Dave Roche

"Break 'Em Up The Whole Goddammy Thing is tender, truthful, and darkly funny. This was my first time reading a zine by Dave Roche, but I know I'll be seeking out more; he's sarcastic without being cruel, and sad without being blue (if you know what I mean). He's just an imperfect human, trying to manage a situation that keeps getting worse and worse. I've never broken a bone in my body, but I still feel like I can relate to Roche. Sometimes shit gets so bad that all you can do is laugh."

poodrow@hotmail.com… (altro)

[Review originally published in 2005 on NewPages.com]

Well, I’ve reviewed On Subbing in here before, but if you never ordered any of Dave’s zines (which are now probably all out-of-print), now’s your chance to get the first four years all in one handy pocket-sized book, complete with new illustrations from some of Portland, Oregon’s most talented comix artists. Dave works as a substitute education assistant in Portland’s public school system. This means he helps out in classrooms with kids who are unable to function in regular classes. What happens to him in these classes is funny enough on its own, but Dave has a gift for making it even funnier. It’s obvious that he really likes his job, and his observations and interactions with the kids are often poignant and thought-provoking. Already a zine classic, On Subbing is surely destined to get even more popular with the publication of this collection.… (altro)

"Dave is a substitute teacher and has a few things to say on the subject. I've also done time as a sub, so this issue had me repeatedly nodding my head in a agreement, sympathetic and otherwise. It is a personal zine, with a focus. I read it on the bus one morning and liked it so much, that I e-mailed Dave to tell him right away. It allowed me to almost fondly revisit my subbing days, but at the same time it reinforced how glad I am I don't have to do it anymore."
rel="nofollow" target="_top">http://www.leekinginc.com/xeroxdebt/xd5.htm… (altro)

"Dave is well known in the zine world for his excellent zine On Subbing, which detailed his experiences as a substitute Education Assistant in Portland, Oregon. However, after a few years of cranking out issues of On Subbing, and then having a book collection of them published, Dave dropped off the zine radar for a while. This zine here details the reasons why. It turns out that Dave has Crohn’s Disease, and he went through quite a harrowing experience discovering this. Crohn’s is a chronic digestive disorder that can be very painful and unpleasant to live with, especially in the beginning before any medication has begun to provide relief. In all of his writing, Dave has a knack for being both poignant and humorous almost simultaneously. This is no easy feat, and especially so when describing the living hell leading up to his Crohn’s diagnosis. But Dave pulls it off effortlessly, putting the very personal in a context from which we can all learn something. Simply put, this is an amazing zine." ~Sean Stewart, New Pages… (altro)