I would like to thank everyone who has donated to the Niagara College Zine Library, the zine library I run at school. I’ve received a lot more donations than I thought I would, which is awesome, and hopefully they’ll keep coming! I’m always trying to update things and get a wide variety of different zines.
So I decided to have a little contest. Send me your zine between February 1st — February 31st and one lucky winner will end up with whatever collage they want from my Etsy Shop, a copy of my One Shot Zine, a lino print and whatever extra goodies I have lying around. And, obviously, I will review your zine on the blog. Extra awesomeness points if you send two copies, one for the library and one for my own collection (which is next to nothing since I became a zine librarian and donated most of them!) It’s for a good cause! So send your zine to:
Too Many Cookies
93 Rice Rd
Welland, ON
L3C 2V6
Canada
***If you send me anything racist, homophobic, promoting girl-hate, or anything using Comic Sans, I will verbally kick your ass with a bad review. ESPECIALLY if you use Comic Sans.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
#3
BOOBAGE
by Monica Gallagher
Sub-titled “Trials and Tribulations of Having Small Boobs,” this pink, black and white comic is exactly that. I bought this zine initially because as a 34A, I completely understand. She humorously illustrates the self-conscious behaviour of the average teen growing up flat-chested in a culture where our breasts (among other body parts) are over-sexualized, coveted in one way or another by both genders. The moral of the story however, is that us small-boobed girls are pretty hot too. A good read for any small chested woman.
NOTHING RHYMES #4
by Chelsea Creature
I have loved Chelsea’s zines and writing ever since reading this zine, which I got in a distro order sometime in the summer. It’s nice to find zines about happiness and loving life without dragging on and on about stuff no one really cares about. It starts off with a goodbye letter to Pittsburgh and goes into moving to Rhode Island, keeping positive, touches a little on body image and even gives a basic bookbinding tutorial!. Any time I read it, it leaves me feeling good inside. And, vintage drawings of knitting supplies and zine reviews are a nice touch to the completely typewritten booklet. This is definitely stored in my “favourite zines” box on the old milk crate shelf.
AUBADE #2 - I AM A GHOST
by Katie (aubadezine at gmail dot com)
I really like the way this zine flows together. And after reading Aubade #4 first (previously reviewed here), I noticed that Katie’s writing has definitely evolved over the years and has gotten better. It’s all a mish-mash of life experiences, thoughts on philosophy, places, learning French and tonnes of related and unrelated things in between. Her writing has a way of tugging at my heart, and I’ll definitely be looking out for more issues in the future.
MY THINGS, MY GRANDMOTHER’S THINGS
by Sarah Pinder
When I was thinking about what to say about this zine, I decided to try to think of some words to describe it first. I came up with “meaningful” and “nostalgic” and “thought provoking”. Sarah’s grandmother passes away and being discarded except for what she takes. It’s about material posessions, their meanings, what gives them meanings, remembering/forgetting . . . I found it to be a delightful read, although at one or two points I found it to drag slightly, but it wasn’t a big deal as it picks back up quickly. It really made me think of what will happen to my stuff when I die - which parts of my life will people choose to discard? Which parts will people keep, and why? What material things in our lives are really relevant? Overall, I liked it, she has a very interesting style of writing, the whole thing was clean and to the point.
by Monica Gallagher
Sub-titled “Trials and Tribulations of Having Small Boobs,” this pink, black and white comic is exactly that. I bought this zine initially because as a 34A, I completely understand. She humorously illustrates the self-conscious behaviour of the average teen growing up flat-chested in a culture where our breasts (among other body parts) are over-sexualized, coveted in one way or another by both genders. The moral of the story however, is that us small-boobed girls are pretty hot too. A good read for any small chested woman.
NOTHING RHYMES #4
by Chelsea Creature
I have loved Chelsea’s zines and writing ever since reading this zine, which I got in a distro order sometime in the summer. It’s nice to find zines about happiness and loving life without dragging on and on about stuff no one really cares about. It starts off with a goodbye letter to Pittsburgh and goes into moving to Rhode Island, keeping positive, touches a little on body image and even gives a basic bookbinding tutorial!. Any time I read it, it leaves me feeling good inside. And, vintage drawings of knitting supplies and zine reviews are a nice touch to the completely typewritten booklet. This is definitely stored in my “favourite zines” box on the old milk crate shelf.
AUBADE #2 - I AM A GHOST
by Katie (aubadezine at gmail dot com)
I really like the way this zine flows together. And after reading Aubade #4 first (previously reviewed here), I noticed that Katie’s writing has definitely evolved over the years and has gotten better. It’s all a mish-mash of life experiences, thoughts on philosophy, places, learning French and tonnes of related and unrelated things in between. Her writing has a way of tugging at my heart, and I’ll definitely be looking out for more issues in the future.
MY THINGS, MY GRANDMOTHER’S THINGS
by Sarah Pinder
When I was thinking about what to say about this zine, I decided to try to think of some words to describe it first. I came up with “meaningful” and “nostalgic” and “thought provoking”. Sarah’s grandmother passes away and being discarded except for what she takes. It’s about material posessions, their meanings, what gives them meanings, remembering/forgetting . . . I found it to be a delightful read, although at one or two points I found it to drag slightly, but it wasn’t a big deal as it picks back up quickly. It really made me think of what will happen to my stuff when I die - which parts of my life will people choose to discard? Which parts will people keep, and why? What material things in our lives are really relevant? Overall, I liked it, she has a very interesting style of writing, the whole thing was clean and to the point.
Friday, January 15, 2010
#2
LOVE LETTERS TO MONSTERS #2
Ciara Xyerra on WMZ
I bought this zine solely because of the story of abortion, and because it advertised hand coloured covers (I love zines with extra love!). What I found between the covers were judgemental assumptions, fellow zinester bashing, and not enough to impress me after labelling zine culture a “medium of mediocrity,” which is hilarious considering this woman, after years of making zines, doesn’t even take the time to give her zine proper leading (line spacing) which is really hard for the eyes to follow, which makes it difficult to read at times. She also puts down Jessica Valenti’s books, blogger over at Feministing.com, calling her books “strictly elementary feminist re-treads”, complaining zine culture has nothing really more to offer this self-proclaimed “big fish in a small pond.”
Just because she is familiar with what she has to say, doesn’t mean that other people who don’t know as much about feminism can’t benefit from it. In fact, Jessica Valenti’s books were some of the first feminist books I picked up, and I can wholeheartedly say that they are a great introduction to anyone interested in knowing more about (especially third wave) feminism. Following are insults toward other zinesters and their zines, which I found completely unnecessary.
The only part that I found interesting to read was her experience with abortion, which by the way, would’ve been a lot better if she didn’t split it into three parts and randomly place them separately throughout the zine. I did however appreciate her having the courage to come out about her experience with her abortion - I feel it is important to touch on these subjects, and it was very informative and well written for the most part.
If she does make any more zines, I definitely wouldn’t buy them. I’d read it if a friend gave/lent it to me, or if I got it in the mail somehow. For someone who advocates for change in the world, she sure seems like she is full of a lot of hate.
AUBADE #4 : Virginia Stories
aubadezine at gmail.com
I re-read this zine and may have loved it more this time than the first. Between a two-colour cardstock cover are stories of childhood nostalgia revolving around Virginia. There are some typos, but it is clearly written with a typewriter, which cancels it out as a bad thing. I think typos created via a typewriter gives it a very human and relative feeling, especially in this zine, as you can tell the writer is very skilled in the way he/she strings her words together into sentences. She’s no amateur! Very well put together, this is the kind of zine I’d go out of my way to share with someone else.
BREAD CRUMBS (retracing the map to where I’d been)
Julie Mannell
writers_cramp_390 at hotmail.com
Although I write a lot of poetry myself, I don’t normally like the poetry of others. I don’t know what it is, I think I write poetry for myself because I feel I need to, not because I’m really into poetry as a whole. But Julie, a local I know from high school, has this zine called Bread Crumbs that I picked up at Gender Radical, a fundraiser for Women’s Place that took place a year or two ago, after making a donation. That night, she also did a poetry reading from the zine, and I found myself inspired and surprised that, alas! I actually enjoyed the poetry of another. The layout and everything about it is really simple and easy to follow, the content loud and clear. lovelovelove it.
Ciara Xyerra on WMZ
I bought this zine solely because of the story of abortion, and because it advertised hand coloured covers (I love zines with extra love!). What I found between the covers were judgemental assumptions, fellow zinester bashing, and not enough to impress me after labelling zine culture a “medium of mediocrity,” which is hilarious considering this woman, after years of making zines, doesn’t even take the time to give her zine proper leading (line spacing) which is really hard for the eyes to follow, which makes it difficult to read at times. She also puts down Jessica Valenti’s books, blogger over at Feministing.com, calling her books “strictly elementary feminist re-treads”, complaining zine culture has nothing really more to offer this self-proclaimed “big fish in a small pond.”
Just because she is familiar with what she has to say, doesn’t mean that other people who don’t know as much about feminism can’t benefit from it. In fact, Jessica Valenti’s books were some of the first feminist books I picked up, and I can wholeheartedly say that they are a great introduction to anyone interested in knowing more about (especially third wave) feminism. Following are insults toward other zinesters and their zines, which I found completely unnecessary.
The only part that I found interesting to read was her experience with abortion, which by the way, would’ve been a lot better if she didn’t split it into three parts and randomly place them separately throughout the zine. I did however appreciate her having the courage to come out about her experience with her abortion - I feel it is important to touch on these subjects, and it was very informative and well written for the most part.
If she does make any more zines, I definitely wouldn’t buy them. I’d read it if a friend gave/lent it to me, or if I got it in the mail somehow. For someone who advocates for change in the world, she sure seems like she is full of a lot of hate.
AUBADE #4 : Virginia Stories
aubadezine at gmail.com
I re-read this zine and may have loved it more this time than the first. Between a two-colour cardstock cover are stories of childhood nostalgia revolving around Virginia. There are some typos, but it is clearly written with a typewriter, which cancels it out as a bad thing. I think typos created via a typewriter gives it a very human and relative feeling, especially in this zine, as you can tell the writer is very skilled in the way he/she strings her words together into sentences. She’s no amateur! Very well put together, this is the kind of zine I’d go out of my way to share with someone else.
BREAD CRUMBS (retracing the map to where I’d been)
Julie Mannell
writers_cramp_390 at hotmail.com
Although I write a lot of poetry myself, I don’t normally like the poetry of others. I don’t know what it is, I think I write poetry for myself because I feel I need to, not because I’m really into poetry as a whole. But Julie, a local I know from high school, has this zine called Bread Crumbs that I picked up at Gender Radical, a fundraiser for Women’s Place that took place a year or two ago, after making a donation. That night, she also did a poetry reading from the zine, and I found myself inspired and surprised that, alas! I actually enjoyed the poetry of another. The layout and everything about it is really simple and easy to follow, the content loud and clear. lovelovelove it.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
#1 - Polaroids and Feminism!
Instant Gratification
Frothy on WeMakeZines
Not too long and not too short, this zine is a collection of polaroids with matching coloured backgrounds for pages. I love seeing zines like this where the zinester puts time and effort into layout and binding, creating a piece of artwork that is simple and visually pleasing without having an overwhelming amount of things to look at. She also acknowledges the discontinutation of polaroids in the beginning dedicating the zine to an “endangered format” which, I must say, definitely caught my attention and scored some points. This zine is overall charming, memorable and unique. I read this one at a friend’s in Montreal, and will definitely pick up a copy for myself if I ever have the chance.
Fuck Shyness
by Emma (zines_and_teaAThotmail.co.uk.)
Reading this zine, I realised it wasn’t about shyness, but anxiety. I know this because I’ve dealt with multiple types of anxiety throughout my life and can relate to a lot of things that are mentioned. It’s nice because anxiety is more common than we think and often symptoms are misunderstood and often labelled as abnormal and crazy, even by those who experience it themselves but may not fully recognize it. It’s a good zine to anyone who is a constant “what if?” thinker. Basic and simple with a good amount of humour, this short publication contains things we all need to know and keep in mind.
Culture Slut #18 - The Polaroid Issue
by Amber Forrester
This full colour laser-copied zine is packed full of adventurous polaroids from her small hometown of Lindsay and elsewhere, like Ottawa, Toledo, and the east coast. Whether it’s interesting graffiti, signs, or people, she provides stories (via typewriter, better yet!) to go with the polaroid that makes you excited for what’s on the next page. Bonuses are zine reviews in the back and an inspiring “girl love not hate” picture on the back spelled out in magnets.
Fight Boredom #3 - with Feminism!
by Amber Forrester
I don’t usually go out of my way to read comp zines, but I’m a big fan of Amber’s zines and this was definitely no disappointment. Full of feministy goodness, like a brief overview of how the riot grrrl movement rose and fell, eating disorders and beauty standards in the radical community, a myth-busting piece on Japanese gender stereotypes that leads into perceptions of Hello Kitty, her power (or lack thereof), and her message of consumerism. Plus, I really enjoyed the interview with Chelsea Gunn, of Nothing Rhymes, also one of my favourite zinesters. An all around great read.
Frothy on WeMakeZines
Not too long and not too short, this zine is a collection of polaroids with matching coloured backgrounds for pages. I love seeing zines like this where the zinester puts time and effort into layout and binding, creating a piece of artwork that is simple and visually pleasing without having an overwhelming amount of things to look at. She also acknowledges the discontinutation of polaroids in the beginning dedicating the zine to an “endangered format” which, I must say, definitely caught my attention and scored some points. This zine is overall charming, memorable and unique. I read this one at a friend’s in Montreal, and will definitely pick up a copy for myself if I ever have the chance.
Fuck Shyness
by Emma (zines_and_teaAThotmail.co.uk.)
Reading this zine, I realised it wasn’t about shyness, but anxiety. I know this because I’ve dealt with multiple types of anxiety throughout my life and can relate to a lot of things that are mentioned. It’s nice because anxiety is more common than we think and often symptoms are misunderstood and often labelled as abnormal and crazy, even by those who experience it themselves but may not fully recognize it. It’s a good zine to anyone who is a constant “what if?” thinker. Basic and simple with a good amount of humour, this short publication contains things we all need to know and keep in mind.
Culture Slut #18 - The Polaroid Issue
by Amber Forrester
This full colour laser-copied zine is packed full of adventurous polaroids from her small hometown of Lindsay and elsewhere, like Ottawa, Toledo, and the east coast. Whether it’s interesting graffiti, signs, or people, she provides stories (via typewriter, better yet!) to go with the polaroid that makes you excited for what’s on the next page. Bonuses are zine reviews in the back and an inspiring “girl love not hate” picture on the back spelled out in magnets.
Fight Boredom #3 - with Feminism!
by Amber Forrester
I don’t usually go out of my way to read comp zines, but I’m a big fan of Amber’s zines and this was definitely no disappointment. Full of feministy goodness, like a brief overview of how the riot grrrl movement rose and fell, eating disorders and beauty standards in the radical community, a myth-busting piece on Japanese gender stereotypes that leads into perceptions of Hello Kitty, her power (or lack thereof), and her message of consumerism. Plus, I really enjoyed the interview with Chelsea Gunn, of Nothing Rhymes, also one of my favourite zinesters. An all around great read.
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