zine review:
One Way Ticket #6
The narratives that comprise One Way Ticket could certainly strike someone (i.e. me) as a little brusque. But it’s unlikely that this would bother its rugged and fearless author, the mysterious “J.” One Way Ticket’s packaging suggests something pretty and heartbreaking is inside-silhouettes of tree branches, embossed silver lettering, tiny little stars sprinkled generously across the back cover-but J’s stories are pretty no-frills. As J. relays the tale of his arduous cross-country bike trip, he doesn’t sugarcoat or romanticize. Each time he accepts the occasional ride from an irritating know-it-all or an obnoxious wannabe photographer, you feel it. When he dismounts his bike after miles and miles across the Oregon-California coast, limbs limp and shaky, you really feel it. But in the end, J.’s straight-talking does make biking uphill against the wind sound pretty beautiful-likely because he actually had the chops to do it. (Clara Lavery)
Zine, J., 5532 Baywood St., Pittsburgh, PA, 15206, USA, [email protected]