Shortest Day, the

C's full-color handwritten and illustrated mini- 24-hourish perzine depicts her winter solstice day-in-the-life. She does a holiday craft project, but is unsuccessful at luring her son to participate--no Norman Rockwell memories for Emiliano! The next page is colored in saffron to match some Buddhist monks Celia saw waiting on the el train platform with her. She goes on to list and draw things she saw and heard in her travels that day and the contents of the single bag of stuff she bought at Whole Foods that set her back more than $80. There are also little anecdotes, music-inspired memories, and train haiku (morning meal is a / half gallon of Kemp's milk and / a "shut the fuck up").

The zine is a wonderful expression of Celia's own essence. It's nostalgic, observant, brooding, creative, self-aware and a little self-mocking, smart, and makes you want to be her friend.

CATS: the only drawback to this otherwise perfect little one-shot zine--no friggin' cats.