Category: Zine Reviews

What a whopper of a review! Forgive my long-windedness!

Hand Job Zine Issue 6
Jim and Sophie (and contributors)
A5
https://handjobzine.wordpress.com/

Sometimes you just know when you’ll like a zine. I do come into these reviews with a bit of naivete because I’m hoping for a good zine, but this one? This one I had a good feeling about.

Right away, I was taken to what I view as the more ‘traditional’ (not a bad word!) style. There are copied edges and smudges, different fonts and handwriting, pictures, stories… It rings true with cut and paste style. Seeing all this in my initial flip through had me eager to dig in.

I’m used to a table of contents of some sort in zine, used to being gently invited in to continue on reading. HJ6 doesn’t have a table of contents or even page numbers – but it works! It works to a magnificent degree with this zine because of the tone set on the very first piece – a poetic, melodic (in my mind) welcome from Jim and Sophie.

I have no idea who Jim and Sophie are, but I already think they’re pretty cool. The introduction is excellent in that I think you’ll know straight away whether this zine is for you. Either you put it down or you feel that ‘Boom. You’re here, so why not keep reading?’ that the intro really set the stage for in my reading experience.

Pull up a stool, have a smoke and enjoy.

The pieces including were all interesting and sometimes shocking in the way that a story can lure you in, calm you down and then slap you across the face, all while maintaining the same tone. I went back more than once to read a sentence here, an entire piece there. While that might be something that puts others off, I liked the feeling that written pieces were as much art as literature. (And all that without needing to read Jane Eyre!)

I can’t say that I’ve understood all the poetry, but I’ve taken enough English classes to know that I’ll come ’round.

While a zine maker who accepts contributions can only work with what they have, I feel like this zine was set up in a way that screws with my expectations. The aforementioned English classes could have me reading into it too much, but I found myself shocked out of my expectations more than once. ‘Him Upstairs’ was a slap across the face (at the end), followed by a picture, followed by another piece with something special about it (no spoilers), and so on. The review toward the end and the very last piece – a list – continued to take my expectations and laugh at them. A strange but enjoyable experience.

This isn’t a zine to sit down for a casual flip-through. There is a lot of content and a lot of room for contemplation, so you be so inclined.

PS. Hand Job Zine is calling for submissions! Be sure to click on their blog link at the top of this review and check out their blog.

How to Turn You Journal Into Your Best Friend, Your Life Coach, And a Visual Extravaganza
By Asphyxia
A6 – Single Sheet
https://www.etsy.com/shop/fixiesshelf
https://www.facebook.com/FixiesShelf

I bought this little lovely on Etsy partly because I am a newbie art journalist and partly because Asphyxia is in Melbourne. Score for learning stuff with cheaper postage.

The other reason that I bought this zine is because of Asphyxia’s art style, which you see on the front of the zine. There is something incredibly familiar about it, but I have yet to put my finger on exactly what it reminds me of. Either way, I think it looks great.

The first thing that I thought was neat about this zine is that it’s made from a single page. That in and of itself might not seem all that impressive, but it’s an A6. This means that the one sheet is an A3. This is the first time I’ve seen a zine printed out on an A3 and folded into an 8-page zine. I quite like the size.

The inside is mostly text, which is completely understandable given the amount of information packed into this zine. You definitely won’t be left wanting for instructional content. I did find myself wanting some sort of artistic flair inside, though. I want to make it clear that I definitely didn’t hold anything against the zine for focusing on text. Definitely not. But there was an opportunity to make the zine a ‘visual extravaganza’ like the journal you’re learning to create.

As for the actual subject matter, it’s excellent. She gets right to the point (no waffles here!*) and gets you on your way to getting more out of your journal.

*I thought about how she doesn’t waffle in her writing, and that became ‘no waffles!’ I have that makes a smidge of sense.

The Ken Chronicles 33
Ken Bausert
US half-fold
http://thekenbausertchronicles.blogspot.com
http://kenbausertsnostalgicmuseum.blogspot.com
passscribe at aol.com

The Ken Chronicles 33 is the first perzine I traded for in an effort to ‘research’ perzines before making my own. To my delight, this zine is an excellent example.

I’ve come to realise that I judge zines by their feel as well as their cover. What I mean is that I love the feel/weight of a ‘solid’ zine. Something that I know will provide me with more than a minute of reading. Picking up this zine gives that expectation – and delivers.

As I read, I felt like I was reading a ‘life digest’ magazine. I love the variety I found inside. He includes letters from people who have read his zines (a great idea I’d love to copy!), pieces about zines and his life, a few zine reviews, and more.

He doesn’t waste room, either, with all pages packed with words (that are still in a readable font size).

As someone who likes to do ‘further research’ on the zines I like, I appreciated him putting all details in regards to him, his zines and contacting him right in front. That he introduced me to a few zines I am eager to get hold of is a great bonus.

I have written a review of this before, but I figured I’d give it a proper go. I won’t be re-reviewing everything, though.

How to Write a Mills & Boon-esque Bodice Ripper Novel
Leopoldina Van Wowser Ainswright
A5
???

I’m a bit sad to say that I wasn’t able to track down a website or an email address for “Leopoldina Van Wowser Ainswright”. This zine is too funny not to share.

I have to start with the cover of this one, because that’s where the fun begins. The mixture of fonts and flourish-y bits on the light pink, textured paper sets up the tongue-in-cheek expectations that this zine delivers oh so well.

While the title on the cover is certainly a wander through font-land, readers shouldn’t be worried that this carries into the zine itself. It doesn’t.

How to Write… completely rips apart all the worst stereotypes not only of romance novels but of romance authors and their writing spaces. Everything is written with the ‘how-to’ tone I’ve come to know in the large number of self-help articles I’ve read, which makes the actual ‘advice’ even funnier.

My favourite part? Part 8: Ravishment. This includes advice for what words to use for ‘Man Bits’ and ‘Lady Bits’.

Definitely a keeper.

Plague
Edward J Grug III
A5
http://webcomicsnation.com/grug/
tedprior at yahoo.com

Plague is one of the few full-comic zines I own, and I love it. (Not just for the tragic cat story, either.) I love the thicker card cover and the crisp printing on quality paper. The little things show that extra work and dedication to creating an excellent comic on a tactile level as well as visual.

The amount of detail perfectly suits the story being told, adding to the scene without being distracting. The story is excellent, and I can’t help but make a connection to thinking about a horror Tom and Jerry. The fact that not a single word is said in the comic only helps the impact of the visual story told.

Even more exciting? You can find part two on Grug’s site (listed above).

This will definitely be a permanent part of my zine collection.

The Nutella Cookbook
Anna Williams
US Half-Fold
saucerville.etsy.com
saucerville at gmail.com

This is the first zine I ever owned, so I decided it was only right that I start up with The Nutella cookbook. Even if only one of three links on the back still works, and the zine appears not to be available right now…

Yummy! I love Nutella, so I’m not surprised this is the first zine I bought. The cover – made of slightly glossy paper makes the Nutella spread background look even more delicious.

The first thing I noticed when I flipped through this zine is that there is a lot of white space – including entire blank pages. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but I’m not used to it in zines, and I would have liked even more to read in this zine.

It’s composed mostly of recipes, but it also has ‘My First Nutella’ stories and an introduction to the Unofficial Nutella Test Kitchen (a uni dorm kitchen). The extras rounded out the recipes and made for a more ‘complete’ experience.

I haven’t tried all of the recipes, but I have tried a delicious few. I’ve also tweaked and played until I made my Nutella-inspired creation: peanutellas.

All up, The Nutella Cookbook will remain a part of my collection.

Now for the giveaway! Yep, I want to celebrate my first review in years. I am giving away one zine pack with all of my zines.

Don’t Call Me Cupcake, Occupy Melbourne, Dear Anonymous I, Dear Anonymous II

All you have to do to go in the running to win the lot is to leave a comment and say hello (or whatever else you’d like to say). If you haven’t left a comment before, don’t worry if yours doesn’t show up. I have to approve everyone’s first comment.

Have at it, have fun, and all that good stuff. I’ll announce the winner next Thursday.

Open internationally.

Title: Gag Me With A… Issue Four
Author: PinkPressBlitz
Type: 1/4 page
Author Site(s): http://gagmewitha.blogspot.com

Review: You have to love an anthology zine where many voices come together in a mish mash of art. This zine is chunky not in the physical but in the content. Choc full of stories, poetry and art, Gag Me With A… has been put together by an expert who knows how to fill a small space with a lot of content without making the eyes strain. I’ve found myself coming back to this zine many times – sometimes looking at the art and sometimes reading the words. Sometimes both. This zine and I fit together on a strange level. I hope to get more editions.

Paper Can’t Win by Keith Landrum is my particular favourite of the zine, though Tender Little Mushpots by Eric Guashino comes in a close second.

On the technical side of things, this zine checks all the points: there is a website URL, an easy to read email and even instructions on how to submit work.

STATUS: For Trade

Title: Doctor Who: a minizine of fave quotes
Author: ma mckearing
Type: A6
Author Site(s): ?

Review: This is one of those times where I feel like a school teacher reminding students to put their name on their work… There *is* an email address on the back, but I’m not one for emailing to hunt down details for a review. That probably makes me a bad reviewer… Moving on…

This full-colour little lovely details one person’s introduction to the world of Doctor Who, some favourite quotes, artwork of the various Doctors and even a page dedicated to all of the men who have played the Doctor. As a relatively recent fan of the show, I found this zine a lovely little ode to the show. Anyone who loves the show will find it enjoyable.

STATUS: For Trade

Title: Without a Map: A You Adventure
Author: Metlinsley (?) Oblivion Spin
Type: A7 (? – itty bitty!)
Author Site(s): ?

Review: Itty bitty zine! Once again, I love zines presented in a non-traditional way, but man, I’d be afraid of losing this in my purse! It’s pretty small. I imagine there are smaller ones out there, though…

Without a Map is a poetic zine, written in the second person – meaning it addresses YOU the reader. Text pressed onto the black and white background gives you a feeling that the pretty words will only lead to bad things. Like with most poetry, I wavered on what I thought of it and what I thought it meant. All in all, the poem itself left me feeling so-so, but I liked its presentation.

(Yeah, even uni poetry classes couldn’t teach me as much appreciation as I should have…)

STATUS: For Trade