Beasts: Volume 2

Ah, dogs. I am one of the worst people to bring a dog to, because I lose all intelligence and resort to baby talk. So you can imagine my delight (and the loss of IQ points that came with it) when I saw this zine and the contents it held.

This zine bears the motto “drawings for dogs, by dogs”, which instantly had me hooked, because it was just so weird and cute. As I flipped through, I found the myriad of drawings ranged between very cute, creative and somewhat disturbing.

The artist takes random dogs and partners them in various situations, sometimes with humans, sometimes without, and offers them as single-paneled and wordless statements or observations. Most of the drawings offer a keen look into the true joy and love that dogs have to offer. Others show the cruelty that humans offer to dogs as a reward, but it’s done in such a subtle way that it’s not icky. While not graphic, some of the drawings made me do double takes, while others just made me feel sad.

All in all, this zine says so much while saying so little. It shows the many sides of dogs, illustrated in lovely and varying styles. It’s definitely worth keeping around. (Tara Blackmore)

Nadia Foerster, [email protected]