happy Solstice!

THE AARDVARK #2

THE AARDVARK #2
Red Roach Press
POB 771
College Park, MD
20740
Joe Smith aka Art Vark, loves the written word, particularly when those words are written on paper, and can be found in libraries and bookstores. He has a lot of opinions and theories as to the future of this medium and shares them throughout this zine, which is mostly what this issue is about. I really enjoyed reading about this as it is something that most people who love books and zines can relate to. These opinions and theories are not knee-jerk and appear to be very well thought out with quotes and statistics punctuating many of his points. There are also some zine and book reviews and a nice intro about what it means to “follow your bliss”. As a lover of hidden bookstores in forgotten parts of town, second hand store book finds, and the great zine underground, I don’t have the same level of anxiety about the decline of the print format that Joe mourns in this zine. I do, however, appreciate his take on it and look forward to more of his words on paper.

EVERY REASON 1&2

EVERY REASON 1&2
everyreasonzine@gmail.com
These are short poetry/prose zines. The first issue is written entirely by Keith, the editor, the second has a number of contributors as well as Keith’s stuff. Poetry is very hit and miss for me. If, for example, the author is simply creating a mood with words then I tend to tune out pretty quickly. But if they are telling a story, following a narrative, I enjoy them a lot more. These zines have a bit of both, and fortunately for me, more of the latter. Most of the stories inside these zines are pretty dark, and the one about the dog is downright disturbing and hard to read. I preferred issue number one in that I really liked Keith’s writing. I had the time to get to know his style and tone, which was something I had a hard time doing with the other authors from a single poem. I would definitely be into another all-Keith issue for sure.