PEAR DROPPINGS #5
Meghann
5369 Fox Run Road
Sarasota, FL 34231
($2?)
This is a pretty thick self-proclaimed “eco-zine”.
Tons of clippings, good poetry that even I enjoyed
(if you don’t know, I don’t exactly have much
tolerance, appreciation, or understanding of
poetry), especially “Your Cities” about urban
decay and industrial ”development”, reprints of
magazine articles, rants on individual power,
distraction, stuff by Sojourner Truth, Elizabeth
Cady Stanton, an interview with Simon Said,
anti-meat stuff, riot grrrl/feminist stuff, and more.
Meghann seems to have an eye for aesthetics, so I
would really be excited to see what she could do if
she decides to use desk top publishing... 8 1/2” x
11”, 44 pages.
PHONOMANIA! #3
26 Georgetown
Irvine, CA 92612
($1)
I haven’t read many indie rock zines in a long time,
so it was great to get Phonomania!. If you are into
indie rock, buying records, and news on your
favorite band’s whereabouts, latest activity, etc.,
then I recommend checking this out. It still seems
to be in it’s formative stage, but I expect that it will
get bigger and better over time. It’s full of wacky
clip art and features interviews with Meowch and
Inkling. Also record and zine reviews, mostly of
pretty obscure stuff. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 24 pages.
PLAIN JANE #1
Joy
89-A Pratt Street
Glastonbury, CT 06033-1044
($1?)
I got this at a show, and I think its pretty old, but
it’s very good and worth mentioning. My favorite
parts were the beautiful 20’s era color cover and
the article on girl skaters and how they are totally
discouraged by fucked-up mentalities in skate mags
and such. This is really true, and I came across it at
an appropriate moment - after some
dumbskateboyloser gave me dirty looks while I was
skating down the sidewalk (sorry I’m not good
enough for you, asshole), and Joy’s attacks on
these jerks made me feel better. She also critiques
straight edge and anti-choicers and writes about
being introspective, the first time she saw a gun,
women’s oppression, and more. The piece about
the gun was really powerful, and I’d like to see
more stuff in her for girls who are getting into
skating, since there is a definite lack of those
resources. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 24 pages.
POTTYMOUTH GIRL #2
Melissa Kent
18 Lexington Dr.
Beverly, MA 01915
(3 stamps)
This issue contains poetry, mostly about not
belonging and “always trapped on the outside
looking in”, a really good piece on not having had a
boyfriend/girlfriend ever and wondering if it’s
because of her weight/appearance, feeling frustrated
by the patriarchal structure at her house, getting
involved with riot grrrl, and more. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”,
24 pages.
POWER CANDY #18
Ericka
PO Box 32534
Kansas City, MO 64171
($1 + 2 stamps)
This zine is one of my all-time favorites. It’s full of
revealing writings on depression, panic disorder,
abuse, incest, Ericka’s life, therapy, etc. Also in
this issue is an Emily’s Sassy Lime centerfold,
criticism of riot grrrl that we all need to hear,
journal writings from her stay in a psych hospital,
and an interview with Kelli from That Girl. I
honestly haven’t even finished reading this yet
because it is just so full of stuff! This is a
must-read! 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 56 pages.
PUBERTY STRIKE
Seth
2007 E 3rd Street
Tucson, AZ 85719
($1 + a stamp?)
This zine is a really incredible pop culture/indie
rock zine by Seth, a 16-year old boy. I know this is
a review zine for girls, but there’s an interview with
Emily’s Sassy Lime, and I say that’s good enough
for me. It’s all about childhood and teenagerdom,
especially the really cheesy aspects. Seth writes
about puberty and pubic hair, his obsessions with
Garbage Pail Kids, Freddy Krueger, WWF, and
Double Dare, the kiddie brat quiz (I’m a “would-be
saboteur”, wacky profiles of his teachers, profiles of
monsters (including “Pee Wee Herman”? Hm... I
think that’s kind of borderline, Seth), reminicing
about NES games and the Power Pad (that thing
sucked), cheesy movies, tacky food, an interview
with Mocket, tips to get off the hook when you get
caught doing pranks, fun prank ideas, music
reviews, teen contacts, and more. This is really
fucking good, and if you are a big pop culture nerd
like me, its essential. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 32 pages.
RAG HAG #1
c/o Martinez
PO Box 51538
Lighthouse Point, FL 33074
($2)
This is the catalog/zine for rag hag, a cool woman
who makes pads. Rag Hag shows how to use and
wash the pads, why you should use them, stuff on
periods, breat-feeding pads, rad personalized witch
bags, runes, pictures of tattoos, and more... Fun to
read, even if you don’t buy anything (though you
should!). This comes with a fun Roberta Gregory
poster. She does trades, too. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 30
pages.
RING OF FIRE #1(?)
Hilary Russian
1012 163rd Ave. SE
Bellevue, WA 98008
(2 stamps?)
Ring of Fire is a zine about lesbian sexuality. One
of my favorite parts are the powerful drawings that
illustrate her self-doubts and realizations about
being a dyke, but the writing is all really good and
helped me figure out some stuff I had been
confused about. There are stories about Hilary
getting drunk, a rad girl named Jolie at the
Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival, getting over her
shyness at the local sex store, a girl named Cindy,
thoughts on “needing to find the right man”, being
a lesbian in a hetero relationship, shaving her cunt,
oral sex (along with important info on girl-girl
HIV/AIDS transmission), lesbian assault, and tons
of hot and steamy sex stories... Hilary takes a
really unique approach to this and has alot to say.
4 1/2” x 5 1/2”, 58 pages.
THE SECRET LIVES OF ROBIN AND JOCELYN
Jocelyn
4225 Glenmuir Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90065
(a nice, long letter)
I didn’t even get a copy of this because I guess it is
a top secret way personal zine by Jocelyn Cupcake
and Robin Sweetheart.
7th STREET #15
Eden Stein
#114 1144 Sonoma Ave.
Santa Rosa, CA 95405
($1 + 2 stamps? or trade)
This is a really good art/travel zine. Her drawings
have interesting detail in them, and her stories
remind me of The Catcher in the Rye. This issue of
7th Street covers Eden’s experiences in London,
Scotland, France, and Whales, thoughts on moving
beyond punk rock, Kensington Gardens, shit to see
in London, and more. It is hard for me to say what
this is about because Eden’s writing seems caught
between tangible reality and another plane, but it’s
not exactly abstract. Generally solid throughout. 5
1/2” x 8 1/2”, 32 pages.
SILLYWISH #5
Ocean Capewell
134 Radcliffe Dr. N.
East Norwich, NY 11732-1225
e-mail: shoelace@ix.netcom.com
( 2 stamps?)
This reminds me of Moon Fuzz in alot of ways; I
guess its because of the generally youthful attitude
and perspective that prevails throughout, as well as
the occasionally knock-you-on-your-ass funny
comments. Ocean calls this the “depression issue”,
and I can see that after reading her sad story about
being jaded with love and feeling angst-ridden, but
for the most part, this is pretty light, enjoyable
reading that made me laugh out loud at some
points. My favorite parts are the hilarious quotes
from “Saved By the Bell” and her dad, critiques of
Nancy Drew mysteries, which you will appreciate if
you ever read any Nancy Drew books, her fantasy
of being on a “loser make-over” episode of Sally
Jessy Raphael, stickers to put up in the girls
bathroom (good idea!). 4 1/2” x 5 1/2”, 40 pages.
SISYPHEAN GARBAGE #10
Sarah
PO Box 992
Jamestown, CA 95327
($1 + 2 stamps or trade)
I think it is just so awesome that all these 14 and
15-year old girls are involved in zines and riot grrrl!
SG would be the output of one of these girls.
Good graphics from the 50s/60s and beautiful
photos of girls (I know, I sound so perverty here,
but I don't mean it that way), an intense piece
reprinted by a woman who survived child
pornography, rape, incest, abuse, etc. that made me
burst into tears, stuff by Sarah on making her own
clothes, hating the school bus, hating her small,
religious school, a review of a Beck show, web linx,
opinions on teen pregnancy after meeting a teen
mother, trust and friendship, tons of zine reviews
with a focus on zines by teens (ha ha, it rhymed!),
racism at her school, a rant on the fact that there
are no Leia figures in the new Star Wars toys
because they are made for boys, and other bits. 5
1/2" x 8 1/2", 36 pages.
SIXTY-NINE TIMES
#2 and #3
Creative Art Designs
c/o 111 E. Madison #162
Seattle, WA 98122
(free)
Okay, this zine is done by a boy, but I listed it for
the exposure to Candye Kane and exposure of
other feminists in the music scene. #2 has pictures
of the Lunachicks, graffiti, poetry by
Wendy-O-Matik, and a profile of Candye Kane, a
pro-sex feminist/activist/musician, who seems to be
similar to Annie Sprinkle, one of my own personal
influences. #3 is thicker and features more photos,
a really good interview with Candye Kane, where
she talks about the similarities between the porn
industry and the music industry and what feminism
has to do with the sex industry. She’s very
articulate and interesting; I recommend checking
out her work or this interview. Both issues contain
ads with ordering info for hard-to-find Russ Meyer
movies. 8 1/2” x 11”, 4 and 7 pages.
SKETCHBOOK
Muffie White
(IPU Section)
PSC 98 Box 100
APO AE 09830
(a stamp)
This is a really really short zine done by Muffie,
who is living in Israel, but was raised American and
Sharon, who was born in America, but was raised
in Israel. They discuss the differences and
similarities in their lives and paint a very interesting
picture. 2 3/4” x 4 1/4”, 16 pages.
SLUG & LETTUCE #47
Christine
PO Box 2067
Peter Stuy. Stn.
New York City, NY 10009-8914
(2 stamps)
S&L is consistently one of my favorite zines. It is a
great contact resource with good writing , too. This
issue has details about the Citizen Fish/Avail tour,
reviews, columns... Essential. Really big
newspaper, 16 pages.
SOMEONE LOVES ME IN OHIO #2
Jeannette M.
2543 Fenwick Road
Cleveland, OH 44118
($1 + 2 stamps? or trade)
My only complaint is the shitty copy quality, which
isn't really anything big that should make you
decide to not order it. It's an excellent zine, quite
impressive. Jeannette's style has matured alot over
the last few years, I think, and this issue reflects
that well. The central themes in here seem to be
identity, emotion, and how they work together.
There's a list of "what she is" that is really great
because it shows how she (we) are multi-faceted
and how identity can come in the form of
dichotomies. Also, a list of stuff she likes, which
pretty much won me over immediately, but there's
more: really important shit on eating disorders
written in first person that I could relate to alot - I
think we need to start talking about eating disorders
more since I know I still do and so do many other
girls suffer from one, and it becomes incredibly
complex when my feminist self and my
subordinate, anorexic self clash, job hell (although
I must admit working at Sea World sounds equally
shitty to your old job, Jeannette), writing on being
shy, girl love, a reprint from Spinsterwitch about
why the author isn't sXe anymore that I totally
agreed with, a sarcastic piece on punk rock that I
also wholeheartedly agreed with, pages by
Elizabeth, Jenny's 12-year old little sister, funny
comix about crushes that were unfortunately nearly
impossible to read due to the copy quality, shaving
memories, racism/classism in riot grrrl, stuff on
touching, journal entries, and more. Almost all of
this is really personal and straightforward, and
argh! It's just really thought-provoking, and I just
can't review it without being corny about it! I'm so
frustrated! 5 1/2" x 8 1/2", 52 pages.
SOUTHERN FRIED DARLING #10
Amy R. Mariaskin
6448 Monitor Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15217
(a stamp?)
This is a small, cute zine that weaves Amy’s
wonderful drawings with science and emotion. She
writes about not being able to answer all her mail,
fiction (?), theorizing the Gaia hypothesis,
tornadoes, thinking about fall, information on the
“species of the issue” - the chuckwalla, reviews,
Arizona, gender identity, and more. 4 1/2” x 5
1/2”, 40 pages.
SQUASH #3
2501 Stonebrook Dr.
Modesto, CA 95355
($1 + 2 stamps?)
Agh! Tara’s hand-writing is so pleasant-looking, I
think she should hand-write the whole fucking
thing. Squash is full of lists and rad drawings,
which makes it fun from the start. The contents
include pondering on if heaven is full of cliques,
zine reviews, ranting on people who are too
wrapped up in a false identity, a list of qualities she
looks for in boys, complaining about angst-ridden
teens being the norm, a list of her favorite office
supplies and stuff she likes, fun celebrity costume
ideas (Billie Joe and Fabio were my favorites), a list
of crap in her wallet, a profile of an man who
works at Jack in the Box who sounds really
awesome, made-up words for things that need
definition (i.e. “Crumdundancy: The act of
revacuuming part of your car for no reason other
than to use up the remaining time on the
coin-operated vacuum machine” ), “sick parent
traps”, a profile of “Gramps”, being bored, a
normal quiz (that I recognize from a book I read
last year), one of those “You Might Be a Redneck
if...” lists, library observations, top ten reasons why
she likes her brother, and more. Squash is really
funny and has a bit of a fixation on eccentricities
and other human weirdness. Definitely
recommended if you look at people in a similar
way. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 40 pages.
STIFLED #6
Jocelyn Rousseau
PO Box 471
Allston, MA 02134
($1 + 2 stamps?)
This is a really well-written zine with a clean
layout and no bullshit. This issue features a story
about getting busted by the man for vandalism, a
list of bookstores in her town, rant on apathy, how
to give up caffeine, a list of books she recommends
about the Black Panther Party, how being a “bad
girl” affects her life now, political/social
commentary comix by Andy Singer, thoughts on
depression and medication (especially Prozac) that
I really related to, information on firewalking and
fire-eating that Jocelyn got from the library,
connecting her mental state to her period, being
dismissed in rock, hating bugs, and other bits. I like
how Jocelyn seems interested in not just things that
happen, but the mindset behind them. 5 1/2” x 8
1/2”, 28 pages.
SUBURBAN JUNKIES #4
PO Box 1009
Belvedere, CA 94920
($1 + 2 stamps)
This is a budding punk zine with a story of meeting
Tre Cool of Green Day by Ceci Moss, lots of
columns on punk rock and MTV and posers that I
had a hard time finishing (sorry), non-descript
record reviews (although so are mine...), a fun
interview with 88 Fingers Louie, and tons of ads. 8
1/2” x 11”, 28 pages.
SUCK #17
Rachel Fisher
4393 Ginger Ridge
Manchester, OH 45144
($1 + 2 stamps)
Hey! Rachel's parents aren't supposed to know
about Suck, so don't write it on the envelope. With
that aside, Suck is a friendly personal zine without
tons of lengthy rants. This issue features updates
on Rachel's life - college living, roommates,
responding to Christians who got a White Zombie
concert banned in her town, finding a solution to
angst and boredom in Tennessee, a rant by Rachel's
boyfriend Kevin on morality and law, an interview
with Kevin by Rachel on religion, silly, dry fiction,
plenty of poetry, praise of Rage Against the
Machine, and a rant on riot grrrl. 8 1/2" x 11", 22
pages.
SWEETHEART #9
6505 Esplanade #1
Playa Del Rey, CA 90293
($1 + a stamp)
This issue is full of mostly really sad and sometimes
funny in an ironic way (especially “The Girl Who
Cried Wolf”) prose, some Foxfire lyrics (see the
review of Foxfire zine), an account of her “phases”
from 6th grade to present that I thought was really
cool and fun/interesting to hear, and other bits.
Robin has an inviting way of weaving intense
personal experience, feelings, and rhetoric together
throughout this zine.
TAINTED #4
Deirdre
206 Main Street
Box 2417
Northfield, MA 01360
($1 or trade)
This issue contains essays on the “adult/child”
dichotomies in women’s media, an anorexic friend,
racism and classism in Halloween costumes,
redefining punk, American history, trust, being
asked to smile, and more. I liked the essays about
the adult/child dichotomy in media and the one
about Halloween costumes the best. 4 1/2” x 5
1/2”, 32 pages.
TALLY #6
6356 Summit Street
Halifax, NS B3L 1R9
Canada
($1, 2 stamps, or trade)
Another brief zine by Heather covering the
Canadian music scene and women’s issues. In
here, you will find an interview with Elavator to
Hell, a letter from Suzanne Little, a guide to
independent resources, information on AIDS,
osteoperosis, and a fucking scary story about
doctors and misdiagnosis, and a scathing jab at a
dumb boy in her town. This is really easy to read,
but is still really interesting, especially the articles
on health. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 20 pages.
TAZEWELL’S FAVORITE ECCENTRIC #4
Sarah
PO Box 1010
N. Tazewell, VA 24630
($1 + 2 stamps, trade, or a letter)
This is a short zine, but the type is small. This
issue has stuff on being a lesbian, prose, journal
entires, being an outcast as a child, tons of dyke
stuff, and more. Really introspective, but never
obscure. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 12 pages.
VELVET GRASS #24
Rebecca Dillion
828 Brownwood Dr. NW
Roanoke, VA 24017-4320
($1 + 2 stamps)
Rebecca has a great drawing style - it reminds me of
old Saturday morning cartoons a little bit. The way
she draws shadows and detail is really effective,
too. This issue is mostly about Rebecca’s
pregnancy and new baby, an interview with Marisa
Falco of Nothing zine, fashion gripes from Rebecca
and her readers, thoughts on sexually active girls
she knew in middle school, and more. This is a
totally awesome personal zine - no bullshit,
interesting, I wish there was more. She also does
subscriptions for $4. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 32 pages.
VENEER #3: CLOSET SCARS
Heathyr
16737 Flanders St.
Granada Hills, CA 91344
(2 stamps or trade)
This has a cut-n-paste layout and gratuitous
misspellings. Features include reprints (with
commentary) of the Bible and other rants on
Christianity and religious fanatics, a review of “the
Sandman” comic, a rant on body image distress
over fat, commentary on friends reading her zine,
knowing her secrets, and feeling discomfort over
that, and poetry. 8 1/2” x 5 1/2”, 36 pages.
VICTORIA’S HALF-TRUTH #4
Brandi
2080 Crystal Way
Boise, ID 83706
This issue’s theme is abortion because there aren’t
many resources or material aimed at young,
pregnant girls (besides religious drivel). Brandi had
an abortion, so she writes about it here. I think
some ignorant people who that think women have
abortions as birth control should maybe read this
and shut their mouths. There’s also a piece on
female genital mutilation, a rant on women’s
choice, and how they are persecuted regardless of
what they decide, a story sexual harassment by Lisa
from Bitch Dyke Whore (her response to some
slimeball asking her if she thought he was cool was
“um, no”, which made me laugh a little. I can just
picture her rolling her eyes!), and a piece on feeling
sad when she sees children because of the abortion.
I commend Brandi for having the guts to share this
with people. Order this, it’s really good, and sheds
alot of light on abortion. 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”, 24 pages.
YOUTH EXPLOSION
Nita Bowerman
292 Stewart Street Apt. 8
Peterborough, ONT K9J 3N1
Canada
(spare change + stamps or trade?)
This was written mostly by Neil with help from
Nita and Matt. This issue covers how fucked up
school is from the point of view of a drop-out, a
lengthy overview of how some grafitti was totally
blown out of proportion... home review from #2 reviews from #4 music reviews
PEAR DROPPINGS #5