Browsing

Browsing was a FAPAzine published by J. Michael Rosenblum from the UK despite the War.

In Futurian War Digest #37 (October 1944), Rosenblum said:

From the present issue (No 9) of my Fapa publication Browsing, it is available to non-members at a price of 2d per copy post free. The magazine is a six or more page publication devoted mainly to fantasy in book form and includes book reviews, chatter and notes. Persons co-operating in various ventures will continue to receive free copies though. 

The FAPA Book (volume 3) notes re #11 in October 1945 mailing (see details in the table below):

Browsing is simultaneously Fantast's Folly [by C. S. Youd]. Fantast's Folly is simultaneously (Rosenblum's) Browsing no. 11. The magazine (and there was only one, not two) was actually solely Fantast's Folly, with extra details added to make Swisher's indexing job more interesting.

The final issue, distributed with the January 1946 mailing 34, offers some insights into timing.

By now the issue of "BROWSING" devoted to a discussion on Weird fiction should have been fully distributed via FAPA […] The stencils for this were cut in August 1944, the mimeoing done about April '45, & the copies mailed to the USA in May; which only goes to show how long a publication can take betwixt conception & distribution.
So far some very encouraging comments have come in about it; notably from Harold Wakefield of Toronto and Matthew Onderdonk […] I quote that here so that the folk who contributed so nobly to the round-discussion can have some idea

It seems that Rosenblum meant #10 (not available online so far): judging from the bibliographies as summed below, it is the only possibility. In FWD 38 (December 1944) he announced he would soon publish

A pamphlet entitled "Discussions on a theme, No 1; Some Words of Wisdom on the Weird" with contributions from J. K. Aiken, J. Banks, J. F. Burke, Malcolm Ferguson and Paul Searles based on an article by Edmund Wilson in the New Yorker. Arthur Hillman has MCed and stencilled this opus which is a really serious and worthwhile discussion on the subject. Priced at 4d.

This then would be likely issued as (or just with?) #10, but it remains to be confirmed. Another strange fact is that per FAPA Book, #10 this was distributed only in the same Mailing 34 as the New Series #2, but perhaps Rosenblum meant responses to earlier copies mailed individually outside FAPA?

FAPA Book also notes a case where an unmarked bibliographic sheet of bibliographies (see below) separated from the Browsing, causing confusion.

#	Date	Pp	FAPA mail­ing	Notes
1	January 1943	2	24
2	Spring 1943	4	25
3	Summer 1943	4	26
4	October 1943	4	27
5	December 1943	4	27
6	Spring 1944	4	28
7	September 1944	6	29
8	1944	6	29
9	(September) 1944	10	30A	Pictorial masthead ("drawing in this issue by Joe Gibson") says Browsings and is so indexed in FAPA Book vol. 2, but this was clearly inadvertent error (seems the only such); p6 has "Appearing in BROWSING number 9, September 1944". No other date anywhere, even in colophon at p2, just "approximately quarterly"; December given generally was the FAPA mailing date. pp 1–2 BIBLIOGRAPHY: Report on Progress (of "the proposal I made of an elaborate page-per-book bibliography"); pp 3–4 "What They Are About! Jottings on books read recently"; p5 Book Chatter; p6 example bibliographic entry/review by Allan H. Miles (F/O R.A.F.); p7 'And this page is meant only for FAPA members, as it backs on to a reprint of C. S. Youd's "Rubaiyat of a Science Fiction Fan" originally published with Novae Terrae about 1938, and reprinted recently by Ron Lane, who has kindly let me have enough copies to cover Fapa distribution.' General mailing comments follow; then 3 pages of the reprint
10	Summer 1945	15	34	note the belated distribution as described above
11	August 1945	10	33	Header Fantast's Folly No. 3; see also above. Record of early August fan gathering in London "prepared sectionally by various people … Sam Youd wishes it to be taken as "FANTAST’S FOLLY III” for the record, whilst J.M. Rosenblum points out that it is simultaneously "BROWSING” no. 11; thus causing a crisis in the Swisher files … published from" JMR's Leeds address; he wrote Tuesday on pp 9–10.
New Series, produced in LA by Gus Willmorth and E. Everett Evans
1	Autumn 1945	14	33
2	January 1946	16	34	Final issue (without any suggestion of stopping). Misscanned at Fanac.org, some pages repeat but there are only 16 – numbered up to PAGE TEN and then three sheets of book reviews / bibliographic entries, inc. by Julian Parr. Also includes My First Stencil by Joyce Fairbairn pp 5–6

• Browsing online at fanac.org

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Publication

1943—1946

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