Collection Development Manual > Libraries & Collections > Special Collections > Zine Collection
Zine Collection
Collection Policy
The Zine Collection is made up of self-published and independently produced publications. Items in this collection span a wide range of subjects, especially cooking & recipes, bicycling & bicycle culture, crafts, health, political theory, "alternative" sports (such as skateboarding), queer & transgendered/transsexual culture and experience. Zines about zines (review zines, how-to-make-zines zines, etc.), zines that are mostly visual, zines that chronicle the culture and history of Portland, Gresham and other local cities and their neighborhoods or that meet the Oregon Collection criteria, and zines by people who live in the Pacific Northwest are also an important part of this collection.
An effort is made to purchase zines on subjects that are not well covered by materials in other parts of the library's collection, for example: vegan cooking, dumpstering, raw foods, anarchism, bicycle culture, animal rights activism, grassroots and community activism and organizing, and the culture of underground music. In addition, the library strives to acquire zines that provide unique points of view, even if the subject matter they cover is well-represented in other parts of the library's collection. For this reason, a large number of "personal zines" (zines written from an individual's point of view - much like memoirs, but often focusing on a specific subject such as experiences at work, experiences of parenthood, or experiences in political life) are included in the collection.
The Zine Collection is used by independent learners, people reading for entertainment and leisure, and students of all ages.