Zine Recs Vol. 6
a banana ketchup perzine, food/cat/art zine, a gardening perzine, a choose your own adventure zine, and more
Even though each issue of Commonplace features zine recs, zines are not evergreen and need to be shared ASAP. They’re just so darn ephemeral. So if you love zines and you’ve already bought every single issue of my zine (thank u) here are even more zines that you might want to check out. All of the zines below are in stock as of the moment I hit post. All zines were bought with my own money unless otherwise noted.
Banana Ketchup
by Jempol Zine | March 2025 | full color riso | 4” x 6” | 36 pgs. | $8
A food-themed Perzine about the author’s quest to make their favorite Filipino condiment - Banana Ketchup - from scratch after it was discontinued in the US. A fun read with a great layout it’s also printed on their home riso. They also bundle it with pins made from misprinted pages. A really enjoyable zine; highly recommend.
Online at etsy.com/shop/JempolZine
Let’s Eat
by Deth P Sun | 2025 | black and white on color paper | 5.5" x 4.25" | 24 pgs. | $6
Speaking of food zines, Deth P Sun has a new collection of drawings out in his super distinct line art style featuring food (mostly with cats). I’ve been collecting his zines for a couple of years now and they never disappoint, plus he has separate listings for tracked/stamped orders if you want to save on postage. If you enjoy his art style, I forever recommend these fun, cat-forward zines.
Online at dethpsun.bigcartel.com
Gardencrone Issue 1.5
by Melanie | July 2024 | full color | quarter size | 16 pgs. | $5
Full disclosure: Melanie and I made zines together in High School so I will always love anything she does! We recently swapped zines and this was one of my favorites that she sent. Her Gardencrone zine is a series that talks about gardening and how it connects with life. In this issue, she talks about a tree and how it melds with the memories of people in her life who have passed away. The zine is full color with a lot of collage and handwritten sections. TW: Loss.
Online at etsy.com/shop/slothandtabby
Moon Mart
by Kristyna Baczynski | n.d. | 3 color riso | A6 | 8 pgs. with interior poster | $12.12
This fun riso zine is a trip to Moon Mart, a magical market that only appears once a month. Each page is a detailed illustration of a single shop and its enchanted, anthropomorphic owner, with detailed illustrations of their wares. The cat that guides you to Moon Mart is also hidden in each illustration. My copy had the pink layer quite askew, which I think is part of the charm of riso, and whole zine folds out to reveal and A3 sized illustration.
Online at etsy.com/shop/kriski
Who Were You in a Past Life
by Sarah Hingley | full color riso cover, purple ink on cream paper interior | A6 size | 24 pgs. | $12.18
A choose your own adventure zine with 5 possible outcomes of who you were in a past life. The illustrations are great and the paths that unwind are really charming. This zine is popular for a reason (so popular this rec was delayed until they restocked it!). Highly recommend if you were obsessed with Choose Your Own Adventure Books as a kid like I was.
Online at etsy.com/shop/2Bmcr
Little Pleasures Vol. 1
by Kelly Belter | 2024 | full color riso | quarter size/ergodic | 32 pgs. | $8
I found this zine thanks to a seeing a random video by the artist. They are lucky enough to have their own riso machine on site and this gorgeous zine is a collection of their own illustrations of stamps depicting “a catalog of life’s little pleasures.” Each stamp feels like a little love letter to our snail mail community. The zine shipped quite safely from Seoul to the US with some beautiful bonus items, and smells of ink and paper, a bibliophile’s dream. One of my favorites from last year that sold out and has - unusually - been restocked. Highly recommend you get it while you can.
Online at politecopress.com
Thank you for reading and if there are any zines you think I should check out (especially Perzines and art zines) leave your recs in the comments and remember to hit the like button an odd number of times.
Okay bye!
Huge fan of everything Sarah and Else Hingley do! My absolute favorite of theirs is Suspicious Fish and Birds You Can't Trust. I giggle every time I read them!
These all look so cool!