Zine Review: Even Noisy Sparrows

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Litzine, Serafima Mintz, issue 6, 527 NW 6th Place, Gainesville, FL, 32601, $3 US ($5 US for international orders)

This ever-changing publication — it has, in the past, housed haiku, tanka and traditional Western poetry — is all the work of Florida’s Serafima Mintz, but it never comes across as a self-reflexive enterprise. There’s a clearly established angle for this issue — the exploration of gender, sexuality and identity — and a reasonable amount of diversity in form that sees interviews juxtaposed with fiction and creative non-fiction. At the core of this collection, are its two interviews: the first, a chat with a self-described radical feminist punk that touches on running a record label, producing zines and being a “weirdo,” and the second with a Cuban acquaintance that explores astrology, Santeria, genderneutral pronouns and cultural reconciliation. Also prominent, is a touching, semi-fictional homage to The Firefly, “Miami’s home of independent punk rock and DIY culture from 2006 to 2011,” that chronicles its birth out of a squatted- in, abandoned home and the eventual fight to prevent its demolition. Most of the content in Even Noisy Sparrows is geared toward a specific target audience (queer, transgender), but it touches on universal themes: escaping, belonging, coming to terms with whatever you need to. One thing this collection clearly demonstrates: Miami is a much more interesting city than most might imagine. (Scott Bryson)