Wednesday, January 27, 2010

BIPL Review of Magas


L Hath No Fury (A Tight-Pantsy Drew Mystery) by Leslie Ann Henkel is a "cozy murder mystery" set in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I thought it was a zine when I ordered it from Etsy, but the slender volume informs me that it is a maga. Zines are old fashioned. Self-published DIY periodicals are now called magas. I have no way of knowing if this is meant as a joke, but it is certainly funny.

Joking aside, L Hath No Fury lampoons young and fashionable Brooklynites in the intimate sort of way that only someone of that tribe could achieve. If there is a flaw in it for me, it's that it is full of distractingly incomprehensible illustrations and slang ... um, much like Williamsburg itself. (Couldn't resist.) Maybe that's not a flaw at all. A lot of exposition takes the form of fictive Wikipedia posts and the like, which is pretty fun. Also, the actual mystery is compelling enough for me to want to get the second installment D.I.Y. or Die! in order to find out what happens.

It all has something to do with something called Dear Drunk Girl, a dead graffiti artist, and a mysterious North Face parka. Go here if this sort of thing amuses you: www.deardrunkgirl.etsy.com

No comments: