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Zines
The NewPages
Zine Rack
Number 31 (Posted Jan 10, 2006)
Zines Reviewed by Sean Stewart
 Action Jaywalker Comic Magazine
#’s 11-20
Okay, so either Benjamin has a skewed idea of what
a “giant-sized issue” might imply (12 pages?) or my copy is missing a
bunch of pages. These are random comics, and I mean really random, with
bizarre stoner humor that makes me think of the zine Detrimental
Information, which I’ve reviewed before in the Zine Rack. The
absurd appeal will probably be beyond quite a few readers, but for those
who connect, they will be pleased. I enjoyed reading this, mostly
because I liked imagining the writers exhaling giant bong hits and
exploding into fits of wrenching laughter as they came up with these
ridiculous “stories.” Features unforgettable characters such as the
Annoying Ghost, Jimmy the Last Dinosaur, DMX's parrot, and some nameless
talking dog. [5.5” x 8.5”, $2 cash or checks payable to SSO Press, SSO
Press, PO Box 2645, Olympia, WA 98507,
www.ssopress.com,
ssopress@hotmail.com]
 Art Bureau
#9
A nice supplement to the Art Bureau online art
gallery, this publication offers interviews, essays, and information on
featured artists. Included in this issue is artwork from Doram (painter
& illustrator based in British Columbia), Toon (New York mixed-media
artist, painter, and photographer), and Clif Whitehead (D.C.-based
illustrator/graphic artist). Also features a piece by Erik Lopez on his
gallery, Miami Art Lab. Inside pages are in black-and-white, with
plenty of well-reproduced artwork. This is a good use of the zine
medium to promote emerging artists. Recommended. [8.5” x 5.5”, ISSN
1548-7490, $3 US, $3 Can/Mex, $5 World, $9 US/Can for 3-issue sub, no
trades, Bert Benson, PO Box 225221, San Francisco, CA 94122,
www.artbureau.org,
bert@artbureau.org]
 Basic Paper Airplane
#1
July 2005
Yay, it’s a first issue that’s pretty damn good.
Cool paper airplane theme going on in the background. Some interesting
interviews: one with an officer of the law and one with a propagandist
named Zak Constantine. Joshua contributes a personal intro, a piece on
his involvement with SSO Press, and some random short fiction and
nonfiction bursts. A cool detail: he lists when and where each piece
was written. The included CD mix from Free Radio Olympia was good, but
a little too eclectic to prompt me to give it repeated listenings...would
probably make good background music at a party. Also includes a paper
airplane. Hope he keeps publishing this. [5.5” x 8.5”, $5 (includes CD
mix and paper airplane), cash or checks payable to SSO Press, SSO Press,
PO Box 2645, Olympia, WA 98507,
www.ssopress.com,
ssopress@hotmail.com]
 Boxcutter
10
Boxcutter has been reviewed a couple of
times already in past columns, but I think it’s worthy of another
review. Always thought-provoking and diverse in its content, this
little zine is a consistent good read. In this issue, editor Tomas
writes about his decision to get a vasectomy and what it means to him;
Hijack contributes a poem on family and aging; Ananda describes her
experiences as a stripper; Dashal’s letter calls Tomas out on his ideas
of “conscious and unconscious sex”; Shevek addresses the media’s misuse
of the term anarchy in describing New Orleans post-Katrina; Bay attacks
“neo-traveler-enthusiast hippies”; and Tomas grapples with being ashamed
of his veganism. If you haven’t seen an issue of Boxcutter yet,
I’d recommend this one, but really, they’re all good. [4.25” x 5.5”,
$1, c/o Tomas, 1636 Fairview St., Berkeley, CA 94703,
www.boxcutterzine.com,
boxcutterzine@riseup.net]
 Clip Tart
III
2006
When Susan Boren makes a zine, she doesn’t just
slap something together and put a couple of staples through it. Clip
Tart has become one of the most ambitious zine undertakings I’ve
seen in recent years. Susan’s full-color collages are beautiful and
provocative, and her choice of reprints (with contextual notes) shows
careful consideration and artful juxtaposition, prompting a desire to
read out beyond the pages of the zine. But one of the most wonderful
features is the expansive letters section, which illustrates what a
lively and intelligent community has developed around this zine, in
addition to adding a warm personal feel to the reader’s experience.
Susan dedicates this issue to “the gods and monsters that populate the
unknown, or more accurately, the strange, personal symbols we use to
represent them.” I know I felt my mind expanding as I read through
these pages, and I suspect you will, too. This is easily one of the
best zines out there these days. [8.5” x 11”, no price ($4-5?): Clip
Tart, PO Box 66512, Austin, TX 78766]
 Hello
What I find interesting about this little graphic
novella is the contrast between the hopefulness contained within the
title (and the last page) and the dreary futility of the rest of the
book. There is no dialogue in the story, but the images tell enough.
The tale begins in a bleak gray city where a lone character lives among
people at odds with each other, automatons traveling in a state of cold
unfeeling semi-life. Then she undergoes a transformation where her
heart overcomes her brain, literally overnight, and she wakes suddenly
flooded with color. As she roams the city, more color filters in, but
her brain, as it continues processing the negativity of the city,
struggles to imprison her heart again. Her heart swells stronger and
she cries hello to the world. It’s a sad tale of modern city life with
a tiny sliver of hope near the end. Impressively conceived. [5” x 7”,
$10, order online at
www.fayryu.com,
fay@fayryu.com]
 Prakalpana Quarterly Review
#20
2004
From what I can gather, Prakalpana is an
experimental literature movement in India, spearheaded in part by the
editor of this publication. The contents include a mixture of poetry,
prose, and photocopy art in both Bengali and English, by both Indian and
foreign writers. The two pieces I enjoyed the most were the personal
narrative entitled “I Don’t Know: Confessions of a Minor Poet” by Bibhu
Padhi; the experimental fiction piece “Aurora on the River Gour,” which
bordered on inaccessible at times but was interesting nonetheless; and
the unorthodox travel journal “American Ediary” by U.S. expatriate poet
Madison Morrison. As I read through the English parts of the zine, I
first thought that it was just poorly translated in places, but then I
realized that some of it was probably deliberate, as it became clear
that the experimental writers were playing with language. This would
perhaps be most completely enjoyed by readers of Bengali, as at least
one-quarter of the content is in that language, although it’s impossible
for me to tell if these are just Bengali versions of the English
pieces. Fans of experimental literature would probably also be
interested. [5.5” x 8.5”, in India: Rs. 100/1- for one issue each of
Kobisena (a related poetry zine) and Prakalpana; overseas: 6 IRCs for
sample copy of Prakalpana, 3 IRCs for sample of Kobisena; contact:
Vattacharja Chandan, Editor, Kobisena/Prakalpana Literature, P40 Nandana
Park, kokata 700034, W.B., India; Western representative:
Jessica Manack, PO Box 10203, Pittsburgh PA
15232; prakalpana.tripod.com (offline when I checked it);
prakalpana@gmail.com]
 Smelling Trees
#1
2004
Another respectable first
issue, Smelling Trees offers fiction, both realistic and science,
and some nice black-and-white photography in a classy newsprint digest
format. The first story was pretty good; it had an authentic
first-person voice. My favorite piece was “The Writer Who Does Not
Read,” which has this whole fictitious historical background built up
around it...very convincing and entertaining. Sinoun plans to continue
this story, which I think is a fine idea, as it seems ideal for
serialization. The science fiction didn’t appeal to me, not that it
wasn’t written well because I think it was decent, but because my taste
in this genre runs really narrow. I enjoyed the photos, especially the
collage near the middle of the zine, which also has some intriguing bits
of prose scattered through it. This is free, so you have no excuse not
to drop Sinoun a line and request a copy. Definitely a well-produced
first effort. [5.5” x 8.5”, free, 2090A Hwy 317 #239, Suwanee, GA
30024,
x@smellingtrees.com]
 Trunk
Stories
#3
November 2005
The illustration on the cover makes opening this
zine an appealing notion. Once inside, I found the writing on its pages
to be equal in quality to that found in more slickly produced literary
journals. What you get is six pieces of fiction, two pieces of
nonfiction, two poems, and a selection of eye-catching illustrations and
photographs. My favorites were Carole Lanham’s unique agrarian take on
vampires, and Veronica Schanoes’ sprawling personal essay on her
relationship with her father, trains, railroads, and New York City’s
Penn Station versus Grand Central Terminal. This is one of the best
litzines I’ve seen, featuring a cast of writers who know their craft
well. Recommended. [7” x 8.5”, $4, check or money order to: Trunk
Stories c/o William Smith, 38 Prospect Park SW, Apt. 9, Brooklyn, NY
11215,
www.trunkstories.com,
trunkstories@earthlink.net (also accepts PayPal payments to this
address]
 Wicked Hollow
Issue 9
November 2005
Dark literature, as found in this publication,
straddles the line between straight horror and general fiction. It
delivers perhaps what you would think, based on the name: themes of
life’s ugliness, of despair, of death, of the parts of humanity many
prefer to turn a blind eye to. This pocket-sized litzine offers six
poems and five short stories, my favorite of which was “The Timekeeper’s
Apprentice” by Paul Stevenson, an original tale touching on human
mortality. I enjoyed the dark prose more than the dark poetry, in
general, but it’s all a matter of preference. There’s definitely some
good writing here. [4.25” x 5.5”, $4, 4-issue sub: $18 US, $20 Can, $24
World, US funds payable to Blindside Publishing; contact: Blindside
Publishing, Wicked Hollow, 1959 N. Peace Haven Rd. #217, Winston-Salem,
NC 27106-4850,
www.blindside.net,
wickedhollow@blindside.net]
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