We Peaked at Paper

Increasingly, as we come to terms with what a cesspit the internet really is, there has been a revival of interest in various artefacts once thought obsolete: vinyl records, analogue photography … and zines. With some zines from the punk era now selling for hundreds of pounds on eBay, and the study of zines a burgeoning field of academic interest, We Peaked at Paper appears at a propitious time.The book consists of twenty interviews with current and former editors of zines. Authors Hogg and Ironside travelled across Britain to carry out the interviews face to face over a period of five years. They sought to examine the widest possible range of publications, from the science fiction zines of the 1930s to a zine begun by a ten-year-old editor during the Covid pandemic.This is a volume that celebrates amateurism, and will be cherished by those who favour the local over the global, the home-made over the mass-produced, and Melody Dog over Taylor Swift. After achieving a cult following on its hardback publication in 2022, it is now available in paperback for the first time. In the words of Peter Doherty: ‘A great read – it had me reaching for my Stanley knife and glue!’