NEW HOPE INTERNATIONAL REVIEW

Krax is an A5, card covered publication, containing poems, short stories, an interview, illustrations and a pull-out reviews section. There is no editorial. The poetry tends towards the funny with lots of puns and clever word play and including a number of limericks. In fact with the title Krax you would expect this, but some of the poems aren't at all funny — though that may be a case of different senses of humour! The wide ranging topics include cookery, hot flushes, alcoholism, office politics and airports. Few of the poems are memorable or particularly well written, however a couple are worth mentioning. Philip Catchtpole's JACKSON POLLOCK AND MY LIFE AS IT IS is an amusing comparison of life with Pollock's paintings, while Ric Adamson's THE TRAVEL AGENT'S EYES tells of visiting a travel agent whose:

	face            so dead
	in a sealed hermitage
	of boredom

The interview with small press poet, Ian Seed, is interesting and did make me want to read some more of his poetry (two poems were included in the interview).

Both the short stories in this issue of Krax (THE BOOK by David Ross Warrender and HOOK, LINE AND SINKER by Bill Close) were well plotted with humourous storylines and good endings. Though not great literature, both of them worked, which is often not the case with short stories.

The illustrations include amusing cartoons and photographs and line drawings of varying quality. The drawing on the front cover is an abstract human body that looks odd and doesn't seem to reflect the contents.

The pull-out reviews selection is very comprehensive, covering small press magazines, poetry collections and a couple of CDs. The back cover of the pull out is illustrated beautifully with an untitled line drawing by Margaret Balif-Simon. Underneath this picture is my favourite of the poems in this issue of Krax, Don Carter's TIME, which I quote in full below:

	Time
	Disappears
	Down a small hole
	Guarded by a cat
	Washing
	As if she had forever.

Krax is a meaty poetry journal that incorporates a handy review guide to small presses and journals from the UK and wider. Its reviewer pulls no punches but makes concise, knowledgeable and humorous reviews about the subject matter, and for this reason alone, I would recommend a subscription to Krax.

The A5 journal itself encompasses many varieties of poems — indeed the journal is jam-packed to the rafters with poems; as busy as the snowstorm paperweight scene on its vibrant blue front cover.

The main thread running through is humour. Whether off-beat, wry or plain laugh out loud, this issue refuses to take life as it stands. From the back cover PINK ERASERS draws a connection between print erasers and pigs, the swill-clearers, whilst also hinting at a slight association with the unmentionable:

	Oddly personal, intimate,
	it seemed wrong to touch them
	except when you really needed to.

	the plural of spouse is spice!

	Every pebble has been labelled
	With a black and white warning
	That reads:
	Throwing stones can harm the health of
	those around you.

DOING THE PROMENADE by Michael Newman depicts a fallen man, a busker, in a tight before and after treatment. After the man has been removed his essence is missed:

	the street is silent
	with car horns.