BOOK REVIEWS
By Brian Hurley

LUCKY MAN :: By Ben Tanzer
Four buddies come of age and get killed off by drugs, sex, and violence. Lucky Man feels like these unlucky losers might have written it themselves. All four characters take turns being the narrator. The pages are full of misspellings and bad punctuation. Everyone says “fuck you” and “yeah, man” and “whatever.” But beneath all the juvenile antics lies a sincere question: Is it easier to grow up or die?
[Manx, manxmedia.com]

SKINEMA :: By Chris Nieratko
Although he’s paid to review porn movies for Vice magazine, Chris Nieratko usually strays off topic and recounts his own sexual exploits. Skinema is a collection of his best reviews, in which Nieratko bangs prostitutes in Las Vegas and does unspeakable things to strippers on coke. Ever wanted to read about an entire season of Jackass where all the stunts involve graphic sex? This may be your chance. [Vice, viceland.de]

TEDDY SCARES: VOLUME ONE :: By Jim Hankins, Ben Roman, and Drew Rausch
Teddy Scares are a cross between the Garbage Pail Kids and Teddy Bears’ Picnic—a motley crew of cuddlies gone horribly wrong. There's an ax-wielding psycho, a punk rock bitch, a mad inventor, a forlorn poet, and a village idiot. The colorful artwork makes it look cool to be slimy, foul, and stitched together. But there’s no denying these comics are simply a marketing ploy to sell the actual teddy bears. [Ape, ape-entertainment.com]

TATTOO ART & DESIGN :: By Editors of Viction:ary
We may not be the greatest generation in American history, but we sure know how to get a tattoo. The other day I saw a guy on the subway with a portrait of Bob Ross, the infamous public access TV painting instructor, burned into his upper shoulder. These days it seems like every sorority girl and jock under the age of 40 has been inked. And why not? We are the first generation to grow a moustache for purely ironic reasons. If anyone is going to get a picture of a sandwich tattooed on their stomach, it’s us.

So Tattoo Art & Design, edited by the design collective Viction:ary, arrives at an opportune time. It’s a collection of brand new tattoo ideas from street artists, graphic designers, and fashionistas. Their goal is to push the boundaries of conventional ink by drawing inspiration from such pop imagery as Napoleon Dynamite’s sketchbook, Japanese anime, Atari-era pixels, comic books, and graffiti. And seriously, you haven’t seen funny until you’ve seen US Navy icons for pee and poo tattooed on someone’s ass. Or an office photocopier with the inscription “death before paper-jam” on the forearm of your favorite desk jockey.

The only problem with Tattoo Art & Design is the tattoos are fake. In the luscious skin pics that accompany the book, everyone is wearing a stick-on. What the fuck? Viction:ary says in the preface that we live in an age of impermanence, where everything is disposable, yadda yadda. But the simple fact is we have some amazing work being done in the permanent realm. Author Shelley Jackson enlisted 2,095 people to have words from her short story, Skin, tattooed on their bodies. That’s the stuff of legends. Because here’s another thing about our generation—if you’re going to pull some crazy shit, you have to really mean it.  [Viction:ary, victionary.com]

ZINE REVIEWS
By Kevin Nelson

UTNE READER
May/June 2007
A Reader's Digest for the intelligentsia, this bimonthly reprints articles from various alt-media sources. This issue features a short, insightful interview with author William T. Vollman and an article on the futility of current methods of protesting. Wow, that's only a decade late. All this nestled between ads for tobacco products and fair-trade coffee. An interesting if sober read. One question: Where's the party at? [utne.com]

CHORD EASY
5th Ed.
This determinedly lo-tech ‘zine is a typewritten songbook designed to teach you how to choose chords for songs, be they yours or someone else's. This labor of love is densely packed with info on simplifying chords, fingering, and other helpful suggestions. Useful for the beginner as well as the advanced player. [Light Living Library, PO Box 190, Philomath, OR, 97370-0190]

WORMS #1, LOST KISSES
By Brian John Mitchell and Kimberlee Traub
LOST KISSES #4
By Brian John Mitchell
These mini-comics are exceptionally mini—just double the size of my thumb! Lost Kisses is a humorous little tale about a former lover's death and the possibility of what might have been. Worms is the dreamlike story about worms, lightning splitting trees, and a home invasion! [silbermedia.com]