Month: June 2021

Weird Fruit
Emily
https://www.instagram.com/emeezines/

Weird Fruit is a 10.9x9cm full colour zine about strange but real fruit.

I don’t know what it is about winter or maybe a lot of rain, but I am all about mandarins. Yummy yummy fruit. Perhaps that’s why I was drawn to reviewing this zine today.

Weird Fruit is one page folded and opens right into a collection of six different kinds of fruit that are weird (and interesting, by my judgement). Each page is dedicated to one with the name, description points about the fruit and a drawing of the fruit itself featured.

I really liked this zine even more than I thought I would. Education is that much better when you’re having fun, and there are even two fruit that I’d never heard of before – rambutan and Buddha’s hand. Each fruit has a few facts about it. Sometimes what type of fruit it is, what it’s also known as, and/or what it smells like. Very helpful, as one of the fruit is said to taste similar to pineapple, and I really don’t like pineapples.

Weird Fruits is exactly what it says on the cover, and I enjoyed it. I like learning new things, and the bite-sized portions (there was no pun intended when I started typing that, but I see it now) of facts is perfect for me.

I’m not exactly sure where, if anywhere, you can grab this zine right now. But if you like fruit and being adventurous, grab it if you see it.

I Have Something to Say #3
Shei
12 Pages
https://www.instagram.com/sheinicorn/
https://linktr.ee/_godsavethequeer__

I Have Something to Say #3 is a full-colour, A6 sized perzine about growing as an adult, observing yourself, and coming to accept the state of the world and yourself.

I think this is the first time I have read a perzine and simultaneously identified with many things while also thinking, “Yes, I remember thinking and feeling those things when I was their age.” Interesting.

I Have Something to Say #3 opens with Shei’s introduction to Shei – a ‘get to know the author’ that covers everything and doesn’t assume that you have read the previous two zines. From there, Shei writes about collective trauma during the pandemic through the eyes of an anxious introvert in a stream of consciousness style. When it’s not forced ‘write as much as you can in three minutes’, I often find this style of writing quite nice as the reader is almost discovering these thoughts as the writer writes them.

They also write about various topics in the realm of the themes mentioned at the beginning. Recognising cycles in their life as well as their complicated relationship to topics like family and country all come around to learning acceptance.

Shei packs a lot of writing into this zine. It makes for a nice, longer reading session. However Shei’s writing is smaller than usual in this zine and I recommend good lighting for ease of reading.

I love a good perzine, and Shei even writes, “After all, there are never enough wonderful humans sharing their insights, experiences, dreams, and adventures…” If you like an introspective perzine, then this is one to check out.

Witches of Cinema Vol 1 & Vol 2
APac
12/12 pages
https://www.instagram.com/apacdrawings/
https://www.etsy.com/shop/apacdrawings/

Witches of Cinema Vol 1 & Vol 2 are black and white collections of witches in cinema with art and text along with commentary about witches in cinema.

Witches of Cinema Vol 1 & Vol 2 open with quotes about witches being portrayed in media before launching into a series of character drawings of witch characters in popular movies.

Each character drawing is accompanied by a brief description with their name, the movie and year of the movie featured in, and things like powers, objects, and goals. APac’s art style is detailed and realistic with each witch easily recognisable and accompanied by special objects and familiars.

Along with the art and descriptions, there are various quotes about witches and how they are presented. I found all of these to be incredibly interesting as they comment a lot about witches being presented as ‘anti-mother’ and lacking fertility. There’s almost a line of thought in terms of what came first – the infertile woman or the female witch. Much more is touched on in these brief quotes as well.

I also find it interesting that Apac separates the two volumes in order of time – the first being 1922 to 1990 and the second being 1990 to 2020. While time is as good a way of categorising as any in many ways, I think it serves to help further demonstrate the portrayal of witches and how that has been evolving.

Each zine comes with two inserts – Female Filmmakers and Extensive List of Movies. I always get nervous about parts of zines that aren’t in some way attached to the zines. However, with the movie checklists, I do like that I can stick them in my bullet journal.

These zines are a fun idea. They combine art and text, introduce the reader to characters they may haven’t seen in a long time and/or characters they would be interested in seeing. I’m so excited to watch some old favourites as well as check out some new-to-me charters and movies as well.

Definitely pick both of these up.

What Quarantine Taught Me
Shei
8 page mini
https://www.instagram.com/sheinicorn/
https://linktr.ee/_godsavethequeer__

What Quarantine Taught Me is a full-colour, one-page folded mini-zine about things Shei (as an introverted, childfree, home employed person) learned during quarantine.

Shei opens this zine by writing a bit about their personal situation during quarantine and how it shapes their experience. They also touch on the idea how they hate the idea that everything happens for a reason (something that had me nodding along because I think a lot of people feel the same). From there, we launch into what Shei has learned.

I identified a lot with this because I’m also introverted, childfree, and home emplyed. That said, I think what Shei learned is good for people of other situations as well. What Shei has learned are things that I think everyone could value.

This is a lovely to look at little zine with helpful reminders even outside of a quarantine/pandemic situation.

Adventures in Gender
Shei
8 pages
https://www.instagram.com/sheinicorn/
https://linktr.ee/_godsavethequeer__

Adventures in Gender is a full-colour A5 zine about a unicorn exploring the magical world of gender identity.

I don’t think it matters how old you are; sometimes you like to approach a new subject gently and kindly. With flowers. Definitely flowers.

Adventures in Gender opens with our lovely unicorn deciding it wanted to know about this thing called gender. From there it encounters some difficulty, but there are also many lovely characters who represent different ways of being like Amber the genderfluid merperson.

Shei’s zines are always fun to look at, and this one especially so. There is so much colour, and Shei uses primarily sketches which are so flowy and fun (even when depicting the onion of cisnormativity).

I can see this as a fun and comfortable way for people to start approaching these topics. Especially for younger people. Even better? There is a page of resources in the back.

If you’d like to introduce yourself to the subject in a very first steps, fun, colourful way, then this zine is for you.