Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⬜
Title: The Henna Artist
Author: Alka Joshi
Genre: Historical Fiction
Author Info: She/Her
Setting: Jaipur, India
Month Read: March, 2021
Book Type: Audiobook
Publication: 2020
Pages: 384
TRIGGER WARNING-
Teen Pregnancy / Blackmail / Sexual Themes /Abortion / Adoption / Spousal Abuse
"People are more gullible and less compassionate than any of us want to believe"
No Spoiler Summary:
The Henna Artist takes place in Jaipur, India in the 1950s and follows a henna artist, Lakshmi, as she travels from appointment to appointment of some of the richest and most famous women in Jaipur to give them henna, tonics, and more.
Want a marriage between your son and a daughter of the village? Lakshmi will make it happen. Want a healthy baby- call Lakshmi. Don't want to have a baby? Lakshmi will help you.
Lakshmi's knowledge and ambition drives her throughout the novel as she works hard to build her own home- full of rich comforts like that of the ladies she services on a much more modest budget. You find out - SPOILER - she ran away from her abusive husband 13 years prior to when this novel starts- and everything starts to crumble when he arrives in Jaipur with (Surprise!) the 13 year old sister she never knew existed.
Radha is incorrigible, strong willed, and not as versed in the elite Jaipur social scene, getting into trouble even Lakshmi cannot get her out of. As Lakshmi tries to fend off her debtors, save her business, and take care of her sister and the orphan village boy she employs - will she be able to keep her head above the water looking to consume her?
Review:
I couldn't stop thinking about this book after it hadn't been chosen on two separate occassions at my book club. I don't listen to audiobooks very frequently anymore because I don't have a commute, but I did have a lot of driving to do for Dr. appointments for my son so I chose this on Audible.
I'm actually glad I got the audiobook over a hardcover copy, because this narrator is
F A N T A S T I C and I hope she is kept for the next two books in the series! I would never have been able to pronounce things correctly, and the book flowed effortlessly to my ears with her voice guiding me through the pages.
The Henna Artist was a beautiful read- with likable (and very unlikable) characters, a great plot, and writing that makes you visit Lakshmi's head- but also makes you visit the rich, indulgent homes of the women she hennas.
I've never been to India, but with this writing you don't have to- it is all so detailed- so clear- that you can almost touch the rich rugs, the silken pillows, the feathers of a parrot- you can cough on the dirt being kicked up in the air, smell the new baby scent, and taste the herbs.
If you're looking for an escape that comes with it's own sorrows and difficult moments, The Henna Artist is a very good read. Transport yourself not only in location, but in time- where Marilyn Monroe rules the movie screens and Western culture is beginning to dominate the rich in Jaipur.
Let me know if you've read The Henna Artist, and what you thought! If you listen to the audiobook - you're in for such a treat!
"My younger sister was lively and curious, which was good, but she was also untamed - and that could be a dangerous combination."
Recommendations:
Ruta Sepetys writes brilliant historical fiction (YA, but can read older).
The 7 Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is set in a similar time period, and is written with a similar wit, tiredness, and ambition that reminds me of Lakshmi.