As I was waiting for publishers to respond to the first iteration of Apsara Engine, I started drawing a diary comic about the process of abandoning architecture to launch myself into becoming an artist. The catch was I was loath to draw myself - so I created a character who would ‘play’ me in these comics, recounting my lived stories in her voice. Now this was before I came out as trans - and thinking I didn’t have access to a transness, I made this character, Anjali, a cisgender woman. And so began a rather tangled dynamic between myself and who I thought I was, or could be, or was becoming. In any case, writing and drawing Anjali helped me reckon with my gender, my transness, my femmeness. Spellbound is a document of a process, of-becoming , but also a deeply personal excavation of my personal history and experience. With much love for Liz Frances, the brains behind Street Noise Books, who saw something in the diary comics and nurtured them into a real live book.

Finalist, Lambda Literary Award for Best LGBTQ Comics, 2021

“The layers of identity and story in this memoir . . . and Som's fluid approach to representing the self, feel impressively easy, unbelabored.” — The New York Times Book Review

“Creative nonfiction aficionados and fans of queer comics alike will flock to this literally transformative work.”— Publishers Weekly

“Spellbound is an intimate experience, highlighting some of the most powerful elements of comics for me — not only the struggle of creating the work in the first place, but of realizing so much about oneself in the process. Som’s humour and sincerity is well complemented by the expressive lines of her characters, creating elegant artwork that flows like good conversation.” — Emily Carroll, illustrator of Speak: A Graphic Novel and author of Through the Woods.

“I’ve never read anything quite like Spellbound – an exploration of how the narratives we construct can reveal deeper truths, a book about discovery whose creation was the path to the discovery. It’s sharp and clever, beautifully drawn, and trusts the reader to come along for the journey. I can’t wait to see what Bishakh Som does next!” — Molly Knox
Ostertag, author of The Witch Boy.

“Bishakh Som’s Spellbound is a searching and restless document of her creative journey, and a good fit for these restless days.” — Scott McCloud, author of Understanding Comics.

“I loved this radical book about care–caring for family, caring for yourself, caring for your wildest goals. This book gives space for allowing care to be messy and all-encompassing. It’s a compassionate and enjoyable graphic novel about figuring life out.” — Archie Bongionvanni, author of A Quick and Easy Guide to They/Them Pronouns.

“Spellbound is a sweet, sad, charming coming-of-art memoir that belongs on every comics lover’s shelves.” —
MariNaomi, author and illustrator of Turning Japanese

“Bishakh Som discovers the power and potential in creating an alter-ego who both is, and is not, the self in this gorgeously drawn almost-memoir. Using the character of Anjali, Som writes about an international childhood spent in Ethiopia, India, and New York City. She writes of the death of her parents and the gutsy decision to quit a dull, safe job to pursue an uncertain creative dream. We, the readers, are the benefactors of this leap into the unknown. How fortunate that Anjali, and Som, chose comics!” — Maia Kobabe, author of Gender Queer: A Memoir

“Spellbound: A Graphic Memoir flows like a beautiful conversation between two selves. Bishakh Som transcends chronicling lived experiences by breathing life into Anjali and giving her a reality of her own. In this imagined parallel reality, we are guided by honesty, longing, and curiosity to a greater understanding of Som’s trans journey. I am especially compelled by the depiction of navigating interpersonal relationships while coming to a fuller understanding of the self. Som has documented this process with the utmost sincerity and imaginative wit!” —JR Zuckerberg, author of A
Quick and Easy Guide to Queer & Trans Identities.

“Spellbound is an engrossing read, examining complicated relationships—family, friendships, and romances alike—with natural, intuitive, and carefully-observed craft. Bishakh Som’s work throughout is thoughtful, witty, and beautifully inked—a delightful read from start to finish.” — Melanie Gillman, author of As the Crow Flies and Stage Dreams.

“By turns melancholy and sensual, each beautifully-observed line in Spellbound drew me into the parallel lives of Bishakh and Anjali. An intoxicating love letter to grabbing the rudder of life and setting out for unknown waters.” —Hazel Newlevant, author of No Ivy League.

“Bishakh Som’s Spellbound is the delightful, moving, engrossing story of the child of immigrants who does her best to fulfil her parents’ ambitions for her, before realizing that she has her own very different life to live. Beautifully told through the details of everyday life, Spellbound shows how we may have to learn a little of the art of living before we will know how to make art, and that if the truth of our life is being transgender, it is never too late – or too early – to come out to oneself and the world.” — McKenzie Wark, author of Raving, Reverse Cowgirl, and A Hacker Manifesto.