Monthly Archive for March, 2012

New Stuff This Week

The Baffler #19 $10.00 – WHAT? A new Baffler? For reals! Features include Thomas Frank on making a career out of mistakes, Barbara Ehrenreich on animal spirits, David Graeber on flying cars, Rick Perlstein on Ronald Reagan, and more.

Zines
xXXXx vol 1 Straight Edge Erotic Fiction by Artnoose $5.00 – I’m going to repeat myself and re-state that the title of this zine is straight-up brilliant. Smut’s not half bad either. -EF

World’s First Anarchist Manifesto by Anselme Bellegarrigue $4.00
Judas Goat #53 by Grant Schreiber $1.50
Funny Animal Stories by Anne Elizabeth Moore $1.00
Waves by Kriss Stress $4.00
Zines by Rachel Swanson: 42 Percent is not Passing or How Sex Ed in America is Failing $2.00, Masturbation A Guide to Female Pleasure its not just for boys $2.00, Twilight the Greatest Accidental Horror Story of our Times $3.00
Not Invented Here #1 by Alexander Stewart $4.00
Give ’em Hell/Oblivion Split Zine by Michael Heck, Melissa Kagerer  $7.00
No Loot No Job Portrait Collection by Michael Heck $6.00
High and Low: Daniel Meet Santa Claus $1.50
Kurt Mitchell zines: Tao of Stubbie Pencil, Surreal Tao of Stubbie Pencil $9.95 each
Expect Anything Fear Nothing the Situationist Movement in Scandinavia… $30.00

Comics and Comix
Trubble Club #5 $8.00 – On newsprint! And it’s beauoooootiful, by the local based T-Club all stars. Pump up the comics jam. -LM…And from Edie: Mi Familia! The cartoonist cabal is back for more with this deluxxx edition full color comics offering, silkscreen print and possibly stickers (Thanks Post Family!)! Trubble from: Nate Beaty, Grant Reynolds, Laura Park, Jeremy Tinder, Aaron Renier, Rachel Niffenegger, Bernie McGovern, Lilli Carré, Corinne Mucha, Jeffery Brown, Lucy Knisley, Becca Taylor, Jose Garibaldi, Joshua Cotter, Joe Tallarico, Onsmith, Lyra Hill, Sam Sharpe and Carrie Vinarsky with assists from Ezra Clayton Daniels, Craig Thompson, Thorne Brandt, Erika Moen, Antoine Dode and Alec Longstreth. KAPOW! -EF
Spot of Noir by Lilli Carre $4.00
Hipster Holocaust #2 Two Fisted Tales of Urban Edgyness by Ernest J. Ramon, Sarah Howell Morton, Leda Zawacki et al. $7.00
Laskimooses #1 and #2 Maailman Kirkas Aamunkoitto by Herra Matti Hagelbergin $7.00 each
Happiness Machines a New Comic From the Chronicle of Fortune by Caroline Picard $4.00
various Familiar Faces Comics by Maggy Rozycki Hiltner $5.00 each
various comics by Rachel N. Swanson: Oregon Trail Zombie Edition  $3.00, Thunder Snow issues #1-#4 $2.00 each
6 In a Rut – philanthropy is so rewarding by Frank Aggro $3.00

Graphic Novels and Trade Paperbacks
Krazy and Ignatz 1922-1924 At Last My Drim of Life Has Come True by George Herriman (Fantagraphics) $24.99
Annie Sullivan and the Trials of Helen Keller  by Jospeh Lambert (Hyperion) $17.99
DMZ vol 11 Free States Rising TPB by Brian Wood et al. (Vertigo) $19.99
Rachel Rising vol 1 Shadow of Death TPB by Terry Moore (Abstract) $16.99
Black Charity by Bal Speer (Archaia) $19.95

Art & Design Books
Portrait of a Young Man Trying to Draw by William Schaff (Lamano 21) $30.00
Ryan Trecartin Any (Rizzoli) $45.00
Susie Says by Gina Garan and Justin vivian Bond (PowerHouse) $19.95
Pen and Ink: A Collection of Editorial Illustrations by Kurt Mitchell $9.95
Capturing Beauty With Your Camera: 10 Tips To Taking Better Photographs by James K. Kropp $25.00
Alice in Wonderland Giant Poster and Coloring Book: 12 Prints to Frame to Color by Sir John Tenniel and Lewis Caroll (Abrams) $12.95

Fiction
Suddenly a Knock on the Door by Etgar Keret (FSG) $14.00
Distrust That Particular Flavor by William Gibson $26.95
Golem by Gustav Meyrink (Dedalus) $11.99
Scratched From Dreams: A Collection of Short Stories by Kurt Mitchell et al. $9.95

Literary Journals, Poetry & Chap Books
Another Chicago Magazine #50.2 $12.00
Oyez Review #39 $5.00
Paris Review #200 $15.00
Bomb #119 Spr 12 $7.95
Foxglove by Erica Schreiner $3.00

DIY
Official High Times Cannabis Cookbook More Than 50 Irresistible Recipes…by The Editors of High Times Magazine et al. (Chronicle) $18.95
Marijuana: Let’s Grow a Pound: A Day by Day Guide to Growing More Than You Can Smoke by SeeMoreBuds (Quick) $19.95
Tasting Beer: An Insiders Guide to the Worlds Greatest Drink by Randy Mosher (Storey) $16.95 – From the author of Radical Brewing.

Mayhem, Miscreants, Memoirs & Misc
William S. Burroughs vs. The Qur’an by Michael Muhammad Knight (Soft Skull) $15.95 – When Michael Muhammad Knight sets out to write the definitive biography of his “Anarcho-Sufi” hero and mentor, writer Peter Lamborn Wilson (aka Hakim Bey), he makes a startling discovery that changes everything. At the same time that he grows disillusioned with his idol, Knight finds that his own books have led to American Muslim youths making a countercultural idol of him, placing him on the same pedestal that he had given Wilson. In an attempt to forge his own path, Knight pledges himself to an Iranian Sufi order that Wilson had almost joined, attempts to write the Great American Queer Islamo-Futurist Novel, and even creates his own mosque in the wilderness of West Virginia. He also employs the “cut-up” writing method of Bey’s friend, the late William S. Burroughs, to the Qur’an, subjecting Islam’s holiest scripture to literary experimentation. William S. Burroughs vs. the Qur’an is the struggle of a hero-worshiper without heroes and the meeting of religious and artistic paths, the quest of a writer as spiritual seeker.
Body Art 3 from the makers of Bizarre Magazine (Titan) $16.95

Music Books
Seeing the Light: Inside the Velvet Underground by Rob Jovanovic $26.99
Commando: The Autobiography of Johnny Ramone (Abrams) $24.95
Rise of the Videogame Zinesters: How Freaks, Normals, Amateurs, Artists, Dreamers, Drop-outs, Queers, Housewives, and People Like You Are Taking Back an Art Form by Anna Anthropy $14.95 -“Anna Anthropy is an independent videogame designer and critic, and a key personality in the ongoing paradigm shift that is slowly changing the way videogames are understood, by creators and players, and by the wider culture.” —Patrick Alexander, Eegra.com

Magazines
Hi Fructose #23 $6.95
Bust Apr May 12 $5.99
Bizarre #186 Mar 12 $10.50
Fortean Times #286 May 12 $11.99
Wallpaper Apr 12 $10.00
IdN vol 19 #1 $19.95
World Explorer vol 6 #3 $8.95
Open Minds Apr May 12 $6.95
Flaunt #120 $10.95
Sneaker Freaker #23 $14.50
Skunk vol 7 #7 $5.99
Skateboarder vol 22 #2 $5.99
Paper Apr 12 $4.00
Fangoria #312 $9.99
Meatpaper #17 Spr 12 $7.95
Decibel #91 May 12 $4.95
Mojo #221 Apr 12 $9.99
Harpers Magazine Apr 12 $6.99
In These Times Apr 12 $3.50
Z Magazine Apr 12 $4.95
Inked Apr 12 #44 $6.99
Skin and Ink Jun Jul 12 #136 $8.99
Rebel Ink Magazine May Jun 12 $5.99
Tattoo Revolution Apr 12 $11.75

Sex & Sexy
Heroes With Hardons: Big Book of Class Comics ed. by Patrick Fillion (Bruno Gmunder) $43.99

Other Stuff
Eyeball Lunch Bag $13.50 – Probably this bag is what the Residents take their lunch in.
Steampunk Sleep Mask $4.50 – Brass goggles for brass giggling.
Roller Girl Candy Cigarettes $2.00 – Orange flavored. For your fave derby grrrl.
Crime Scene Sandwich Bags $4.50 – Ziplocked. To quarantine your lunch from greedy co-workers.

Meat Fancy Foil Decorative Aluminum Wrap, Butchers Choice  $4.00

Cola Flavored Mustache Lollipop $3.00
More Moleskine journals, various permutations and prices: lined, unlined, red, black, soft cover, hard cover, date books, etc.
Inflatable Unicorn Horn $6.99
Inflatable Tentacle Arm $12.00
Roctober #50 Skateboard Deck $65.00 – Thanks to everybody that came out to the event for the release of Roctober #50 last night!

Everything we list on our blog is available at our brick and mortar store. But not everything we sell at the brick and mortar store is available from our webstore. Go to  quimbys.com/store to see what is new in our webstore!

Guest Blogger: Chicago Zine Fest Co-Organizer Johnny Misfit, on CZF 2012

Top 5 Memories of Chicago Zine Fest 2012
by Johnny Misfit

As an organizer for Chicago Zine Fest, my vantage point is quite different from the view I was once used to, sitting behind a table as an exhibitor. My fellow organizers and I were concerned with making the festival the best we could for everyone, and this meant busying ourselves from September to March, and during Zine Fest weekend, running around and putting out fires (not real ones thank goodness). But now that the fest is over, I wanted to take a minute and recall some of the great things I remember and share them with you. Feel free to share yours with me too.

5) 2012 Artwork by Lilli Carre
From the moment Lilli sent us the artwork, I was in awe (immediately making it my laptop’s desktop background). We all realized its splendor, and used the imagery for everything from our website to the large banners we had printed up to use at the fest. One of the great things we have continued to do is incorporate amazing artwork from talented local artists and zinesters. If you haven’t gotten a silk screen poster yet, there are still some left. Thanks Lilli.

4) Silver Tongue Student Reading
As one of our sponsors for the past two years, Columbia College Chicago’s Silver Tongue Reading Series has been overwhelmingly accommodating to helping make our vision for zine fest events a reality. The Silver Tongue panel gives our invited guests another way to interact with their fans, and allows the audience to be active participants, engaging in the conversation. This year’s panel was no exception.  As part of Silver Tongue’s contribution, they curate a cast of student readers that perform before the panel. The 2012 Silver Tongue Student Board really stepped it up this year. Their selection of five female readers brought the goods. The emotions ranged from quirky, silly, emotional, to a bit racy. Booking a lineup of great readers is a difficult. High fives to all involved (Thanks Ian and Fran, Mairead and Jill).

3) Art Noose at the 2012 Exhibitor’s Reading
First off, mad props to Art Noose for traveling from Pittsburgh, PA, while pregnant. That’s dedication. But what do you expect from a zinester who has released 94 issues (and counting) of the letterpress zine Ker-bloom! Art Noose’s story (which will appear in issues 94 and 95 of Ker-bloom!) was a touching yet outrageous personal narrative about her decision and ensuing adventure to conceive her baby. Her tone was genuine and the story’s movement made everyone root for a happy ending. Her reading at zine fest was one that someday she will share to her child with pride. Thanks Art Noose!

2) Ayun Holiday’s performance at the Karaoke After Party
This was the event of the weekend that moved me the most. I never met Ayun, who is such a genuinely positive soul. At the fest, I was crammed into an elevator with her and half a dozen others. Instead of bemoaning the situation, she laughed it off, striking up a conversation with us all. If you scan through any of the zine fest photos you will come across Ayun immediately. She’s the woman with the headband that reads ZINES. Now jump to the karaoke after party. By this point in the weekend, most everyone (including us organizers) was so burned out. This wasn’t the case for Ayun. Before she took the stage to deliver her rendition of “These Boots are Made for Walking,” Ayun made a joke about bagels, fitting from the woman who penned the Zinesters Guide to New York. Everyone around the stage about lost it. It was one of those you-had-to-be-there moments. She kept smiling and laughing during the whole performance. Her enjoyment was genuine. It was apparent Ayun was happy to be part of this event, this weekend. Her emotion made me glad to be part of it all of this too. I was filled with excitement for being part of this community. People still care. Seeing everyone enjoy this weekend made all the extra effort planning this festival worth it. Thank you, Ayun.

1) Billy da Bunny as Zine Olympics Referee
For this, I have no clue where to begin. Billy was one of the reasons I got into zines; the main reason I found out there was a Chicago zine community. He lives in Albuquerque, NM, and has established the Zine Olympics event at the ABQ Zine Fest. Chicago Zine Fest organizers worked directly with Billy to develop the competitions and rules for this version of the Zine Olympic Games. I hadn’t seen Billy since probably the 2010 zine fest but from the instant I walked into Quimby’s for the Olympics he was easy to spot with his set of fuzzy bunny ears bobbing through the crowd. He wore a black and white referee shirt accessorized with a swinging silver medallion. Once the Olympics events began, Billy was non-stop energy. As the official, he was stern, unbending, and entertaining. In the precision folding competition, most notably the tri-fold section, Billy’s judging rung with authority built from his years of being a zinester. Then there were the explanations he gave to support his judgments such as, “Would you send this through the mail?” or “Does this look correct to you?” He was unrelenting. The energy he put forth made the contestants compete hard and kept audience captivated. This event was entertaining for zinesters and spectators alike. Billy was a complete part from the design to the execution of this event. This was my personal favorite event of the weekend. Thank you, Billy.

Photo by Oscar Arriola / fotoflow

0) Organizing with my fellow organizers
This may seem a bit self serving, but I wanted to take a small opportunity to thank my fellow zine fest organizers for helping put together such an overwhelming weekend. For all the countless days and hours we put into this, for all the memories that this fest generated and for all the smiles that came about, I wanted to thank you for making this year possible. Thank you, Leslie, Jen, Oscar, Heather and Neil.

(CZF organizers LtoR: Jen Twigg, John Wawrzaszek, Leslie Perrine, Neil Brideau, Heather Colby, photo by glitter guts)

John works at Columbia College as Recycling Manager and is a Fiction Writing student. He self-publishes the Muse, the News, and the Noose, curates the reading series Two Cookie Minimum and is a contributing writer to Gapers Block.

Version Festival 12: Bridgeport The Community of the Future Kickstarter

The Version festival, co-produced by Public Media Institute (PMI), is asking for crowd-funding. See their pitch is below.


What happens when you invite cultural workers, community developers,  entrepreneurs, artists, designers, foodies, public space hackers, urban planners, cultural geographers, and dreamers to swarm a neighborhood and transform it for one month? Version 12: Bridgeport: The Community of the Future.

This May 2012, we’re inviting you to come visit us in Bridgeport, a Chicago neighborhood, and join in on our month-long urban experiment. During the Eleventh Annual Version Festival, we will be opening and remixing twelve temporary spaces, businesses, enterprises and projects, all to celebrate the neighborhood we love and call home. And then we’re going to use these places as home bases, networks, and maps, all to energize our local environs for long-term change – but we need your help to make it happen.

Right now our plans include opening up the following: a bookstore, a music/performance space in a church, a home brewing clubhouse, a department store/gallery showcasing locally manufactured small batch and artisanal products, nomadic collaborative restaurants and community kitchens, parking lot flea markets, a neighborhood tourism bureau, a donut shop /art gallery and couple of exhibition spaces for artists and designers. A new holiday, Bridgeport Day, will be celebrated, and a bunch of new publications and projects will be launched as well.

One thing we are super excited about is the Small Manufacturing Alliance (SMALL), a new organization that promotes companies and individuals who make locally manufactured products.  The organization will open the SMALL Showroom at our gallery the Co-Prosperity Sphere, and publish the SMALL Directory.

This year, we’re also launching a new publication: Mash Tun: A Craft Beer JournalMash Tun is a paean to craft beer. It follows the pleasures and aesthetics of craft beer and how it intersects with food, culture, and society.  It will come out during Chicago Craft Beer Week ( May 17-27),  with its own mini festival during Version, the Mash Tun Fest.

All the funds we raise will be used to rent spaces, pay our licensing and permit fees, rent equipment and produce marketing materials to promote the festival.

Thanks for your support! We’ll see you soon in Bridgeport, the Community of the Future.

Weekly Top 10

What Is This? A Poster. A Book enters the top 10 at #8 this week.

1. The Chicagoan #1 $19.95 – Joining the literary-minded ranks of n+1, The Paris Review, The Believer and Lapham’s Quarterly, and doing it with Midwestern flair, The Chicagoan ressurects a long defunct jazz-age magazine and focuses in on non-profit production, local distribution and general excellence in writing and design. The debut issue is a stunner, a cohesive and relevant blend of fiction, history, innovation, interviews and a 50-page oral history of Siskel and Ebert. -EF

2. The Believer #88 2012 Film Issue $12.00

3. Lucky Peach #3 $12.00 – Dave Chang of the Momofuku restaurant empire alternates between griping about everything being done already and the kids having no motivation these days in this new issue which I thought was themed “The Death of Integrity” but instead seems to be about, uh, “Cooks and Chefs”. I’m still up in the air about how self-referential this magazine is – it’s sort of like a chef perzine with a big magazine budget, which sometimes makes it’s cavalier attitude feel like chef crony-ism and empty trash talk. All the same, I’m interested in eating and the Matt Furie centerfold is sooper cute. Food is dead, long live food. -EF

4.   Lucid Coma #2 Spr 12 by Kottie Paloma, Jaina Bee & Matt Krefting $12.00

5. Doris #29 by Cindy Crabb $2.00 – More mini horse adventures(!), tales of life, grandparents and Girls Rock Camp plus half the issue devoted to a longer personal essay, charmingly titled “How I learned to stop worrying and love being queer.” It’s a new issue of Doris, of course you should read it. -EF

6. Sammy The Mouse Book 1 TPB by Zak Sally (Lamano 21) $14.00 – Zak Sally collects his curmudgeon mouse comics and prints a beautiful 2-color graphic novel-collection-thwarted spirit quest. A labor of love that fears neither the grotesque nor the unstable, to be held and dug. -EF Thanks to everybody that came out to this awesome event last week!

7.   Snot Rocket City #1 by Margot, Taylor, Cory & Jeff $2.00

8. What Is This? A Poster. A Book. by Dan Evans and Carol Sogard $4.00 – (see above for picture.) Is it a graphic design group project about book layout and printing that is also interesting and legible as a zine and poster also about book layout and printing? Why, yes, I think it is. -EF

9. Birthday Boy Comics #1 by Matthew Koerber and Eric Scheidt $6.00 – These harbringers of fun give you a  carnal comics tag team repleat with multiple costume changes and plenty of saliva close-ups. -EF

10. Kramers Ergot #8 by Sammy Harkham and Dan Nadel (Picturebox) $32.95 – This latest Kramer’s anthology feels a little bit like cocaine and a reptile tank. The contemporary comics contributions are bookended by Robert Beatty’s retro-digital airbrush wizardry and bisected by higloss cgi still lives by Takeshi Murata. Then there’s a mouthwash Preface by Ian Svenonius’ space cowboy essay “Notes On Camp, Part 2”. Followed by some great cartoonists paring it down and playing it cinematic and cool – CF’s Hunger-ish scenario, Harkham’s Kubrick’s cube, Ben Jones gives us a long yarn in a dental floss line, Frank Santoro and Dash Shaw do a foggy bit about sexual predator entrapment hued in Cold Heat pervert-purples…

New Stuff This Week

Tonight is going to be great! We’re having an event with Zak Sally (Sammy the Mouse), Dale “Tooth” Flattum and John Porcellino (King-Cat Comics). It starts at 7pm. Click here for more info.


Anyway, New Stuff This Week!
The Art of Daniel Clowes: Modern Cartoonist by Alvin Buenaventura (Abrams) $40.00 – Don’t miss Dan Clowes and Alvin Buenaventura signing this book here on May 17th!

Zines & Zine-Related Books
Roctober #50 $5.00 – Don’t miss the release event for this zine (this year makes its 20th anniversary!) here on March 30th.
Enchante – Short Stories by Dan Gleason $2.00
Strictly 228 the Old New York Zine $12.00
My Aim Is True #5 Pieces #6.5 by Carrie $2.00
Hawklog Green Pamphlet by Leon Sadler et al. (Picturebox) $5.00
Zine World: A Readers Guide to the Underground #30.5 $1.50 – Supplement between #30 and #31 of this popular zine review resource.
Going All City a Coloring Book by Cat Action $15.00
Snot Rocket City #1 by Margot, Taylor, Cory & Jeff $2.00
Eat Zine #4 by Jazz Robinson & Dan Varenka $6.50
Dirty Hands #2 by David Alvarado $4.00
19 Keep Hoping Machine Running #3 $5.00
Dear Shane I Tried to Kill Myself by Jazz $5.00
Kathleen by Ben Austin et al. $2.00

Comics & Comix
Comics by Juliacks: Invisible Forces Nakymattomia Voimia $15.00, Swell Part One Openfaced Sandwich $10.00
Birthday Boy Comics #1 Harbringers of Fun by Eric Scheidt & Matthew Koerber $6.00
Broken Hearts Comic by Kathryn Keister $2.00
Backed Up Comics – Notes Lists Comics Observations by Ryan Ehresman $5.00
Backed Up Comics – Portraits of Mohamed Illustrations 2009-2012 $4.00
Travel Drawings 2010 by T. Grabil $3.00
Comics by Alex Schubert: Blobby Boys #1 July $7.00, Dudes: Kansas City Mo $3.00
Comics by Jackie Barry: This is The Sea $5.00, In His Time: A Quick Visual Biography of Ernie Hemingway $20.00, Lesbian Sex $5.00, Dogs I’ve Loved $5.00

Graphic Novels & Trade Paperbacks
Dolls Weekly and the Crawlee Things by Rory Hayes (Picturebox) $30.00
Simon Collection 2001-2011 by Tyrell Cannon $22.00
The Sincerest Form of Parody: Best 1950s Mad Inspired Satirical Comics by Jay Lynch, John Benson (Fantagraphics) $24.99
Gonzo: A Graphic Biography of Hunter S. Thompson by Will Bingley et al. (Abrams) $17.95
Ichiro by Ryan Inzana (Houghton) $19.99
Astonishing X-Men: Ultimate Collection vol 2 by Joss Whedon et al. (Marvel) $29.99

Art & Design
Garbage Pail Kids by The Topps Company Inc. (Abrams) $19.95 – This exciting follow up to Wacky Packages includes spectacular artwork and over-the-top satire, featuring inspired collaborations between avant-garde cartoonists and humorists including Art Spiegelman (who wrote the intro), Mark Newgarden, John Pound, Tom Bunk, and Jay Lynch. All 206 rare and hard-to-find images from Series 1 through 5 are collected in an innovative package, along with a special set of four limited-edition, previously unreleased bonus stickers.

Fiction
Heretic by Miguel Conner $9.99

Mayhem, Miscreants, Memoirs & Misc
DIY Magic by Anthony Alvarado (Floating World) $13.95
Black Wings of Cthulhu: Twenty One Tales of Lovecraftian Horror by ST Joshi (Titan) $14.95
Seeking Truth While Sifting Through: A Global Practice by HermanSJr. $7.99
Voices of Gnosticism by Miguel Conner $17.95

Music Books
The One: The Life and Music of James Brown by RJ Smith (Gotham) $27.50
Megadeth: Another Time A Different Place by Bill Hale (PowerHouse) $19.95

Magazines
Girls and Corpses #6 Spr 12 $8.95
Dapper Dan #5 Spr Sum 12 $10.99
Chicago IRL #3 Spr 12 $11.00
Razorcake #67 $4.00

Everything we list on our blog is available at our brick and mortar store. But not everything we sell at the brick and mortar store is available from our webstore. Click here to see what is new in our webstore!