Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi

22 reviews

reddeddy's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexism, Sexual content, Vomit, Abortion, Child abuse, Child death, and Classism

Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Body shaming, Colonisation, Death of parent, Drug use, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Violence, Xenophobia, Bullying, and Cursing

Minor: Ableism, Car accident, Cultural appropriation, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Islamophobia, Racism, Slavery, Suicide, and Toxic relationship

jashanac's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

 The characters were, for me, the least enjoyable part of this book. Lakshmi was slightly a "too stupid to live" type of character. She was stubbornly trying to go through her life with blinders on, and when her 13 year old sister shows up, completely naïve and unpredictable, she does next to nothing to give her any kind of grounding foundation. She doesn't try to bond with her, doesn't try to genuinely explain how life in Jaipur works -- she just recites some "rules" at her and mostly shoos her out of her way as she tries to continue on with her life like nothing has changed in it. 

 So much of the drama in this story could have been avoided entirely or solved easily, if Lakshmi had actually communicated with her sister. 

I really enjoyed the historical and cultural aspects of this - it's set in India and it felt very immersive for me as a reader.  I also appreciated the story of a woman gaining her own success and independence in a time and culture that absolutely did not freely give that to women as an option. 

 I don't wish that I hadn't read this -- the writing style was enjoyable as was the cultural aspects -- learning about Jaipur in the 1950s was interesting. However the only tabs I used while reading this were my "annoyed" or "angry" ones, due mostly to Lakshmi and her poor decision making and willful ignorance. She kind of just seemed to want to cover her ears, shield her eyes, and hum to herself as shit fell down around her, wishing for everything to be okay rather than actually DOING anything truly helpful to make things okay. Characters like that make for a less-than-enjoyable reading experience for me -- it's too frustrating. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, and Infidelity

Moderate: Medical content, Infertility, Abortion, and Pregnancy

Minor: Sexual harassment

sarahaf712's review against another edition

slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Blood, Child death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Vomit

Moderate: Alcoholism, Classism, Gaslighting, Islamophobia, Sexism, and Sexual assault

Minor: Colonisation, Racism, and Racial slurs

Content warnings: victim blaming; sex work

halopink's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

3.5 

For me the ending specifically felt a bit too neat. I’ve seen a lot of reviews saying the story really picked up around the 60% mark but I have to say I enjoyed the first half significantly more. 

Also, this story had a large focus on access to abortion, which I was a fan of. The caste system and actual history of India I found to be brushed over. The story starts when India gains independence and much of it had to do with remaining English customs and people. 

I can see why reviewers from India have said this book is written specifically for the western gaze.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion and Pregnancy

Minor: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, and Medical content

linesiunderline's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Henna Artist is a transporting kind of read. Joshi brings the setting to life with all kinds of sensory details.  Lakshmi is a complex and engaging character - you want to see her find her way to a fulfilling life. Self-discovery, the strength of family, and female empowerment are central themes here, and it’s easy to get wrapped up in the story telling. Excellent narration on audio.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual content, Suicide, and Vomit

gailcooksandreads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abortion, Child death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Pregnancy

Minor: Cursing, Death of parent, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, and Vomit

electricjuicebox's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

I enjoyed this story a lot and was surprised to read that this is Alka Joshi's debut novel. The storylines of all the characters were woven neatly into the plot, and I appreciate that it balanced hope and the possibility of a happy ending with obstacles and pitfalls that felt realistic for the setting and characters without overdoing it.

While the audiobook didn't provide a glossary of terms used throughout (I understand the hard copy includes this), it did help me understand the pronunciation of names and places which was nice. 

The novel is set in India in the 1950s, which for me offered a glimpse into the recent past and also into a different culture. The book deals with themes of gender, labour and class as the female protagonists navigate the complicated hierarchy of Jaipur society and strive for independence despite their disadvantages as working class women.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion

Moderate: Blood, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Miscarriage, and Pregnancy

Minor: Death of parent

aseel_reads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

3.75 

i really enjoyed the writing and atmosphere, Jaipur was described so vividly!! i liked the array of characters we had. the plot was quite evenly paced, but some things were a bit hard to believe, so it didn't get four stars 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Infertility, Infidelity, Sexual violence, Sexism, Rape, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Miscarriage, and Medical content

hannahr's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Medical content, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Abortion, Blood, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship

barefootamy's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

I don't understand the use of Western herbalism in this story when folkloric Indian herbalism would have been traditional to the area and culture. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abortion, Blood, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Miscarriage, and Misogyny