I absolutely loved The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi and wrote about it for Ms. Magazine and Thrive Global. It is possible that I enjoyed her new book, THE SECRET KEEPER OF JAIPUR, which will be available TOMORROW even more!
In the second book, which is set in 1969, Malik is now twenty, Lakshmi is running the Healing Garden of Shimla and in this excerpt she meets Nimmi:
2 LAKSHMI
I love this season, the sharp air in my nostrils, the crunch of snow crystals beneath my boots and the anticipation of a new season ahead. Having lived the majority of my life in the dry heat of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, I never thought I’d come to love the cooler weather of the Himalayan foothills.
As I round the last hill on my morning walk, I spot the roof and gables of my Victorian bungalow topped with the last of the snow, like an elaborate pastry decorated with cream. Off to one side of the house is a Himalayan cedar, its branches weighted with white powder. The scene always fills me with joy, and I wonder—as I often do—how I could capture its delicate beauty with a henna design.
Then I spot Nimmi waiting on my doorstep.
On the path, I hesitate.
In full tribal regalia, her slim figure is striking. Her skin is the color of wet bark, so dark that her eyes—small, deep set— shine like those of an energetic black-eyed bulbul. These and her hawkish nose make her seem severe. I chide myself for judging her. Haven’t I taught myself to appear pleasant even when the situation doesn’t call for it? It’s a skill I mastered during a decade of tending to the whims of the ladies of Jaipur as I painted their hands with henna. Perhaps the women of Nimmi’s tribe are raised not to temper their true emotions?
Lester brings the reader into the communications operation during the war: the videos, arguments, mistakes, debates over what to post and the race to respond to events moving faster than any communications office could control.
Among the speakers, Adam Milstein, a real estate investor, philanthropist and co-founder of the fast-growing Impact Forum, urged attendees to frame antisemitism as an American issue and not just a Jewish issue.
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If an experienced professional with rare expertise leaves Israel, the impact cannot be understood simply by adding another person to a brain-drain statistic. The more relevant question is how many people with comparable experience remain, how essential that expertise is and how easily it can be rebuilt.
Conspiracy theories and antisemitism do have an affinity and important features in common, including the tendency to frame accusations in such a way that refutation does not affect the accuser. Having suffered from this for centuries, do we really want it in our public life?
Any Democrat seeking to lead the party in 2028 should embrace the politics of addition by subtraction and reject any movement seeking to end all aid to Israel and replace America’s constitutional order.
We live in an age with zero patience for uncertainty. We have answers for everything, almost magically. And somehow, we still seem to know nothing about what it means to be here.
More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.
Travel back to India: The Secret Keeper of Jaipur
Lisa Ellen Niver
Want to know more about ALKA JOSHI? Listen to our interview about Passion, Perseverance and Patience:
Alka interviewed me for her show, Reimagine:
BUY YOUR COPY TODAY: The Henna Artist and THE SECRET KEEPER OF JAIPUR
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