WEB REVIEWS: COOL CHICK ZINES

Maxine
Maxine ("for churlish girls and rakish women") is the online home of the Chicago-based zine. The themed issues run the gamut, from ambition (definitely read "Can You Stuff a Wild Tool Belt?") to travel (are you ready for "Gynocology on the Go"?). The writing is intelligent and aware — Maxine is for girls who want more than a summary of the sex appeal of feminism's varying brands. (reviewed 3/4/98)

Wench
Unabashedly feminist but playful enough to call itself "Wench," this site strikes a nice balance between Ms Magazine's ardent activism and the lighthearted "you go girl"-ness of much of what you will find on the Web for women. Recent articles have examined the Spice Girls' do me feminism, why Maxim For Men (and its female editor) suck, and how come no one ever noticed that Bazooka Joe is a sexist pig. (reviewed 10/2/97 by Emma)

Minx
I found this site accidentally — I was actually wondering if the British magazine Minx had a Web site (it doesn't, as far as I know) and ended up at this URL. And then all of a sudden it was an hour later and I'd just finished reading Big Sex at the Commack Motor Inn. Who the hell reads that much online? Somewhere in there I crossed the fuzzy line that divides surfing for work from surfing for pleasure. And I kept going! And then I noticed Minx's mission statement: "Guilt-free pleasure." So I kept on reading and I didn't even feel bad. I love this site because it is unashamedly into products (you know, the products that make you look and feel nice). But it's not fluffy — issue two is about the work place: Minx suggests a few hefty stones that should at least put a crack in the glass ceiling, and shows you what real women wear to work. (Hint: It's not spike heels.) (reviewed 9/11/97 by Emma)

Smarty-Pants
As its name might suggest, Smarty-Pants had a slightly bookish beginning, but recent additions to this site address the decidedly non-bookish issues of home birthing and tampons. Editor Emma Gardner interviews a midwife who is passionate about giving the birthing process back to the mother (she believes womb envy is to blame for men's technological involvement in birth). The essay on the safety of tampons chronicles the Internet revolution — the thousands of women who got fed up of waiting for the FDA and used the medium to spread warnings about bleached tampons. Smarty Pants is intelligent and earnest, and — unlike many online offerings for women — less one woman's rant than a collection of thoughtful essays by women who don't have all that much in common. Except that they're all Smarty-Pants, of course. (reviewed 9/3/97 by Emma)

The Postfeminist Playground
So, last week it was Post Modern Sluts, this week it's postfeminist... as in, "Thanks for feminism and all that, but we've got more important things to think about." You might not agree, but if you can get over that, what's inside is intelligent, funny, and yes, sometimes even postfeminist. And other times just girly. Susannah Breslin and Lily James are the girls in charge, and I like them because they just set Ms. straight on a few things — like that the Internet is not chock-block full of scary monster men who like little girls. This month's issue gives you reasons to cook, places to get naked, and an ardent defense of the prom baby killer. (reviewed 8/20/97)

PMS
That's Post Modern Sluts — the online home of the zine by the same name. The Slut Manifesto explains it all — "slut" in order to reclaim this word for women, and "post modern" because a post modern slut is a slut on her own terms, with "definition to her looseness." Make your own rules and make your sex safe and if you're not sure, just do it yourself. Like Sever's motorcycle cop fetish that would never really work out because all the cops she knows have mustaches. You can be a slut in your head, if you want to. Don't miss "Kicking Ass: A Young Slut's Primer," for the next time some sleazy guy pulls over and tells you what he'd like to do to you. (reviewed 8/14/97)

HUES Online
HUES (Hear Us Emerging Sisters) was started five years ago by three women at the University of Michigan who were tired of being told to get skinny and beautiful. So they started a zine... and now they publish HUES for 120,000 readers. Plus they've got a Web site, so if — like me — the funkiest magazine your local bookshop stocks is Vanity Fair, you no longer have to be deprived of HUES. Navel piercing, Web page building, and why Vogue doesn't know shit about who can and can't wear a bikini. (reviewed 6/12/97)

Maxi
Maxi is the brand new Web site from the women who brought you Bitchmag. Sadly, the online version of Bitch died, but what came out of it is a great Web site — this premiere issue/week is devoted to underappreciated girlfriends. Other topics addressed include emergency contraception, girly films, and — god love them for this — shoe fetishism. Candie's shoes, in particular (you know, the ones worn in the ads by Jenny McCarthy on the toilet). There's a conferencing system of sorts, too. Very low-tech, but hopefully the conversation will be good enough that you won't even notice. (reviewed 5/1/97)

The Amazing Parker Quintuplets
A journal and photo album in five parts (of course). I'll let the girls speak for themselves. Or maybe it's a whole Web site of recipes, links, and media diet recommendations disguised as a schizo journal. Whatever, it'll make you laugh, and the design is nice too. (reviewed 3/27/97)

Words of the Tyrtle
The Words of the Tyrtle is the work of Sage Lunsford. It's an online journal of sorts, though she (happily) lacks the pride in neurosis that so many online diarists flaunt. She's been posting almost-daily updates to her diary, "Coffee Shakes," since June '95, which puts her right up there with Justin Clouse. Well, one up on Justin, because Tyrtle includes a parody of his journal ("Justine's Ode to Justine"). There are sage words too, and sad stories of things past, and wacky advice from Auntie Lois ("advice you did not ask for from a woman you will not like"). All by Sage Lunsford, of course. And one more thing: For such an old-timer, she's pretty friendly to new-comers. (Check out the guide to her journal, which explains "rotted monsters" and "Lucy dress" to virgin Tyrtlers.) (reviewed 1/24/97) Note: Sadly, Sage has taken down her site for now. It seems hate mail and lack of inspiration drove her offline to write. For the full story, visit Tripod member sdubinsky's Tyrtle Page — this page is also a gathering point for the Mumblers, the community that developed around Sage's journal. If Sage returns to the Web, I'll note the new URL here — if you find her somewhere, let me know.

Net Chick Clubhouse
This is Carla Sinclair's site (author of the book Net Chick, too), and it's worth a visit just to ask the Magic 8 Bra a question (quick, before the trademark police hunt her down). I was told, "The cups are angry. You must believe in them if you want a straight answer." I'm not going to tell you what I asked. But I really did feel like I believed. (reviewed 1/17/97)

Disgruntled Housewife
This is more Bettie Page than Martha Stewart, although you will find a few recipes (filed under "meals men like"). It's an odd collection of musings on pregnancy (Nikol calls it "a bizarre spawning prone state"); plots that work if you work for the man; and a list of boys who've been bad (could be Bruce Willis, could be Nikol's landlord). For insight into this site, read the front-page column "Welcome to My Neurosis." (reviewed 1/17/97)

Barton's Den of Iniquity
Barton is a woman ("I enjoy using a male-sounding name in a strange crowd, because I get to hear some pretty raw conversation about guys trying to perform oral sex on themselves."). She'd rather bitch about other people than talk about herself, and she does the former best when she's talking about gynecologists. Her Gynecological Adventures are a step-by-step guide to knowing when you're in the wrong gyno office (ice cold speculum = bad). The stories will make you cringe and cross your legs, but they're a good reminder of what to expect and what you deserve when you get there. They're a good laugh too — and who ever thought that lying on your back with you legs in plastic stirrups would be that? (reviewed 1/10/97)

Brillo
Brillo Magazine is "for today's cranky feminist" — at least they admit that up front. But cranky doesn't mean boring or uptight. (Check out the dancing tampon on the homepage, or this month's tampon tip: Leave a tampon on the dashboard of your car to deter auto theft.) Yes, there is a tampon theme, but it's got nothing to do with Tampax (check out www.troom.com for their good-natured attempt). Brillo suggests sexual uses for technology (and you thought your Atari joystick went out with the dinosaurs), but it also asks some hard questions about the Web (what are we paving over when we lay the information super highway?). Brillo's not luddite, it's just abrasive. (reviewed 1/10/97)

Bust
Meet the women behind it, then check out the Web site. Michelle Karp and Debbie Stoller said they founded Bust because the only publication that still spoke to them was Sassy, and it was a little embarrassing to be reading Sassy in their twenties. Bust bites the Cosmo girl in the ass, but that doesn't mean Bust doesn't talk about sex. It's just that Bust doesn't recommend losing weight and wearing lipstick in order to enjoy sex more. (reviewed 12/13/96)

Heartless Bitches International
HBI is not man-hating, but it's certainly not about "Rules" girls. (You know, "Time-Tested Secrets to Capturing the Heart of Mr. Right.") It's about revolting against Michael Bolton and boys who think the same boring thing for an hour is stamina. "Bitch" means Being In Total Control, Honey. "Deal With It" columns are on anything from getting over Gen-X grunge-wear to office talk, and Honorary Heartless Bitches include Scarlett O'Hara and Eleanor Roosevelt. And for all you "Rules" girls, the Heartless Bitches Men's Auxiliary is coming to a Web site near you. "Because we LIKE women who are in control of their lives!" (reviewed 11/22/96)

Foxy
Foxy is for skateboardin' girls, or anyone who think girls who skateboard are cool. Or anyone who just likes the clothes that skateboardin' girls wear and wants a "girls kick ass" bumper sticker on their car. But it's not all about baby tees. You'll find interviews with girls who kick ass (Janeane Garafalo and Ani DiFranco) and advice on prudent use of credit: "Credit cards are a lot like sex...if you go too overboard, you end up paying for many years to come." Amen to that sister. (reviewed 11/15/96)