Kari

With its captivating art form, this graphic novel deals with metanarratives of city globalization, migration, glamour world, film industry, sexuality, feminism, philosophy of life and death. The story revolves around people who have moved from their not so urban hometowns to the Smog City of Mumbai which is them moving from a bigger space to live in smaller and cramped spaces to get individuality, freedom and identity. The problemtisation takes place through petite narratives which are a part of a larger narrative.

Such a inspiring book and the small details, the art style, the way it is written and the quality. All are great

Amruta Patil’s Kari is perhaps the only graphic novel of its kind. A young professional finds herself barely surviving the ‘smog city’ Mumbai. Living alone, she misses Ruth, her partner, who had the “safety net”, and was able to survive the double suicide effortlessly. On the other hand, she had to make her way through a sewer, and happened to learn to be a ‘boatman’ to “row clean through the darkest water.”Kari is a work of monumental importance that traces the idiosyncrasies of a young person who is navigating her life while discovering or making sense of her sexuality. More than that, it’s a work of creation in the memory of her missing lover, in a way that Rosalind Cartwright wrote: “Memory is never a precise duplicate of the original…it is a continuing act of creation.” In some proportions you are not even sure whether the lover existed.

This piece of art reeks of the author's ability to use pertinent vocabularies with sheer mastery to demonstrate obscure situations.The art form is consistent and pleasant to the eyes and nicely depicting untold statements subtly.This was my first graphic novel and I loved it!The only drawback to this is lack of a strong, gripping plot

Kari broke several ground. There were many "firsts" attached to this book, but let me not devote myself to that. The narrative is gripping, from page one, you are sucked into the narrative vortex from which there is no coming back. It is dark dark, and funny. I mean, rib tickling funny. Mood changes, but the writing is solid, and graphic a force to reckon with. I see Kari as a hero. Awkward, fumbling, lazer sharp intellect, incisive humour, in a quest to understand her life in the maze that is the Smog city, making sense of pain - hers, and of the world around hers. She falls short of providing you ground breaking wisdom, that exactly is the beauty of this book. It leaves you in a quandry, and makes you feel okay with it. I really hope and wish Kari's creator comes out with a sequel. Till then, please read it!

Kari was unsatisfactory in a way because just when I started to appreciate the story and fall in love with it, it got over. The artwork is beautiful and unapologetically raw. When I was reading the graphic novel, I had no idea where it was heading and that threw me off a bit. It's almost poetic so it was difficult to get the exact meaning for me but I liked thinking about my own take on the story. I have to say, this is definitely the first time I have read about a lesbian protagonist written by an indian author and it was done wonderfully. I loved Kari. She was bluntly honest and loved relentlessly. I loved reading about her and I feel like I can always read it again and each time, it will be different.#bookedreviewbysaiesha

The prose is so poetic... you are made to feel the claustrophobia of Kari... to be continued it says... here’s me, waiting :)

Great example of a really good idea of how to use a new medium- Graphic novels- to show a new slice of life in modern Indian; but without any story underneath it.First the positives- undoubtedly paints a great picture of life in modern India- the description of the smells in a Mumbai local- "sexy armpit, sweaty armpit" are humorous yet accurate and can really transport you. The art work is great, the pictures very relatable to how many of us lived when we first started working- sharing rooms and boyfriends. I also loved and related to some of the scenes like the parents' visit or the office scenes. Somewhere in the book there are 1 or 2 lines of deeper meaning or profoundity, here is my favorite- "Whatever love laws have to be broken, the first few seconds suffice. After that everything is a matter of time and incident"Now the not so good stuff. The narrator is a 21 yr old woman with a lot of angst, but nowhere in the book is the back story to all this angst explained. She has a job she is doing well in, she is not rich but still living a normal life with three other girlfriends, yes- she is a lesbian but she also has a boyfriend for a bit so maybe she is more confused than I was while reading this book............ where is the tragedy? The book starts with a double suicide, but it fails- both of them end up alive and miraculously unhurt. I just don't get it, what's the problem?To me, this book falls in the same realm of other really annoying stuff being churned out in the name of "millenials" these days, read Girls by Lena Dunham. People who are priviliged to lead perfectly good and normal lives are for some reason wallowing in self pity instead, and who somehow think it worthy of sharing and turning into mass entertainment.The art work is good, but I'm sorry that's about it.

This novel took forever to come in. Shipped damage free but took a long time. More than likely will not buy from this seller unless they could improve on their shipping. Graphic novel is a great storyline.

Remember the days--if they're really gone--when to a lot of people out in the world, America was synonymous with hamburgers, cowboys, cinnamon chewing gum, and maybe California beach boys (so what if you're from New York)? You might have argued that there's a heck of a lot more to American culture, but who knew or cared? What does this have to do with Amruta Patil's brilliantly illustrated graphic novel? Well, Indians actually still live in such times. A huge number of people have few associations with Indian culture besides Bollywood movies, brightly colored saris, lamb curry, deities with too many arms, and perhaps emaciated saintly men in loincloths. Thank you, Hollywood. Fortunately, if slowly, that's changing. If you're wondering what else is going on in India, this book's a good place to look. Kari is a story full of questions and issues that you can relate to wherever you may be in the world--and regardless of whether you're gay like the heroine or not--but it's also still a uniquely Indian story. There has been a lot of interesting writing in recent years that presents another, less stereotypical account of Indian culture, but it's usually centered on the experience of Indian immigrants and their children in the U.S., as is the case, for example, in Jhumpa Lahiri's excellent "Namesake." Amruta Patil also portrays culture clashes, but they are the kind that young Indians experience without ever leaving their own country: the India she shows us is a rapidly changing country, evolving in some ways and devolving in others. But what country isn't, these days? If Kari's India is a strange place, it's no stranger than any place in the world when you're young and trying to find yourself and to figure out how the hell to make it through this love thing in one piece. The days when Western artists and musicians and whoever else could afford it came to India to find themselves are over. If you're interested in a glimpse of how young--and, presumably, not so young--Indians find themselves in India, you won't regret picking up this book. The Bollywood movies, multi-armed gods and goddesses, and lamb curries aren't going anywhere. Have a Masala Dosa, for a change. I bet you'll like it.

This is on of the best graphic novels you will ever read.

I loved loved loved this book! Its a quick and easy read that still has you thinking more. The metaphors and illustrations used can be hard to decipher but make it worth it. As someone of the same culture and life preferences, I loved reading such relatable content as I am always on the lookout for more south asian authors!

Kari is a compelling read, not to mention the beautiful, unapologetically raw illustrations. The way Amruta writes is almost poetic, a very talented woman! I cant fault this graphic novel. I haven’t ever given graphic novels a chance however this one has really stuck with me. The representation is amazing, the writing is outstanding and the illustrations are beautiful. Amruta produced a work of art :)