Escaping from an abusive marriage, seventeen-year-old Lakshmi makes her way alone to the city of Jaipur in the 1950s. There she becomes the mostly highly sought after henna artist and confidante to the wealthy women of the upper class. She is well on her way to carving out an independent life for herself, when the high-spirited sister she never knew she had, shows up. Caring for Radha complicates Lakshmi’s life, and threatens her plans, yet still she perseveres and charts a course that satisfies her own ambitions as well as society’s expectations of her.
I liked this book more than I thought I would. I found it to be an enjoyable easy read about art, culture and society in another country. When compared with epic novels of India like A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry, The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, or The Far Pavilions by M.M. Kaye, the writing felt immature with perhaps too pat of an ending. But in its favour is its accessibility as an evocative historical fiction with a contemporary feel, an uplifting tone, and lots of cool information about henna. Lakshmi is an intriguing character who develops beautifully in the story even though some of the sideline characters felt a bit two-dimensional and stereotypical.
What I loved most was the author’s reason for writing this novel. She said her mother was the inspiration for the character of Lakshmi, because her mother was in an arranged marriage and had few choices. She wanted her daughter’s life to be different. Joshi’s would include all of the decision-making and opportunities that her mother had been denied. The author says, “My mother is no longer with us, but she lives in every breath Lakshmi takes and every word she utters. Through Lakshmi, my mother revels in the freedoms she never had in real life.”
There is a Glossary of Terms at the back of this book for handy reference, which might make reading a hard copy easier–although the meaning of many of the words are usually quite clear from the context. A sequel was published earlier this year, which I look forward to reading. It’s called The Secret Keeper of Jaipur.
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