Ang Pangalawang Pagtatapat The Second Confessions
Siomai Charlene / notyourleo
notyourleo@outlook.com
notyourleo.space
Ang Pangalawang Pagtatapat The Second Confessions is a black and white A5 perzine about the creation of the first ‘Confesstions’, writing, finding your voice, and more.
Confessions wasn’t meant to have a sequel. Nor was it supposed to turn into a semi-perzine.
With a beginning like that, I’m immediately intrigued.
While reading this zine, I found myself comparing it a lot to water. First in the way that Charlene writes about the first Confessions in that it seemed to dictate its own path despite Charlene’s intentions.
From there, the writing flows easily around bends and over rocks from one topic to another. I started out being interested in the thoughts and feelings of a fellow zinemaker, to learning what life is like for Charlene as a Filipino in Canada, and on to feeling inspired when the topic shifted to their thoughts and feelings on the state of politics in the Philippines.
In carrying along with the water metaphor – there are times when you see a shiny gem and want to stop to examine it further, but you are still carried along anyway. I didn’t feel like I was missing out, but I did want to write a letter and ask about things like that time Charlene got suspended in school for starting an underground newspaper.
What started as writing about zines and self-expression wanders through many topics with ease, ending on a manifesto-like call to action for Filipinos. Beautiful.
Ang Pangalawang Pagtatapat The Second Confessions is an interesting, unique read that I think everyone from perzine enthusiasts to political zinesters to Filipino zinesers could enjoy.