Set in a world where bureaucracies and borders shape human relationships, Sarnath Banerjee’s Absolute Jafar is a poignant meditation on belonging and becoming

Absolute Jafar by Sarnath Banerjee

Why ‘Absolute Jafar’ by Sarnath Banerjee is our July pick

About: Brighu is getting older. Badminton has replaced judo, irritation has replaced anger, metabolism has slowed down. Yet, some things remain: the inability to take a cab, anxieties about the digital universe and panic for the future. So Brighu walks. Unceasingly, through known and unknown terrains, with the pointlessness of a detective without a case.An Indo-Pak romance withstands years of toxic nationalism between two hostile countries, only to unravel in a third, in Europe. Jafar, born of that romance, inherits a history he has no control over. As he grows up in Berlin, his father, Brighu, desperate to hold on to the fantasies of a fading home, tells him bedtime stories: of sultans and jinns, of street food and eccentric cousins, of Delhi, Calcutta and Karachi.

Frame_33_14_fd96e254b8-zaxdjqkkoihoadb-16x9.jpg

Frame_33_14_fd96e254b8-zaxdjqkkoihoadb-1x1.jpg

Frame_33_14_fd96e254b8-zaxdjqkkoihoadb-3x2.jpg

Frame_33_14_fd96e254b8-zaxdjqkkoihoadb-3x4.jpg

Frame_33_14_fd96e254b8-zaxdjqkkoihoadb-4x3.jpg

medium_Frame 33 (14).jpg

small_Frame 33 (14).jpg

thumbnail_Frame 33 (14).jpg

Absolute Jafar Sarnath Banerjee 33 (14).jpg

About: In this groundbreaking graphic memoir, Alison Bechdel tells the story of her unusual childhood in a small Pennsylvania town, where her family lived in a funeral home—known locally as the "Fun Home." At its heart is Bechdel's complicated relationship with her brilliant, obsessive, and emotionally distant father, whose hidden sexuality casts a long shadow over their lives. Weaving together literary references, family history, and her own coming-of-age, Fun Home is an intimate, witty, and profoundly moving exploration of identity, memory, sexuality, and the secrets that shape families.

Frame_34_10_2505a96cde-ubqpihtngyvjayy-16x9.jpg

Frame_34_10_2505a96cde-ubqpihtngyvjayy-1x1.jpg

Frame_34_10_2505a96cde-ubqpihtngyvjayy-3x2.jpg

Frame_34_10_2505a96cde-ubqpihtngyvjayy-3x4.jpg

Frame_34_10_2505a96cde-ubqpihtngyvjayy-4x3.jpg

medium_Frame 34 (10).jpg

small_Frame 34 (10).jpg

thumbnail_Frame 34 (10).jpg

Frame 34 (10).jpg

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel

About: Wise, funny, and heartbreaking, Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi's unforgettable graphic memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. Through the eyes of a spirited young girl, readers witness the dramatic transformation of her country, the impact of war and political repression, and the everyday struggles of a family determined to preserve hope, humour, and individuality. As Marjane comes of age, she must navigate exile, identity, and belonging while remaining deeply connected to her homeland. Both intensely personal and profoundly political, Persepolis has become one of the defining graphic memoirs of the twenty-first century.

Frame_34_7_959278fedd-nkfgjfpzqslwfda-16x9.jpg

Frame_34_7_959278fedd-nkfgjfpzqslwfda-1x1.jpg

Frame_34_7_959278fedd-nkfgjfpzqslwfda-3x2.jpg

Frame_34_7_959278fedd-nkfgjfpzqslwfda-3x4.jpg

Frame_34_7_959278fedd-nkfgjfpzqslwfda-4x3.jpg

medium_Frame 34 (7).jpg

small_Frame 34 (7).jpg

thumbnail_Frame 34 (7).jpg

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi 34 (7).jpg

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

About: Kari is a young queer woman living in a sprawling, unnamed "Smog City," trying to rebuild her life after surviving a suicide pact with her lover. As she navigates grief, friendship, love, loneliness, and the relentless chaos of urban life, Kari begins to rediscover herself through a series of deeply personal encounters. Rendered in lush, painterly artwork and lyrical prose, this landmark Indian graphic novel explores sexuality, identity, mental health, and the emotional landscapes of modern city life with extraordinary beauty and sensitivity.

Frame_34_6_78a7a0e4cd-udstbkhtmyrpwrb-16x9.jpg

Frame_34_6_78a7a0e4cd-udstbkhtmyrpwrb-1x1.jpg

Frame_34_6_78a7a0e4cd-udstbkhtmyrpwrb-3x2.jpg

Frame_34_6_78a7a0e4cd-udstbkhtmyrpwrb-3x4.jpg

Frame_34_6_78a7a0e4cd-udstbkhtmyrpwrb-4x3.jpg

medium_Frame 34 (6).jpg

small_Frame 34 (6).jpg

thumbnail_Frame 34 (6).jpg

Kari by Amruta Patil 34 (6).jpg

Kari by Amruta Patil

About: Following the collapse of her marriage, a mother travels with her twelve-year-old daughter to Catania, Sicily, where they seek refuge in an apartment borrowed from a lover. As her own mother begins to lose her memories to dementia, she confronts profound questions about family, home, memory, and the stories that define us.&nbsp;Release date: 28 July, 2026

Frame_33_10_c1d7411347-pgkpxpexbfeqsgp-16x9.jpg

Frame_33_10_c1d7411347-pgkpxpexbfeqsgp-1x1.jpg

Frame_33_10_c1d7411347-pgkpxpexbfeqsgp-3x2.jpg

Frame_33_10_c1d7411347-pgkpxpexbfeqsgp-3x4.jpg

Frame_33_10_c1d7411347-pgkpxpexbfeqsgp-4x3.jpg

medium_Frame 33 (10).jpg

small_Frame 33 (10).jpg

thumbnail_Frame 33 (10).jpg

Beginning Middle End by Valeria Luiselli 33 (10).jpg

Beginning Middle End by Valeria Luiselli

About: In the exhilarating conclusion to Colson Whitehead's Harlem Trilogy, furniture dealer Ray Carney is once again tempted back into New York City's criminal underworld when financial pressures make one final score impossible to resist. Meanwhile, his formidable associate Pepper becomes entangled in the chaotic downtown art scene, as the city transforms in the early 1980s from gritty survival to glossy ambition.&nbsp;Release date: 21 July, 2026

Frame_33_13_2e6e3a5aef-pgmvoeftidevrgr-16x9.jpg

Frame_33_13_2e6e3a5aef-pgmvoeftidevrgr-1x1.jpg

Frame_33_13_2e6e3a5aef-pgmvoeftidevrgr-3x2.jpg

Frame_33_13_2e6e3a5aef-pgmvoeftidevrgr-3x4.jpg

Frame_33_13_2e6e3a5aef-pgmvoeftidevrgr-4x3.jpg

medium_Frame 33 (13).jpg

small_Frame 33 (13).jpg

thumbnail_Frame 33 (13).jpg

Cool Machine by Colson Whitehead 33 (13).jpg

Cool Machine by Colson Whitehead

A virtual literary hangout where we handpick one unputdownable book every month

Absolute Jafar

large_Book club FINAL.jpg

medium_Book club FINAL.jpg

small_Book club FINAL.jpg

thumbnail_Book club FINAL.jpg

Book club FINAL.jpg

Join our Instagram channel to discuss the book of the month as we read it. From every-thought-you-had-while-reading to the author's notes, there's a lot going on here. 

Want to be a member of The Nod Book Club ?

For book recs that will make you ditch your TBR, sign up for our newsletter.

The Nod Book Club

YT_cut_v2_00_08_45_03_Still001_1e9c2685dc-ckhijrnofqmvfgy-16x9.jpg

YT_cut_v2_00_08_45_03_Still001_1e9c2685dc-ckhijrnofqmvfgy-1x1.jpg

YT_cut_v2_00_08_45_03_Still001_1e9c2685dc-ckhijrnofqmvfgy-3x2.jpg

YT_cut_v2_00_08_45_03_Still001_1e9c2685dc-ckhijrnofqmvfgy-3x4.jpg

YT_cut_v2_00_08_45_03_Still001_1e9c2685dc-ckhijrnofqmvfgy-4x3.jpg

large_YT cut_v2.00_08_45_03.Still001.jpg

medium_YT cut_v2.00_08_45_03.Still001.jpg

small_YT cut_v2.00_08_45_03.Still001.jpg

thumbnail_YT cut_v2.00_08_45_03.Still001.jpg

YT cut_v2.00_08_45_03.Still001.jpg

Kiran Desai in conversation with Sonam Kapoor for The Nod Book Club

Getting Kiran Desai and Sonam Kapoor in a room to talk about 'The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny' (and then some) was pure magic. There was laughter, goosebumps, a few misty eyes—and everything in between. We couldn’t have dreamed up a better duo to kick off The Nod Book Club’s very first event.

BookS