Looks Yellow, Tastes Red #23

Looks Yellow, Tastes Red #23 / $2 / http://www.livejournal.com/~unclevampire / 4.25 by 8.5 / 32 Pages / Colette, 184 N. Main St, Sunderland, MA 01375 / 

A very powerful perzine in which Colette talks about eir’s gender identity, as well as the public reaction to figuring out that ey likes boys as well as girls (and yet is appalled with the term bisexual). This different type of thinking about gender is really refreshing, as it moves away from the binary construct – and Colette really knows that there are more than two genders, that male and female are just socially constructed. Another interesting piece in this issue is a discussion about how Colette daydreams about what exactly ey’d tell a 11-year old version of eyself. Throughout this issue is a continued discussion about the changes that Colette has had, whether it be that aforementioned gender identity or sexuality, or even operating along a butch/femme line. LYTR is a zine that works with just typical fonts on paper, with pictures only being sprinkled through the entirety of the ‘zine. Some of the pieces are a little weak, and could use a little more in the way of background, such as the “Why Customer Service Must Die, Part II” piece in which Colette discusses the privileges of being a college student, and a half-baked plan in which ey’d make tons of money, and berate the uppity customers. However, this weak piece is amongst paragons of quality, and I know I would like to see some other issues. Keep your eye on the lookout for something in the way of new issues, as this one is a little old.