Zine (z)

Photos of the rare meeting of two heart-shaped potatoes.

"Cherchez la Femme" by Becca Taylor. Based loosely on Charlize Theron's relationship (and lack thereof) to her character in Monster.

6x5 is a collection of written and visual material that aspires to be a unified art object. All elements are intended to interact with all other elements but their collisions are not premeditated. Each issue has a loose theme that is sometimes determined before the work is collected, sometimes after. Some elements are entirely handcrafted. Some elements are fragments, stanzas plucked from larger poems or paintings taken out of a series. Each element stands alone, without title, caption, or authorial notation.

The Apology Issue! About damn time! Brandon is finally turning soft, letting the whole world know that he really does care, and yes he is sorry for slacking off in class! Yes, he is sorry for taking a piss on the Grand Redline stop! Yes, he is sorry for pretty much everything he's ever done to every girl he's ever met! Page after page, this zine is Brandon apologizing for all sorts of things, each letter signed at the bottom to ensure authenticity. If you've ever wanted a glimpse into the small, compassionate part of Brandon's heart, this may be your only chance! Half size, 24 pages.

Thoughts on culture, both here and abroad, explored in personal accounts of a trip to Europe.

Two zines in one. Punk politics from the South Side, focusing on the needs of prisoners and the under-privileged against the backdrop of war, vanity commercial development, and other wastes of energy

An anthology of comics from Top Shelf cartoonists, including Chicagoans.

The pink cover of this zine states that this is "not another one of those educational booklets," but rather a "personal story." This is a pretty great, and pretty extensive look at the concept of suicide, all through the eyes of someone who has been there and done that. Katherine talks about the things that had a tendency to bring her down, and how she struggled through all the bad to try and find the good. The personal touch to this zine is what really makes it interesting to read, though it doesn't have that per-zine look to it. The writing is very professional, with the references cited in the back and everything. There are a few photos, and some clip art, and towards the end the topic of mental health care is discussed as well. If you or anyone you know is going through some tough times, this one might help out. Half size, 64 pages, comes with a cool "Chicago is for Loners" sticker.

Punk music zine, directing a considerable amount of anger toward the local rock mainstream ("Flaming Metro," etc). Also features interviews and reviews.

Space for Machines #3 is the pseudohistorical story about the shadowy interactions of an astronomer, an architect, and a dancer. Frank Drake, Jack Sherman Baker, and Margaret Erlanger all almost converge on a plot of land in Urbana, Illinois. Illustrated with original photography, ephemera, SETI diagrams and archival material.