THE ZINE FOR PRIMATES
Ape Sh*t: The Zine for Primates focuses on the troubled relationship between humans and other primates. Issue #1 uncovers the bizarre history of the service monkey in America. The Boston-based nonprofit Helping Hands promoted using capuchin monkeys as servants for people with quadriplegia. Good Housekeeping, 60 Minutes, Time, and even Disney World helped promote the story. The issue also includes stories about a locksmith-turned-primate-sanctuary founder, the “organ grinder” monkeys that broke into New York apartments to steal gold watches, and a survey of the many ways capuchins have fought back against their captors.
Available in book stores October 6, 2026. Follow on Bluesky @monkeywire.bsky.social and on Reddit @ApeSht-Zine.
Ape Sh*t is written/edited by Carrie McLaren, who published Stay Free! zine back in the day. She lives in Brooklyn, with two human and one nonhuman animal. Becky Ebenkamp writes our TV column, "Simians on Screens," and hosts "Bubblegum OD" on WFMU.
See also: Carrie McLaren interview on YouTube, by OR Books.
DOWNLOAD SAMPLE PDF
BUY #1 HERE
(or at Amazon)
Fully prepared to publish and distribute the zine myself, I finished issue #1 only to realize that, for all practical purposes, retail zine distribution no longer exists. Fortunately, the kind folks at OR Books stepped in to help get Ape Shit out to stores.
You can order Ape Shit directly from OR and it will be shipped to you now. Or you can preorder from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or your local book seller and get it on October 6, 2026.
AUDIO EDITION
The "helper monkey" feature in #1 is over 6,000 words, a length that may try the patience of many readers. I'll be doing a DIY audio version, which I aim to post here in October 2026.
DIGITAL EDITION
I'm an old-school zine producer, so Ape Shit was intended for print. But a cheaper version in digital will be available here November 1, 2026.
T-SHIRTS
Follow on Bluesky to know when stuff is available.
CONTACT
apesht dot zine at gmail dot com