Publications Received - July 2014

Publications Received July 2014

Mishap #33

from Ryan Mishap

PO Box 5841

Eugene OR 97405

digest * donation / trade

mishapzine@yahoo.com

Zines and books blend together like peanut butter & jelly, so a book-themed zine is one natural bridge between two closely related worlds. Mishap #33 is the 20^th anniversary issue of Mishap. Ryan dedicates this issue “to all those punks and zine creators still angry and still enraged in the struggles to make a better world.”

Reading this zine is like having a friend recommend titles you may never have heard of, but sound intriguing. Books like “Shaped by Stories: The Ethical Power of Narrative” by Marshall Gregory or Judy Pasternak’s “Yellow Dirt: An American Story of a Poisoned Land and a People Betrayed.” Ryan sometimes boils down a fully realized review to a final admonition like “You. Read. Now.”

I’ll be the first to admit that I rarely read fiction (maybe one novel a year), but that doesn’t dampen my enthusiasm for book review zines. Mishap #33 features both fiction and non-fiction in reasonable measure, peppered with gorgeous photographs from Ryan’s recent travels.

More on the zine/book connection  …

Sometimes one’s recent travels involve book hunting in the great musty cathedrals that we bibliophiles worship in. Shelf Life #1 chronicles the book hunting & gathering adventures of Annie & Tim, two people that I think I’d get along very well with. Having spent many years on the quest for elusive titles (pre and post internet) I totally relate to this wonderful meditation on the delights of perusing miles of dusty aisles at legendary bookshops like Strand. Shelf Life #1 is a beautifully collaborative zine and wherelse could you read about a book like American Communities by William Alfred Hinds which chronicles another passion of mine – American communal societies of the past two centuries.  For more information visit studiumpunctum.etsy.com.

Kevin Oliver sent me two very intriguing black & white collage zines titled (I think) blighted blighter and stay cool in the evil zone #5. Thank you Kevin! Surrealist art pulls us out of our mundane perceptions & these zines succeed in doing exactly that. Zines like this are meant to be experienced rather than described so write to Kevin at 11 Forbes Street Worcester MA 01605.

Paper and Ink Volume 2 is a literary zine centered around the theme of “Home”. There’s a cliché that says that something can be more than the sum of its parts and Paper and Ink illustrates this nicely. The quality of writing in Paper and Ink overall is uneven, but when it is brilliant, it holds beauty and emotional impact like with the quietly powerful story “The Coach Home” by J.E.G. Jennifer Chardon’s “Your Life Is The Story You Keep Telling Yourself” is literally true – our minds decode the world by creating and designing stories about our past, present and future every moment of every day.

Paper and Ink editor Martin Appleby’s vision for this literary journal rings true and resonates – nothing academic or pretentious here, thank Christ. it is a not-for-profit, paper-only zine that you can not download & won’t find on your Kindle (please give away / recycle / destroy your Kindle if you have one. Thank you - fm). For more information check out inpursuitofexpression.com 

AAPA LEE HAWES PERSONAL JOURNALISM GRANT

 The officers of the American Amateur Press Association have approved an annual grant in the memory of Lee Hawes which will help ajay’ers publish their zines and journals who may be in need of a little financial assistance. The AAPA Lee Hawes Personal Journalism Grant will cover costs up to $150 toward helping an amateur journalist to get their journal onto ink and paper.

In recent years, the cost of printing materials and maintaining a press have soared, and even desktop publishing has become expensive and prohibitive for many. It is our hope to provide a small amount of financial relief for ajay’ers while stimulating creativity.

In order to apply, AAPA members will need to fill out and submit a request for proposal form by October 1, 2014. The officers will review applications award the grant based upon the scope of the project and financial need. Journals printed with grant funds will be included in the AAPA bundle.

Requests for Proposal forms may be obtained by sending an email to me at singinggrove@conknet.com or by sending a Self Addressed Stamped Envelope to: Peter Schaub 212 Ladybank Williamsburg VA 23188.