The Henna Artist: A Tale of Love, Loss, and Self-Discovery in India

LoveToRead: Sometimes, reading a book is like going on a new adventure. This book is like that. It is the first book about India, especially of this time period, that I have read. I learned a lot about the country and the culture.

I did find it a little difficult to follow at times due to the Indian terms used frequently throughout the book, but I was usually able to understand them eventually.

I also thoroughly enjoyed the story line and the characters.

United States on Nov 11, 2023

VisaDiva: It’s been awhile since a book spirited me away to another time and place. Often books from other cultures leave me confused if I don’t embrace the setting. The descriptions of people (and there were not too many characters to keep up with) and surroundings were wonderful. It was one of the few books I’ve read recently that I didn’t want to end.

United States on Nov 11, 2023

suburban housewife: I loved this book. It was a very easy read and the story intriguing !
And I learned something new about henna.

United States on Oct 23, 2023

Jyoti shinde: Very easy to read book. Has a beautiful story.

India on Oct 19, 2023

Renee Hardy: I loved this book!,

Australia on Oct 10, 2023

Shauna: I loved this book from page 1. Compelling read about Indian history and Lakshmi’s struggle to make her own way alone. Beautifully written. Looking forward to reading The secret Keeper if Jaipur.

United Kingdom on Oct 06, 2023

sharon f. leff: Whenever readers explore India, it’s rich tapestry of colors, aromas, and sounds, images reverberate in a musically charged speech and sound, much as the images from the Henna artist. And the female protagonist in this story explodes in spirits, talents, wisdom, and love. Despite all she encounters, love of humanity drives her to assist using her talents, resources, mind and skills to acquire survival skills, instincts, and abilities that enable her to assist all around her and at last herself in the process.

United States on Jul 17, 2023

LindaL: The Henna Artist is about a woman struggling for independence and voice. Lakshmi is the first-person storyteller who was an accomplished henna artist and herbalist. Her story takes place during the 1950s in India after the country had gained independence, but women were still property. It is not historical fiction but rather an imagined history. Lakshmi left her husband Hari since he beat her, primarily for not having children. Leaving her arranged marriage meant that she also left her family and hometown. She had to reinvent herself and establish contacts where she had lacked the network of relatives from her formative years.

Lakshmi, meaning goddess of wealth, employed a young boy named Malik to help her obtain supplies and move her business around to her clients. Malik is an endearing character who matures as the plot develops and portrays to Lakshmi, whom he calls "Aunty Boss," how to use relationships to one's advantage without taking advantage of people. I loved how he interacted with clients, women of a higher class. Privileged women appreciated Lakshmi's talents in painting their hands, feet, and other body parts with artistic personalized henna designs. She also...

United States on Nov 22, 2022

samriddhi w.samriddhi w.: “ˢᵘᶜᶜᵉˢˢ ʷᵃˢ ᵉᵖʰᵉᵐᵉʳᵃˡ—ᵃⁿᵈ ᶠˡᵘⁱᵈ—ᵃˢ ᴵ’ᵈ ᶠᵒᵘⁿᵈ ᵒᵘᵗ ᵗʰᵉ ʰᵃʳᵈ ʷᵃʸ. ᴵᵗ ᶜᵃᵐᵉ. ᴵᵗ ʷᵉⁿᵗ. ᴵᵗ ᶜʰᵃⁿᵍᵉᵈ ʸᵒᵘ ᶠʳᵒᵐ ᵗʰᵉ ᵒᵘᵗˢⁱᵈᵉ, ᵇᵘᵗ ⁿᵒᵗ ᶠʳᵒᵐ ᵗʰᵉ ⁱⁿˢⁱᵈᵉ. ᴵⁿˢⁱᵈᵉ, ᴵ ʷᵃˢ ˢᵗⁱˡˡ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵃᵐᵉ ᵍⁱʳˡ ʷʰᵒ ᵈʳᵉᵃᵐᵉᵈ ᵒᶠ ᵃ ᵈᵉˢᵗⁱⁿʸ ᵍʳᵉᵃᵗᵉʳ ᵗʰᵃⁿ ˢʰᵉ ʷᵃˢ ᵃˡˡᵒʷᵉᵈ. ᴰⁱᵈ ᴵ ʳᵉᵃˡˡʸ ⁿᵉᵉᵈ ᵗʰᵉ ʰᵒᵘˢᵉ ᵗᵒ ᵖʳᵒᵛᵉ ᴵ ʰᵃᵈ ˢᵏⁱˡˡ, ᵗᵃˡᵉⁿᵗ, ᵃᵐᵇⁱᵗⁱᵒⁿ, ⁱⁿᵗᵉˡˡⁱᵍᵉⁿᶜᵉ? ᵂʰᵃᵗ ⁱᶠ—”

We frequently come across stories that fill us with both delight and disappointment. The Henna Artist is one such story in my life. Our protagonist, Lakshmi, finds herself entangled among the rich and affluent of Jaipur in a post-independent India. Even the Maharani herself. She is an independent, self-made, talented woman who has risen from the ashes of an abusive and failed marriage. She has honed her skills as an artist to...

India on Jun 20, 2022

Random Robin: I absolutely love ballsy, flawed and unconventional heroines, who not only subvert against societal norms but do so without apology. This is why I loved the Henna Artist by Alka Joshi so much. The gorgeous descriptive writing was just the cherry on the cake.

Set in post-independence India of the 50s, the story chronicles Lakshmi Shastri’s life. This talented henna artist eeks a living painting the bodies and dare I say minds of the rich and privileged women of Jaipur with her art and her ideas, but these are not her only talents. Lakshmi is a healer. Everything she knows about the recuperative power of herbs she learned from her ‘gentle saas’, whom she fondly remembers throughout the book. For a change, it is refreshing to find a book with a positive mother-in-law character. Even though we never actually meet this lady, she sounds perfectly lovely.

The start of Lakshmi’s story is all too familiar. A girl born into poverty married off in her teens to a man who is physically and mentally abusive. She stays in the marriage for two years but finally runs away when she can no longer stand it—an act which forever leaves her estranged from her family.
Lakshmi...

India on Jan 12, 2021