I read Further Arguments in Diabolical Plots when Unblinking linked me to it on another forum in relation to something I had said about the Transgendered and Orthodox Judaism, (Some friction there, I'm afraid.) and I feel that context coloured my view of that story to its detriment. But thanks to Podcastle being the awesome full service podcast that it is, I have had the chance not only to hear a reading of Further Arguments, but also this story too, and have gained a much better idea of the world and characters we're dealing with.

Previously, I found Yudah to be just an opportunity to play with a stereotypical jewish Patriarchal voice, and his trans identity as just a convenient way to slip in a joke. Thanks to this story, and the chance to listen to it, I now love Yudah's distinctive personality as well as his quirky and distinctly unconventional family, and have a chance to see what being, in modern terms, a trans man really means for him and the sacrifices he has to make.

I can't help thinking though, that this new town won't know what hit it when Yudah turns up with his werewolf mother in law and part demon son.

I know we listeners are always issuing this peremptory command to the editors, but - MORE!

Fresh slush - Shot this morning in the Vale of COW


Unblinking

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Quite enjoyed seeing the followup to "Further Arguments", meeting more of the family, and exploring more of the fantastical world surrounding our characters.  Loved the narrative voice, and the narrative voice. 

Previously, I found Yudah to be just an opportunity to play with a stereotypical jewish Patriarchal voice, and his trans identity as just a convenient way to slip in a joke. Thanks to this story, and the chance to listen to it, I now love Yudah's distinctive personality as well as his quirky and distinctly unconventional family, and have a chance to see what being, in modern terms, a trans man really means for him and the sacrifices he has to make.

I'm glad this story shed a new light on the other story for you.  :)

FWIW, to me personally, I didn't read the trans identity as a convenient joke in the other one.  I thought the reveal was funny, but not in the sense of "haha, the rabbinical student is trans, how hilarious".  But rather, the oddly pragmatically flat way of revealing the identity as being probably the way I would least expect a trans identity to be revealed.

I really appreciate this story to find out that they did indeed end up together (which the other story never resolved), and to see that they are working it out.  I would also love to see more stories with these characters.



SpareInch

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Yes, I think that's a better reading of it. That's why I think I spoiled my understanding with the baggage I brought to my original reading.

Also, I loved the hints in this story that Shaina is gay. Or am I bringing my own preconceptions to bear again?

Fresh slush - Shot this morning in the Vale of COW


adrianh

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Loved this story. Loved the short. More please :-)



OldBaldGuy

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Omigosh- this kept me so thoroughly entertained on a long car trip this week!  I loved all the comparisons to the demonic as a measure of mundane irritations: the worst night of her life was sweeping cobwebs, weighing the advantages of eternal enslavement over listening to her cousin and spouse, a child's wail more terrible than the demon's... I loved the voice, I loved the narration, I loved that Shaina was talking to me.  I loved the trans spouse treated simply as himself and not a caricature (and in the previous story that he calls his rival for Bluma's affections a "blockhead" more than once).

So delightful.  I agree - more, please!

star light, star bright, first star I see tonight...


spidervet

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Delurking just to say how much I loved this story and its prequel. Though I was expecting Shaina's werewolf aunty to come leaping through the window



Devoted135

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I haven't heard the prequel (though it sounds awesome!) so this was my first experience with these characters. It was so great, and so Jewish, right down to the legal arguments to make the demon go away. Happy Chanukah!



Unblinking

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I haven't heard the prequel (though it sounds awesome!) so this was my first experience with these characters. It was so great, and so Jewish, right down to the legal arguments to make the demon go away. Happy Chanukah!

It's on the feed too, just as a miniature instead of a numbered feature episode.  :)




Devoted135

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I haven't heard the prequel (though it sounds awesome!) so this was my first experience with these characters. It was so great, and so Jewish, right down to the legal arguments to make the demon go away. Happy Chanukah!

It's on the feed too, just as a miniature instead of a numbered feature episode.  :)



Thank you!