Zine Review: How to Talk to Your Cat About Abstinence

How to Talk to Your Cat About Abstinence
The American Association of Patriots
https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/artist/the_american_association_of_patriots

I received this in an awesome package from my US friend, Black Wolf, but I can’t for the life of me find the post… Anyway.

I think this is one of the few zines that I have heard so much about that it risked not living up to how much it had been built up in my mind. Turns out I had nothing to worry about.

It’s hard to know where to start with this one because I want to write about everything at once. There’s just so much going on here.

How to Talk to Your Cat About Abstinence is a guide for parents of cats to help them talk to their cats about the importance of abstinence. On the surface, anyway. In reality, it is a very cheeky poke at the view that ‘no sex’ is the only way to keep the youth of today safe. It addresses questions like:

*Do I really need to talk to my cat about abstinence?
*What difficulties do kittens born from premarital sex face?
*What are other things I can do to safeguard the purity of my cat?

I like how this zine is printed on glossy paper – just like the information pamphlets you’d find in the doctor’s office (or other professional offices). Is it possible to have an ironic use of paper? I think so. It’s even full colour, sparing no expense over getting the word out about your cat.

Okay, so the obvious thing that I haven’t touched yet in this review is the actual content behind the content. Taking the topic of ‘abstinence only’ teaching with religious leanings is bound to get some people up in arms, and it’s not going to be nearly as funny to some as it is to me.

I’m not going to get into the issue itself, but I do think that putting the issue in this form this way is an excellent idea. It’s accessible, non-threatening…

And, if you want, you don’t have to think too hard, and you can get a good laugh.

I so very much want to read ‘How to Talk to Your Cat About Gun Safety’ and ‘How To Talk To Your Cat About Evolution’.