Zines of Note: 2006
For the past few years, the fine folks at Tugboat Press have published BEST ZINE EVER!, a collection of zine readers and zine publishers picks for the zines they enjoyed in the previous year. Look for it to drop in February. Here were my picks.

About my Disappearance / 52p / Quarter / $1
Dave Roche (On Subbing) has Crohn’s Disease, a nasty digestive ailment. This zine is his journey through the health care system as he tries to find out what is wrong with him, how to treat it, and how to live with it. It’s not for the squeamish: “I shit myself three times over four days. Do you know what that does to your confidence, to your self esteem? I had diarrhea five times a day or more for over a month and a half.” Hopefully, writing this zine was therapeutic for Dave.
Microcosm Publishing, 5307 N. Minnesota Ave. Portland, OR 97217-4551

Breakfast #4 / 72p / Digest-sized / $3
Breakfast is my absolute favorite meal (seriously), so I was happy to find this my mailbox again after a long drought. More donut tales, lots about breakfasts in San Francisco, breakfast food haikus, comics, zine reviews and photos of random diners (buildings, not people while they eat.) Great writing, clean and readable layout, lots of fun.
Vincent Voelz, 575 12th Ave. #3, San Francisco, CA 94118

Caboose #5: The Improvement Issue / 40p / Digest / $1
Liz Mason defies the out-of-shape zine slacker stereotype and shares her diet and fitness regimes in this issue. Since this is Liz, there’s an extensive discussion about the crappy music (provided by the Muzak corporation) at the gym. Liz also recently appeared on reality show as a “zine expert,” helping one of the women create their own zine. Her extensive account of the experience is interesting, especially the contrast between what was filmed and the itty-bitty bit that actually made the cut. Toss in a review of a Madonna concert, weird neighbors, and “Ridiculous Names for the Cats Part II” and it’s another fine issue of Caboose.
Liz Mason, PO Box 476802, Chicago IL 60647 / caboosezine@yahoo.com

Cartography for Beginners #5 / 56p / Quarter-sized / $2.50
April loves Morrissey. Let me rephrase that. April loooooooovvvveees Morrissey. The centerpiece of this issue of CfB is her 2004 tour diary, where she followed the Moz around to six different cities, saw nine shows, met him, and gave him a “Jon Stewart for President” t-shirt. Lots of fun! Also includes funny neighbor reviews and the usual dose of April’s wit. It always cheers me to find an envelope from April in the PO Box. This is classic zine-making.
Emotion Lotion, 2221 S. Catalina St., Suite #1, Los Angeles, CA 90007

Emma Goldman / #3 / 48p / Digest / $3
Rebekah is a PhD student in Urban Education. This issue includes rants about white men who can’t accept their granted privilege, moving, overviews of classes and dissertation, the politics of Live 8, and some Philly-only material, such as the photographs of images of women around the city, from murals to the Bottoms Up strip club sign.
Rebekah B., PO Box 3482, Philadelphia PA 19123 / Emma Goldman Zine

Extranjero #4 / 32p /Digest / “A modest amount of US$ or a trade” (send about $2-3)
A much in love couple – an American (him) and a Spaniard (her) publish this charming zine from Spain. Go along with them on their tapas tour of Plasencia! There’s alos contributions from two other expat zine writers, Gianni Simone (Call & Response, Japan) and Robert P. Helms (Guinea Pig Zero, France but returning to US). It’s always fun to read about this couple’s cultural clashes, as Kris continues to adjust to Spain, and Lola ponders Americans.
Kris & Lola, Calle Obispo 4 Bajo, Plasencia 10600, Caceres, Spain

Full Tilt #2: Dancing Away from Home / 40p / Digest / $2
From ages 13 to about 17, Megan studied ballet a performing arts boarding school. Dance instructors, dorm life, clothes, hair, bodies, weight issues, dance styles and more are all chronicled. She also addresses why she left the program before graduating to return home, and attend a “normal” academic high school. Megan still dances, but has suffered a few nasty injuries (two knee surgeries already!)
Microcosm Publishing, 5307 N. Minnesota Ave. Portland, OR 97217-4551 or order direct from Something’s Begun

Here be Dragons #9: Punx Over 30 / 44p / Half-legal/ $2
This is another zine that resurfaced in 2005 after a LONG absence. Welcome back, Mike and Eric! This issue is about growing into adulthood. Both Mike and Eric discuss how, yes, you can be married and own a house and still embrace the ideals of punk rock and DIY activism well into your thirties. Eric’s frustrations of teaching writing and English at a community college, and how depressingly conservative and lazy the students are insightful. There’s also a thoughtful discussion of the Mr. Roboto project, an activist space just outside of Pittsburgh. This zine should be required reading for every 17-year-old self-righteous snotty punk rock kid.
Microcosm Publishing, 5307 N. Minnesota Ave. Portland, OR 97217-4551, or order from: Mike Q Roth, PO Box 8131, Pittsburgh PA 15217

The Hungover Gourmet / #9 / 32p / Digest-sized / $2
Another mouth-watering issue of the alternative food zine – no expensive ingredients required here! Stories of Trader Vic’s, NYC’s 14th Street of old, a cheesesteak showdown, restaurant reviews (including Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles, just like in Tapeheads), and the Berlin (NJ) Farmer’s Market.
The Hungover Gourmet, PO Box 5531, Lutherville MD 21094-5531

I Dreamed I Was Assertive #7 / 56p / Quarter-sized / $2.50
Another great installment of page-turning goodness from Celia. I have no idea why she views her zines as “whine fests” because they most certainly are not. Well constructed, designed and written, IDIWA is full of astute observations about mix tapes and libraries. Share her excitement about stumbling across a “find” at the library: “Do you know that feeling of excitement when you find the book you are looking for? Have you ever experienced that even greater feeling of finding what you aren’t looking for? A spine on a shelf catches your eye and you discover something you never even knew you wanted. It’s a treasure hunt. The library is safety and comfort and adventure.”
E-mail perezeeb@yahoo.com for ordering information.

Mediageek / #3 / 36p / Digest-sized / $3
The Midwest’s definitive Media Watchdog shares continuing adventures in cheap, plastic camera-land, the stranglehold that Christian radio stations have on the FM spectrum, and details about a pirate radio broadcast from a parking garage. The issues rounds out with an in-depth review of a new documentary about electronic bulletin boards systems – The BBS Documentary -- which existed long before the Internet as we know it.
Mediageek, c/o Paul Riismandel, PO Box 2102, Champaign IL 61825-2102

Not My Small Diary / #12, Volumes 1 and 2 / 192p / Digest-sized / $6
This set of Not My Small Diary features 74 different artists, two volumes, luscious, silk-screened thick cover stock, and – the best part – twist-tie binding! The theme for this issue is “After Midnight.” Lots of great work here, but my favorite comix is actually one that doesn’t directly address the theme – it’s Ten Foot Rule Industries’ Shawn Granton drawing about his “man purse” – a.k.a. his bike/messenger bag.
Available via PayPal to delangel3@hotmail.com, or e-mail or check My Small Webpage for a mailing address.

OFF-Line #34 / Free but donations appreciated
Vincent’s life expressed in yearly embarrassing moments from birth to age 22. Very daring concept and brutally honest confessions make for compelling reading! There are many surprising, dare I say shocking, revelations contained within. Most people just want to bury their embarrassing moments from life, but Vincent makes it work. Also includes embarrassing moments from guest contributors.
Vincent Romano, 35 Barker Ave., #4G, White Plains, NY 10601

On Subbing: The First Four Years by Dave Roche / 128p / $5
In the introduction, Dave suggests, “I think this book is best if you read it in intervals…”, and he’s absolutely correct. This is Dave’s diaries of four years of working as a substitute Education Assistant with special needs students in Portland. It’s a very harrowing read, since both Dave and the students he’s trying to help get the short end of the stick from the system (and it’s a really short stick). Dave gets sent to the wrong assignments, treated rudely by teachers and staff, often not given any direction (or even keys to open classrooms he’s supposed to be in). The students also seem to get knocked around the education system in the city quite a bit. Are the programs even going to be helpful for them in the long run? Microcosm Publishing, 5307 N. Microcosm Publishing, 5307 N. Minnesota Ave. Portland, OR 97217-4551

Skate Tough You Little Girls / 24p / Digest / $2
It is so cool that Celia is in her 30s and into skateboarding, unafraid of breaking bones. In this zine, she explores some of the lesser covered aspects of skateboarding culture: the International Society for Skateboarding Moms, an artist who makes bags out of old skateboard decks, and – most interestingly – an analysis of the Vision Street Wear ads that appeared in Sassy Magazine in the late 80s/early 90s.
E-mail perezeeb@yahoo.com for ordering information.

Underworld Crawl #3 / 32p / Digest / $2
A detailed look into the life of a night shift employee and his assorted co-workers. While you have to deal with fewer people working overnights, you deal with much stranger people. Compelling read from R. Lee, nice clean layout, and a great change from reading crap from 16-year-old whiners.
R. Lee, P. O. Box 1421, Oshkosh, WI, 54903
- posted by Synd-e @ 2:05 PM