As we enter the new year and make resolutions to put the phone down and stop doomscrolling, Sunday mid-day’s resident Gen Z brings recommendations that the young ones just can’t miss
It’s the time to hit pause on your phone and pick up a book. PIC/ISTOCK
Make it graphic
One of the most interesting books scheduled to come out this year is the graphic novel Absolute Jafar by the famous graphic novelist Sarnath Banerjee. The book will follow the story of Jafar, a child born of an Indo-Pak marriage whose life is characterised as a geopolitical oddity. This explores themes of identity and belonging, and how they are impacted by bureaucracy and borders. Sarnath Banerjee is a celebrated graphic novelist, who rose to fame after his work Corridor was published in 2004, which showed the life of a tea-seller in Delhi and his interactions with different people. His works are often anecdotal and humorous, and have a historical theme to theme, showing a rapidly changing India.
The devil wears Prabal Gurung
As shows like Red, White, and Royal Blue, Heated Rivalry, and Heartstopper bring themes of queer identity to limelight, it becomes ever so important to read about and understand the lives of real queer people. Prabal Gurung’s memoir Walk Like a Girl explores his struggle as a queer man growing up in a prejudiced environment and how he fought against it to become a famous fashion designer in New York. The memoir covers these sensitive themes with brutal honesty, inspiring readers with his hard-won ascent to where he is today. He also talks about the struggles that come with migrating to the West, and the lure of the American Dream.
Caught in a scandal
As AI-generated content floods our social media feeds, it is also accompanied by a sinister rise in deepfakes targeting women. Meena Kandasamy addresses this issue in her fiction work, Fieldwork as a Sex Object. This book follows the story of Amrita, who has a deepfake scandalous video of herself spread everywhere, particularly by meddling WhatsApp-friendly aunties who love a good scandal and gossip. She is publicly ostracised by incels online. Kandasamy is a well-known activist focusing on issues of casteism and misogyny.
The little women from India
A contemporary reimagining of Little Women, The Sharma Sisters by Rachael Fernandes is an incredibly interesting and enthralling read. It covers the story of four British-Indian sisters — Kav, Mally, Ori, and Trina. Kavis is stuck working on a reality TV show, even though she feels she’s destined for more. Mally is ambitious, quickly climbing the corporate ladder. Ori seems to have everything you could ever dream of, though she’s hiding a secret that could unravel everything. Trina, knits the family together, however she finds herself facing a diagnosis that leaves everyone reeling. Find out how this family holds itself together!
Simping for Hollywood
Roshan Sethi, co-creator of the hit medical drama The Resident, has released his debut novel, The Simp. It’s the story of an unemployed actor, Raj Ladlani, who works for a Hollywood family. The husband, Jim is a massive, macho director in a creative rut. His wife Anna, who is much younger than him, is trying to seek her own independence as a screenwriter. Raj’s work here leads to a series of absurd events.
Crime, thriller, action!
Sunil Gupta. PIC/ROLI BOOKS
For fans of crime thrillers, The Red Alert is an absolutely unmissable title. Penned by the former superintendent of Tihar Jail and co-writer of Black Warrant, Sunil Gupta, it chronicles his time at India’s biggest and one of its most important prisons. He has co-written it with journalist Samanwaya Rautray. The book details the intricacies of running a prison, including dealing with the most terrifying part — a jailbreak. Psychopathic characters like Charles Sobhraj, and Sher Singh Rana, the killer of dacoit-turned-parliamentarian Phoolan Devi also feature in this thrilling book, written to keep the reader on edge with terror and fascination.
What’s Gen Z saying?
Anuradha Kumari, a second-year English Literature student at Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi.
She recommends George Orwell’s classic 1984 as a must-read for Gen Zs. “This book makes us think critically through our anger, fear, and hope. A dystopian fiction answers various questions, such as how one should consider their society and maintain their individuality.” This book addresses themes such as authoritarianism, surveillance, punishment, and defiance. She adds that reading this book will also help us in making a better society by making us aware of the power the State has over us, and helping us question it.
Reccos from a pro
Nirav Mehta, Founder of Broke Bibliophiles
He recommends three books for Gen Z this year. Andrew Ross Sorkin’s 1929 talks about the stock market crash and the Great Depression that rocked the world in the 1930s. Mehta adds, “The events of 1929 changed how we view financial systems, risk, and regulation. Understanding what happened then gives you the blueprint for recognising the warning signs we still see being repeated.”
Amrita Mahale, author of Real Life, is an aerospace engineer from IIT Bombay, who works in the field of AI with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The fictional Real Life is set in the hills and talks about female friendship, womanhood, and has an AI angle as well. Lastly, Anindita Ghosh’s masterfully edited The Only City has 18 stories on Mumbai written by extremely diverse voices. Nirav recommends, “This book as each story has Mumbai as a character of its own, and shows how everything comes together in this city.”
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