124 4 What's the main point of this book ? Not until the last few pages did I recognize it . In this book , Ha Jin told us what was the real waiting ¡ XNeither Kong Lin's nor Manna's , But Shuyu's . As a silent and humble character , Shuyu was ¡ § naturally ¡ ¨ forgotten by most readers . However , only patient readers could enjoy the ecstasy finding the surprising ending Ha Jin tried to tell us after the long read . At this point this book was very beautiful and successful ¡ V and sometimes a bit metaphorical , even philosophical - - - hitting its climax , simultaneouly testing the readers and awarding those faithful . By design , we readers SHOULD wait patiently , waited for the ending . Impatient readers would never find the beauty and the true meaning of this story . In fact , since the pace of this book was so slow , the stories and scenerios during those 18 waiting years were repeated and predictable , I almost gave it up in the middle . But after I finished it , I was deeply moved and burst into tears . The book totally deserved it's reputation .
BTW , Why 18 years ? Chinese , and only Chinese , knew that . It refered to an ancient folk tale of China . A woman ( WANG BAU-CHUAN ) waited for her husband ( SHUE PING-KWEI ) , an officer , for 18 years in a shack , not knowing her husband had another lover in the army . This tale was so famous that almost every Chinese knew it . So we knew that Ha Jin tried to write a modern Wang-Shue tale . Each main character in the Waiting had its own corresponding character in the Wang-Shue story .
The only flaw in this book , in my opinion , was the chapter about Manna was raped . It read so cheap .
126 4 When you write a novel about waiting , about the long sense of one's being suspended in anticipation of something that may happen and change everything , you inevitably try to incorporate the sense of dead time .
Unfortunately , if you do this successfully , what you get is a very boring reading experience .
Ha Jin is a skillful creator of character and setting . The reader breathes with the characters , sees what they see and feels what they feel . But his deadly accurate replication of the waiting experience will yield for many readers a deadening read .
- - Lynn Hoffman , author of New Short Course in Wine , The and
bang BANG : A Novel ISBN 9781601640005
his wife agreed to his divorce at home , but changed her mind every time when they were in the court . Lin had a difficult decision to make . He did not love his country wife at all , having been away from her for over fifteen years . However , the country wife had done everything for his family - looking after Lin's parents , saving money for Lin and so on . Manna Wu , a girl at Lin's hospital who fell in love with him , had been waiting for Lin to divorce his wife for over ten years .
In this way the story develops , with many twists and turns . The main story line is clear . I find it difficult to criticise this story . I would like , if I may , to criticize those negative criticism about Lin's novel instead . The story is set in mainland China in the 1970s and early 1980s . I do understand that the cultural revolution in China has been blamed by a large number of people . However , I do not think Ha Jin wrote this novel so as to blame the destructive ten years in China . Instead , the author set the story in this background that he himself had lived through , to bring out a universal understood theme - love and affection . This reminds of ( Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet , though there is a large cultural and time gap between the two stories . ) I have always been asking myself what the main characters in the novel are waiting for throughout my reading . At first glance , I thought Manna Wu and Lin Kong had been * waiting * for Lin's divorce and their own marriage . However , I was wrong . In my opinion , what they have been waiting for is under sub-consciousness - - - - they are waiting to grow up spiritually and to understand their life better . Lin waited for eighteen years to divorce his wife . He finally was granted the divorce and married Manna Wu . However , the two's relationship did not last long . Manna Wu soon became ill and was diagnosed to have coronary heart disease and that she would die in a few years . The second last chapter devoted itself to reveal to us Lin's deepest thoughts in his heart - - - - he has never loved Manna Wu . They loved each other because of the presence of this seemed-divine years of waiting . They fonded each other because they had not understood what true love was .
Ironically , the true love lay in no other than the one between Lin and his own wife , Shu Yu .
A person in the review section claimed that Ha Jin's novel looked rather like a translated work . Were it translated , I would describe the translator as a brilliant one . There are always differences between the two culturals which have been separated by the Pacific Ocean . Had Ha Jin set the story in America , it would have sounded as convincing as the original script . Further more , from my point of view as a Chinese , I have to admit that Ha Jin has a wondrous manipulation of the English Language . Arriving in American in the middle of the 1980s , Jin has been able to win the national book prize is indeed something not easy . I feel proud of him , and am indeed reassured that Literature is borderless . It is argued that this unfortunate story happened because of the communist China . Although I agree that the Cultural Revolution has brought negative effects to the growth of China , we should not pump out unreasonable anger at it . The reason is because the environment is set there . It is difficult for an individual to alter it . I believe we should look more at characters rather than the evironment they are in . A good book teaches us a good idea . Ha Jin's Waiting fullfiled this . Do give this book a try . I find it enjoyable and hope you too .
001 4 Reading this book one is reminded of the old Hemingway saw about how fiction should only give away the tip of the iceberg . The graceful , simple prose of this book reveals just the smallest portion of the complex emotional and politcal currents that run beneath this story . This is the kind of book that , once you have finished , you cannot get out of your head . The book jacket calls Ha Jin a sturdy realist , but that's not really right ; his prose has much more in common with a modernist minimalism . A must read for anyone who thinks that fiction writing in America is moribund .
002 4 I thoroughly enjoyed this book - as much for what it reveals of China as for the plot . The three people at the center of this novel - - husband , wife and the ' girlfriend ' ( not mistress , that step is too dangerous for them to risk ) who waits 18 years for him to get a divorce - - are in a state of limbo for much of their adult lives , constricted as they are by the laws of their society and by the limitations of their experience . This is a fast , easy book to read , but I don't mean this to sound negative , much is going on beneath the surface of an apparently straightforward story , and it left me contemplating how much we all take for granted about the laws of our society , how rarely we question the conventions we're brought up with . Well worth reading .
003 4 I believe I can understand the negative comments this book has received , but I do not agree with them . Having several Asian friends , I was fascinated by the glimpse into Chinese culture - - not only the political landscape , but family relations . I think people may be expecting something more grandiose from this book since it is an award winner . Rather , this book is like its main character , subtle . The narrative is straight forward , and the story is literally about waiting , waiting for a period in your life to begin . I think what this book gives us , besides a wonderful peek into Chinese society , is a lesson to find what we love in life and revel in it . This is not a book to polish off quickly . Rather it is one to read and think about each word , and the way those words are presented . I loved it . I finished the book several weeks ago , and I still think of Lin , and wonder if he will ever really know happiness .
004 4 What many of the reviewers of this book seem to be missing about this work by Ha Jin is its allegorical nature , that draws more than one reminder in this reader's mind to Orwell's Animal Farm . Yes , it is written in a simple manner both in style and in plot . Some would call this the story's strength and others , it's weakness . One thing is clear , however . The narrative that Ha has crafted is not simply one about lovers who through the constraints of their cultural and political situation cannot consummate their relationship . It is not simply about not being satisfied with what we have and waiting for what we want while life passes us by . Put simply , to classify this a love story is to do this work a disservice .
On a symbolic level , Ha is telling us the story of the China of the 20th century and the struggle of its people to come to terms with the convulsive transitions ( e.g . Great Leap Forward , Cultural Revolution ) that this nation has experienced over the past 100 years . To say that China is a land of complexities and contradictions is a vast understatement . One of the most basic dilemmas of the last century has been the struggle between old China , the land of emperors , Confucius , and bound feet , and new China , industrial and economic man-child , forcing its way into the modern world . This is the conflict around which this story unfolds . Every character is a symbolic representation of larger belief systems , ideas , and positions in modern Chinese society . In this context , it is not difficult to guess what Shuyu and Manna represent .
I thoroughly enjoyed this book , because of the poignant statement it makes about the state of China , a land that , as a Chinese-American whose family has lived abroad for 50 years , I have a profound need to connect with . I recommend it wholeheartedly .
005 4 The author , Ha Jin ( Xuefei Jin ) left China in 1985 . Illiterate until his mid-teens , he presently teachs English at Emory University and has published two books of poetry , two collections of short stories , and two novels .
Waiting is a simple fairy tale , a story in which much is being said underneath its surface . Based on an old ancient Chinese folktale ( or a true story as defined by the author in an interview ) , Ha Jin recreates and sets the plot in a moder post-revolutionary China . There is a two-fold approach : the universal , in which Ha Jin deals with human nature , its virtues and frailties , the issues of loyalty , duty , friendship , betrayal , and love ; and the strictly Chinese , the social / political system . Although the characters are not politically oriented and the plot evolves indifferent to the chaotic world outside the insular setting , there is a clear political allegory and ideological irony ( the book has been banned in China ) . All the characters are directly or indirectly victims of a social / political system , of a collective society where the individual can never exist or act per se .
The plot is a love triangle : Lin Kong , a Chinese physician , loyal officer of the Revolutionary Army , entangled in a loveless pre-arranged marriage , for 18 years desperately seeking a divorce ; his wife , Shuyu , an illeterate village girl , bound feet , subservient , and with a moral superiority which the author does not explore ; Manna Wu , a modern woman , hospital nurse , in love with Lin Kong . Lin Kong personifies the sleepwalker , a man who is pushed and pulled by others ' opinions , by external pressures , and by internalized official rules . A fourth character ( Gen Yang ) , although secondary , is the anti-thesis of Lin , being opportunistic and ruthless he holds to the belief that character is fate , he defies and uses the system in his favor , and gets away with what he wishes .
The prose is concise , clear , with beautiful lyrical passages and imagery . It portrays a life perspective different from Western society , a reality much un-known outside China and sometimes difficult for the outsider to understand . It will much depend on the reader's sensitivity and cultural openness to get the most out of this novel .
006 4 Waiting shows the truth in the maxim that life is what happens when we wait for life to begin . Set in industrial Northeast China in the years before , during and just after the Cultural Revolution , the book is not overtly about politics , but rather about how individuals try to find their bit of happiness within the constraints imposed by society and character . On another level , the ambivalence the protagonist feels toward his traditional wife in the village , and the woman he loves in the city , is a proxy for China's own transition from a traditional culture to a modern , communist state - - which itself becomes weary and exhausted as the world changes around it . Ha Jin has a wonderful touch with evocative details , and brings to life a time and place that is already slipping into history .
007 4 i am a chinese woman myself find this to be a beautifully written book with a real story to tell about love life in modern china .
admittedly the novel does sound strangely translated from the chinese . u can actually pick out many literal chinese phrases like stupid egg that a western reader would perhaps find weird , disjointed possibly unintelligible .
believe me when i say that this book describes very truly how chinese people love why .
not only has waiting magically captured the universal truths of love ( in all it's fragility forms ) amidst the pressures of society , culture enforced political climate , which would explain why it won a well-deserved national book award , it also serves as a very accurate behind-the-scenes look at why the chinese act behave the way they behave .
there are different little character rhythms from lin kong , manna , shuyu , hua her uncle sprinkled all over the book that are only too familiar to any chinese who have been brought up in strict households from infants to be ruthlessly filial , obediant good to the point of being uptight submissive .
i am not saying that western people are not brought up with the same good qualities but the almost-oppressive way that these virtues are drummed in from young are a totally chinese thing .
read this book with an open mind heart to learn more about the chinese people i believe u will not be disppointed .
008 4 Ha Jin does some things splendidly : his prose style is supple and evocative for all of its simplicity , especially his descriptions of nature , and he conveys a wonderful sense of the living conditions under which his characters labor and love ( or try to ) . For the first third of the book , I was remarkably engaged . But I don't think Jin has quite escaped the trap of how to wrtie about waiting without becoming a little dull - - sort of like trying to write about boredom without becoming boring . These characters never quite came to life for me , and the author's own unkindly dissection of his protagonist's shortcomings near the end undermine the book's ongoing critique of Communist China - - yes , Communism bad , especially in the quasi-rabid forms it has taken in China , controlling almost every aspect of these charaters ' lives ( good thing capitalism doesn't do that ) - - but could this character have been happy in any society ? Another pitfall is that Jin seems to set us up for some sort of slam-bang ending after all the waiting - - yet the final 50 pages or so are surprisingly muted . I may have unconsciously docked the book one star for what seems to me the beginning writer's ploy of having characters ask themselves questions in sets of threes - - obvious questions at that , and a bit too frequently . After my initial engagement , I was frankly a little disapointed , especially after following up Waiting with J.M . Coetzee's Disgrace which covers some of the same themes in a starker yet richer tone .
009 4 Ha Jin has done it again ! Waiting is absolutely wonderful . Ha Jin has a way of bring a character to life , and give even the most minor player in the story flesh and blood . The honesty in his work really touched me . Buy the book , you won't be disappointed .
010 4 WAITING by Ha Gin
Once in a great while , a work of art-a book , a play , a painting-reveals a truth so profound that you cannot believe that you were not previously aware of it . Waiting , the 1999 National Book Award for Fiction by the Chinese author Ha Gin , is such a book . Your character is your fate is such a truth .
The book is brief ; it can be read in one sitting . The writing is spare , unadorned , and as natural as breathing . The subject is love : love as loyalty , love as hope , love as comfort , love as passion , love as endurance . It is as much about the absence of love as it is about its presence . In a dual setting of rural and urban China following the Cultural Revolution , there is much to learn of the history , the culture and the boundaries of the individuals who live the story . The individuals , like people everywhere , are a living kaleidoscope of their background and their environment . Like spinning silk , Gin develops their character , which , in turn , propels their fate .
From the metaphor of the single dark braid on the cover of the book , Gin laps and twists and binds his story . The opening sentence sets the repetitive structure in motion : Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife , Shuyu . For eighteen years Lin Kong goes back and forth between his wife , Shuyu , and his unconsumated lover , Manna Wu ; between the ancient culture of Goose Village and his life as a doctor in modern Muji City . His eventual marriage to Manna Wu is not a culmination ; it is another loop in the braid . There is much more to come .
Waiting is not exceptional because of its adept English prose written by a Chinese author ; it is exceptional because of its clarity , its honesty , its compassion and its universal humanity-appropriate values to honor with the last National Book Award of the twentieth century .
011 4 Waiting is a straightforward , gorgeous book , written in elegant , charming prose . It makes you think about the difficulties of sustaining relationships and the abusudity of human institutions . What could be better than that ?
012 4 For me , this book is an observation of human nature , i.e craving for something that we don't have , come to regret it later when we have already attained what we are wanting for , wondering what life would be like should we maintain status quo . Matter of the heart is never black white but constantly entrapped us in the gray area where we are seeking for answers but none we shall find . Rather , we just have to take life as it comes . Along the way , we also come across the ever changing political storms that swept through China over many years . What who would be deemed the right ideologies model citizen of the moment respectively would become the news of yesterday . To put it succinctly , the only certainty in life is uncertainty . The novel also explores how human behaviour is effected by their surroundings the system that has been imposed upon them . What I'm finding intriguing is the ability of the author to interweave many issues together to narrate them as one simple tale . Highly recommended .
013 4 It really did . I bought Waiting because of the attention it had been getting , winning and being nominated for major literary awards . Because I usually read African-American literature , I usually don't have a lot of opportunity reading other literature . I have to be very selective . My discussion board was down this past week , so I stole the moment to read Waiting . I adored it . I can't say what I was expecting , but the book floored me . Beautiful , beautiful prose . Words like subtle , and graceful comes to mind . Three lives ; Lin Kon , Shuyu and Manna Wu are bound together through their individual concept of love and what one has to do to obtain and keep it . Where we are use to stories in which the main characters leap head first into passionate affairs and lustful relationships , Ha Jin chose to focus on a love affair where the participants had to be patient and restraint . There are moments of great beauty and an insight into human nature . Truly a novel not to be missed .
014 4 Review from a 28 year old Asian female :
As a Chinese American , it is always nice to read a book written by an Asian author . What's nicer is that this book is not the usual tale about an Asian individual going to America trying to cope with cultural differences ! What a relief !
This book was beautifully written with a hopeful storyline , but it failed to culminate in a satisfying conclusion . I waited and waited for something that never happened . I felt betrayed , as if the author was leading me on . Overall , it was an average read . Not especially intriguing , but I was able to get through it without too much effort .
015 4 After reading several negative reviews , I approached this novel with some trepidation . However , I wanted to read it for two reasons . First , it won that National Book Award . Second , I have a daughter from China and I want to read and understand as much as I can about China and the Chinese people . I took much more away from this novel than I thought I would .
Ha Jin's prose flows so easy , I found myself reading through this book much faster than I anticipated . His writing has a sparseness that suggests a poetic back ground . Like poetry , it also describes the scenes in ways that really pulled me into the book . The politics of China were presented almost without comment . It is only through the actions of the characters that we really see how the regime affects their day to day lives .
Despite all this , Waiting gives us something even better and more universal . Too often we are all waiting for something . Waiting for a relationship or a better job . Waiting for a vacation or a visit with a friend . We are planning for something to come . Yet , while we are waiting , our lives move by us . Isn't this really the point of the novel ?
Lin Kong waited eighteen years . For what ? To wait some more ?
Stop waiting and buy this book . You won't be disappointed .
016 4 In some ways , this amazing novel is best described by telling what it is not . It is not an epic , and it was not written with the film rights in mind . You don't hear the soundtrack somewhere in the back of your head , nor do you get to identify with or love the characters . One of its central characters is rather shy , timid , and nonverbal . Ha Jin does not tell the reader how to feel - or what to think . There is no sly authorly manipulation of our emotions . Ha Jin tells an important and essentially sad story which he narrates with control and purpose .
John Lennon said that Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans , and this novel makes that point , among others . The story unfolds during a specific time ( 1960 ' s ) and place ( People's Republic of China ) . A group of people is caught in lives over which they have varying degrees of control . Ha Jin fleshes out his characters - but just enough . This story is written concisely and economically .
This is a quiet , strong , meaningful , and heartfelt novel . Its quietude and lack of melodrama - its remarkable menus are often the most colorful aspects of its characters daily lives - serve its humane and important message . Definitely worth reading .
017 4 I'm surprised more reviewers didn't compare this work to Edith Wharton's Ethan Frome . The same passive personality of Frome that makes one grind one's teeth in frustration is found in Lin Kong - - a good , yet essentially weak man caught in a social lose-lose situation - - yet Ha Jin takes the story that one step further that makes it so much more true to life : that there are no quick fixes in life , whether triumphant or ( like Frome ) tragic . One must carry on , daydreaming perhaps ( of which Kong does aplenty ) of an easier time , but at the end of the day , one goes home to twin infants who need their diapers changed , a spouse who has needs , and a life that needs living . This quality of realism lends an optimistic twist to Waiting that made the book so enjoyable for me .
018 4 The reader spends the greater part of this book waiting and rooting for the love between Manna Wu and Lin to materialize and bring them happiness . Their circumstances prohibit consummation , allowing them only a prolonged platonic relationship . While implausible from today's American perspective where divorce and adultery come easy , the situation is understandable in the Communist Chinese setting . Tight control is exerted over personal lives with divorce very rarely permitted . The punishment for adultery for modern military colleagues threatens them with permanent geographic separation . When longing for fulfillment is replaced with discord ensuing from blame and fault finding , deep disappointment overcomes both the reader and protagonists . It is at this very point that Ha Jin's profound sense of irony takes over . In the final act we see the stage set for yet another surprising entirely unexpected wait , one that promises with the book's last sentence to be another long one . Ha Jin's irony extends to the broad changes he has witnessed in his native China during this time period as well . The book's early events occur during the Cultural Revolution . Books must be hidden to prevent destruction . The treasured contents of a locked jewelry box turn out to be just Chairman Mao pins , the only beautiful material collection possible . In contrast modern day Chinese television programs today feature wealthy capitalistic entrepreneurs as paragons of a new society . Some have even been rewarded with Party Membership . Are we seeing a return to the Old China symbolized by the waiting faithful Shuyu with her bound feet after a disappointing flaunt with the modern woman ? The author's plot and writing style are simple and easy to read on the surface . His hidden insights on society and human relationships make this a very worthwhile read .
019 4 Waiting is a spare and elegant novel , one of quiet emotions that never threatens to overwhelm . The story centers on Lin Kong and his failed ( and arranged ) marriage to the plain and rustic Shuyu . Although Lin has not slept with Shuyu since the birth of their daughter years before , he must remain married to her . For without Shuyu's consent , Lin cannot obtain a divorce for eighteen years .
A doctor in a medical school in a small Manchurian city , Lin goes home to Goose Village every summer to ask Shuyu for a divorce so he can marry the woman with whom he is passionately in love , the youthful and beautiful student nurse , Manna . Although very much in love , Lin and Manna eschew physical intimacy believing Lin will be expelled from the army if they are ever caught .
Although Shuyu does consider giving Lin a divorce , she always changes her mind at the last minute and this is where the waiting of the title comes in . While Lin is waiting for Shuyu to grant him his freedom , he and Manna conduct their affair hemmed in by Party rules and regulations and the sharp tongues of the hospital gossips . Ha Jin does a wonderful job of portraying Lin's stunted emotions and drawn-out tensions , which are engendered by the pressure put upon him by both of the women in his life , Shuyu and Manna .
The English-speaking public has been exposed to very little real Chinese fiction . Chinese literature in translation has not enjoyed the popularity of Latin American literature , Russian literature or even Japanese . There have also been no crossover Chinese authors such as Japan's Haruki Murakami or South America's Gabriel Garcia Marquez or Mario Vargas Llosa . And Chinese writers do share a penchant for the purple and the political ; they tend to be melodramatic and over-the-top , something that makes them a little unpopular with English-speaking readers . Chinese writers living in the West , such as Amy Tan , Lisa See and Maxine Hong Kingston , despite their genealogical background , are really as much outsiders to China as are those with no ties to the country at all . In essence , their writing , while good , is not really Chinese .
Ha Jin manages to overcome all of the above . Although he now lives in the United States and wrote Waiting in English , he is a native of China and he manages to depict his country of birth without indulging in the romanticism , exoticism or Orientalism so prevalent among native Chinese ( and Indian ) writers of today .
In Waiting , Ha Jin gives us a perfect look at the city and countryside of northeast China in the 1960s to the 1980s . The setting is perfectly rendered , with a beautiful eye for mundane , but telling , detail . Although Jin never stresses the deprivation of life in Communist China , it is painfully evident in this book . Fruits , vegetables and even medicines are expensive and rare ; a wedding feast may consist of no more than cigarettes and candy ; doctors at a medical school must live three to a dorm room and bathe in a communal bathhouse . Even the more simple pleasures are denied : one of the rules forbids unmarried men and women to meet in the hospital compound , thus preventing Lin and Manna from consummating the love they share .
This novel can be said to comprise a part of the wounded literature ( shanghen wenxue ) of China's Cultural Revolution , however , compared to the denunciations , struggles , beatings , incarcerations , executions and suicides included in other novels of that period , the suffering of Ha Jin's characters can appear to be mild . But that is a surface impression only . A deeper look at this book will show an astute reader that these characters do suffer greatly ; Ha Jin is simply a more quiet and restrained writer , which is much to his credit , for it is in quietness and restraint that Waiting derives much of its power . The emotional and spiritual pressure the characters endure builds slowly , it has a cumulative effect , and the reader is left wondering when and how tragedy will occur .
At its heart , Waiting is a novel about the ambiguities and tensions inherent in love , a universal theme . This is a masterfully written book and one that , ultimately , evokes the joys the sorrows and the quiet desperation of an ordinary life , whether that life be lived in Goose Village , Paris or Boston . Waiting is a wonderful book and one that is wonderfully-written as well . An absolutely unbeatable combination .
020 4 The prose is straightforward , elegant , precise , and powerful in an understated way . The novel has little in the way of melodramatic twists and major revelations , so readers looking for them would do better looking elsewhere . Instead , Waiting is about helpless lives swept along by political tides , about promises kept but not fulfilled . It's a distinctive vision that rewards a careful reading .
021 4 To me Waiting was a poor man's Remains of the Day , a story of life deferred because of the main character's willingness to conform to convention ( in this case , the government of Communist China ) . For many years a man who has no sense of committment to anything but his advancement in a stultifying bureacratic world refuses to act on his love for a young woman . Life passes them both by . The communist mentality influences every aspect of their lives . The story is tediously slow , going over the same ground over over . I subsequently read a book about the effects of the communtist mentality which moved me greatly and deepened my understanding of a people wounded psychologically , economically , and politically by the forces of communism - - that was Memory of the Forest which is a beautifully written novel with beautiful character development and a gripping narrative . In Waiting you just wait for the characters to gain insight or to do something that is interesting , and it just doesn't happen . How did this book end up as a National Book Award finalist ? Please explain .
022 4 Waiting explores the world of the Chinese cultural revolution from the perspective of two ordinary citizens , or comrades as they are called . The book explores two evolutions - that of the Chinese society , and that of Lin Kong , the central character .
Lin Kong is a Chinese doctor during the period of the Cultural Revolution . He feels duty-bound to accept Shuyu as his wife after she is chosen by his parents , but falls in love with a woman , Manna , at his work in the city . Each year , he returns to Goose Village to attempt to divorce his wife , but each year returns to the hospital without the divorce and resulting permission to change his life . Thus , Lin spends 18 years of his life waiting to marry Manna .
When they are finally able to consummate their relationship , Lin discovers what the waiting has done to both of them . For the first time , he realizes the futility of what he has done , and wants back that which he can no longer wait for .
Ha Jin writes this book with sparse language , yet it is incredibly moving and evocative . Any reader interested in probing the intricacies of the heart is sure to find it fascinating .
023 4 Waiting was a book club choice , not my choice . This is why I am in a book club ; because sometimes a selection is made that I would never have considered for myself , and discover that it is completely compelling . Like the love affair of Lin Kong and Manna , I couldn't wait to find the time to pick it up and continue reading .
I usually did not have to wait long . Lin and Manna did , and that may be the ultimate theme of the book . It is said that delayed gratification makes the getting all the sweeter , but after 18 years , Lin who had settled into a kind of routine in a world where life IS routine , finds it difficult and unsettling to adjust .
In some ways , I felt that the story of Lin and Manna's unrequited love was backdrop to the setting of China as it moves from the days of the Cultural Revolution , with all of its rules and strict codes , to the days when influences from the western world begin to creep in and change the fabric of life . That a couple would so willingly abide by such restrictive laws about marriage is incomprehensible in this world of disposable marriages . That they were able to control their passions for over 18 years is incredible to those of us who live in the land of instant gratification . It is this restraint and control , more than anything , that truly explained the absolute power in China at that time in its history .
Beyond the historical and cultural themes , though , the sad discovery of Lin Kong that maybe his life was not so bad after all is universal in any time and place , making his story all the more poignant to the reader .
024 4 I thoroughly loved the sweet simplicity of this story . It is so true to life : we wait and wait and wait for something , then it ends up not being all we hoped it would be ! The insight into the restrictions and pressure for conformity to Communism was so sad . It gave a wonderful insight into the Chinese culture . Don't be fooled by the simple prose . . . there's alot more going on than meets the eye ! This book is recommended for the contemplative reader , not the thrill seeker .
025 4 I enjoyed the insight into Chinese culture . I bought this book as a gift for my wife for Christmas . My expectations were high about its creative content . I kept waiting and waiting for a climax which never came . I guess the author was quite ingenious to master the subject , story , and the book's readability into a waiting experience !
026 4 Comrade Manna Wu has spent most of her adult life waiting for the love of a good man that she can call her own . This story gives us a glimpse at the personal lives of couples in Communist China 30 years ago .
Manna sets her cap for a doctor in the military hospital where she is a nurse . The doctor , Lin Kong , is torn between the desire for Manna , an intelligent modern Chinese woman that is so far untouched , ( nurses must be virgins when they enter the program ) , and the comfort of his familiar life in the country with a dutiful wife whose bound feet and submissive ways are from an era gone by .
Lin's marriage has produced one daughter and the separation between Lin and his wife has gone on for 17 years . So far for various reasons he has been unable to obtain a divorce . In the 18th year of separation he is finally given his freedom to marry Manna Wu . At this point the story takes some unexpected turns that I will save for the reader to discover .
Lin is a man who would rather take the easy way out , yet he's concerned with how people view his actions . The 18 years of waiting becomes a comfortable way of life for him , so comfortable that when he is finally freed from the obligations to his wife he realizes that the arrival of his dream might eventually lead to his undoing . A comrade opens Lin's eyes by pointing out that his problem arises from his own character , If you have the will to change you can create the condition for change .
I enjoyed this book on several different levels , it was a twisted love story that kept me reading and rooting for the underdog , and it gave me an appreciation for a culture and way of life completely foreign to me . I certainly couldn't have showed the patience instilled in the females of this culture but that made it all the more interesting to me . 12 / 12 / 00
027 4 This book offers a fresh , rare look at life deep inside Communist China . There are no formulas for the plot : it's original and the self-effacing perspective of the narrator intrigued me . Waiting is a book without ego . At first the narrative style seemed to read like a translation . But I realized that the author's technique was really an extension of the cultural distinctions about which he described in the novel . He made the culture of Mao inside China come alive for me . The characters were roundly drawn and credible , and the story line , while quite simple , offers an exquisite beauty in the irony of its denouement . Jin impressed me with his sincerity , honesty , vivid portrait work and originality . We are fortunate to have such a well-drawn look at such an inaccessible society by someone who understands it so well . His accomplishment in crafting such moving literature in his second language speaks volumes for his intelligence and creative sensibility . I eagerly await his next novel .
028 4 This is a nigh perfect novel . I loved the sparse simplicity of the writing even though I was initially bored by the soap opera plot of a man in love with a woman , not his wife . But then as it developed I thought , no , this story is more like a post-Cultural Revolution Good Earth . Afterall , there is the loyal , long suffering wife - - Shuyu , only in the modern version the husband abhors the fact that she has bound feet . ( In The Good Earth , the wife is equally unsuitable to the upwarding mobile farmer because she has big feet . ) In The Good Earth , the good wife steals precious gems and pearls to save the family from starvation . Here , Shuyu's herbal remedies save the lives of Lin's twin sons who are wasting away from dysentary . The concumbine in The Good Earth is little more than a Pekinese pet masquerading as a human being . In Waiting the second wife also becomes a bit of a haridan at the end . At the end of the day , Lin Kong realizes at last the gratitude and love due his loyal ex-wife and daughter . He begs them to take him back as soon as the second wife dies - - which is imminent due to a bad heart . Looking back , Lin is puzzled by the disaster that has become his second marriage and the ultimate failure of his life . He thinks of himself as a good and civilized man . What went wrong ? Was it waiting too long ? Did he miss the tide in the affairs of men ? Or was it an absence of passion on his part ? Did he lack the ability to love , was he only able to be the object of a woman's love ? Lin played by the rules of the Communist society and led an unsatisfactory life . The brute who raped Manna thrives despite the curse she places on him . His brand of sociopathology serves him well in the modern capitalist China . Well , life isn't fair , even in post revoluntionary China . All of this makes for a most interesting and discussable book .
029 4 This review is from :
Waiting : A Novel ( Hardcover )
This book is not written with the outlandish style and genius of many contemporary writers . It's extraordinarily simple , both in its prose and in the story it tells . But something about it drew me in and kept me reading - maybe it was the sense that I was observing something about Chinese society that I'd never seen before , maybe it was the story itself . But I couldn't help but keep reading and was glad I did . This story captures the complexity of human relationships with a sort of Zen simplicity that takes deceptive skill - skill that is all too easy to miss perhaps .
This is a very well written book . A very well thought out examination of human emotions . I recommend it highly .
030 4 This book is not written with the outlandish style and genius of many contemporary writers . It's extraordinarily simple , both in its prose and in the story it tells . But something about it drew me in and kept me reading - maybe it was the sense that I was observing something about Chinese society that I'd never seen before , maybe it was the story itself . But I couldn't help but keep reading and was glad I did . This story captures the complexity of human relationships with a sort of Zen simplicity that takes deceptive skill - skill that is all too easy to miss perhaps .
This is a very well written book . A very well thought out examination of human emotions . I recommend it highly .
031 4 This review is from :
Waiting : A Novel ( Hardcover )
This is not a fast reading , or fast moving book , but so interesting as it unfolds that you hate to put it down . Much knowledge is gained about rural as well as city life in China for the past 20 years . You may think you know , but this book proves you do not . However , the book is about more than that , it is filled with deeper thought as you dwell in the mind and thoughts of a man who is waiting for a divorce to be granted to go on with his life . What unfolds is a shocking discovery of what the wait is about and an insight into this mans life . His personality , his thoughts and method of handling his situation for years is written extremely well . Very different and well worth reading .
032 4 This is not a fast reading , or fast moving book , but so interesting as it unfolds that you hate to put it down . Much knowledge is gained about rural as well as city life in China for the past 20 years . You may think you know , but this book proves you do not . However , the book is about more than that , it is filled with deeper thought as you dwell in the mind and thoughts of a man who is waiting for a divorce to be granted to go on with his life . What unfolds is a shocking discovery of what the wait is about and an insight into this mans life . His personality , his thoughts and method of handling his situation for years is written extremely well . Very different and well worth reading .
033 4 In this age of instant gratification it seems almost unimaginable that two lovers could live side by side for the better part of their adult lives yet never dare sleep together . That is just what the two lead characters do in Ha Jin's prize-winning novel , Waiting . Lin Kong and Manna Wu meet and fall in love while working at a hospital in China during the Cultural Revolution . However , they dare not move beyond the platonic because Lin is married , though living apart from his wife , and they would risk severe penalties under the strict Chinese system if they became intimate and were found out . Divorce is an option but year after year when Lin returns to his village to cajole his reluctant wife into agreeing to a divorce circumstances conspire against him . It's a great story line and Ha Jin guides us through it with brisk , dialogue-suffused prose . In the process , he enlightens us about Chinese culture and provides ample evidence of the limits of freedom during the days of Chairman Mao .
Most reviewers classify Waiting as a love story . And , indeed , the incredible restraint that both characters model through much of the book is both romantic and sexy . It reminded me in that sense of a Victorian love novel . But Ha Jin also infuses the story , especially in its later parts , with a heavy dose of reality that makes one rethink the quality of the love that Lin and Manna share and question their choices . The most intriguing character might be Lin's spurned wife , Shuyu , whose simple , unquestioned devotion to Lin gives her moral superiority and a kind of serenity that none of the other characters ever achieve . But she is a secondary character whose thoughts and motivations Ha Jin leaves unexplored .
In the end , this is a good story , well told , that can be read on many different levels . It's also short enough - 300 breezy pages - that one can read it again , as I may , to pick up on some of the subtleties missed on the first go-through .
034 4 I agree with one of the previous reviews , Life is what is happening while we wait . I think Ha Jin proved that several times over in the book . I could see what was right for Lin , but he was too busy looking in the wrong direction , waiting and hoping for this exciting life when the life meant for him was passing him by . I enjoyed the story . Reading about life in China during that time period was not something I was intending to do , but I enjoyed learning about that culture . It has prompted me to read more about the culture and the people . I learned and I had fun reading a very interesting story .
035 4 Ha Jin's plot moves steadily , at times blandly , through several decades of Lin Kong and Manna Wu's lives . Lin and Manna , hardly in love , wait 18 years for nothing at all ! Eighteen years wasted struggling for a divorce and Lin finally realizes his cowardly mistake .
I was impressed by Jin's portrayal of a vivid and lively China . However , I was frustrated with the extraneous , needless , superfluous descriptions that were quite apart from the whole narrative . I was also frustrated by ALL the characters : Lin , Shuyu , Manna , Bensheng . . . there is no hero , no one admirable , all are flat , tragic characters absorbed with their own selves .
The only reason I give this book 4 stars is because , in the end , Lin realizes a few of life's harsh lessons . He finally opens his eyes . Jin executes this revelation with such poignancy that , upon finishing the book , I couldn't help but linger on Lin's future and happiness . The finale in _ Waiting _ leaves a mark quite like a church bell that rings and leaves a residual humming . . .
036 4 This is a bittersweet testament to love ~ ~ Chinese style . It is also an unexpected surprise to read something based on a foreign culture and totally relate to the characters . And Waiting is an apt title for this book ~ ~ probably the best title for any book I've ever read as it matches closely the story .
Lin Kong , a doctor in the Chinese army returns to his village every summer to end his loveless arranged marriage with his wife , loyal Shuyu , only it fails . Lin wants to marry Manna Wu , a nurse in the same hospital he works at . Lin is caught between two different women and trapped by a culture in which adultery can ruin lives and careers . And when the divorce is granted , much to Lin's surprise , he's in for an interesting journey through self-discovery and love .
I have found myself becoming impatient with each of the characters at one time or another ~ ~ but mostly with Lin because he just couldn't seem to make up his mind about anything . Then I would get impatient with Manna ~ ~ why doesn't she leave Lin and find happiness on her own ? Or with Shuyu , why doesn't she let go ? And the answers that come along are very interesting and revealing . I promise this is a good read ~ ~ and the descriptions of some of their food are just mouth-watering .
Ha Jin writes a very intimate and revealing book , one that explores the definition of what love is and how love between a man and a woman , wife and husband , father and child affect everyone around them . Jin writes thoroughly of the Chinese Culture and how the Revolution changes the way of people's mindset ~ ~ and how the rural folks resist the change .
This is a definite book I would recommend to anyone and everyone who even has a slight interest in Chinese culture . I am not even surprised that it has won a National Book Award ~ ~ it is that well-written . And Lin will linger in your mind for hours after you've put the book down . His conflicts and confusions are just the same as anyone else's when they confront what love is .
037 4 This is one of these rare books that through reading you enter a whole different world with very different rules . It is an exceptionally well-written novel , with a great deal of details on life during and after the years of the Chinese Cultural Revolution . This is a work of creativity and sensitivity .
It is the story of an army doctor , a man who worked his way out of an essentially peasant background through the help of his family . As tradition in China dictates , he needed to take a wife to care for his aging parents . An arranged marriage addresses the problem of the care of the elderly superbly but leaves him totally unfulfilled . Ha Jin portrays a sensitive , caring , weak and often frightened man , who is a victim of events and insecurities ; and an ignorant loving peasant wife who accepts what the husbands offers and does not ask for more .
As a reader you are tortured by the couple's blind adherence to custom . The main couple in the story though is the Doctor and the nurse girl friend . Unable to consummate their love they wait and wait and wait . Here you are more tormented by their total adherence to army and Cultural Revolution rules , mandates and norms , which are often at odds with the traditional Chinese culture . So here you have our great army doctor obliged to the wife through traditional values with no complaints , unable to marry the girl friend , but also due to army rules he's unable to have an affair with her and unable to divorce the peasant wife .
Ha Jin's Waiting takes us to a whole different world , every time you pick it up , you travel across cultural and time zones ; first to China and then on to the Cultural Revolution days . This is a truly wonderful work , not a novel of fast paced events ; the main character is portrayed in very realistic terms , not necessarily sympathetically . For me I appreciated the slow , meandering movement of events , it made it far more realistic and transformed me totally to this fascinating culture at its most peculiar of times . Enjoy !
038 4 I was a little bit disappointed after reading this award-winning book . The dilemma that the main character faces is nothing new and many China-related novels tell the similar story line . I feel that the book receives more credit than it actually deserves for . The good thing about Waiting is that the author presents his story in a smooth writing style and makes the book an easy-read . Overall , the book is still worth to check out but please do not keep the expectation too high .
039 4 Rarely will you find a novel like Waiting . It is simple , yet has a powerful message in it that does not reveal itself until the very end . Lin Kong , the key character in it , endeavors to do everything to honor the Chinese political system of 1960 - 80 ' s , his medical career and his first marriage . He also allows true love to wait ! Wait being the operative word . The result of such waiting is what the reader must read on for . It is not what we normally find it to be.It may make you ponder some of your own life decisions.I recommend this book for those with an interest in socio-political issues in an Asian culture .
040 4 I find it interesting that so many of the previous reviews of this book focus on the constraints a Communist society places on relationships . To me , the message was more about the tendancy for people to be disatisfied with what they have , never being fully happy in the moment . By always waiting for things to improve we can take the focus off how we are feeling in the moment and instead focus on how things will always be better in the future . Without gving anything away , let me say that I belive the end to this book demonstrates this perfectly .
In conclusion , I enjoyed this book becuase it operated on a number of levels . It not only delivered a message about oppresive politcal systems , but also one about the basic defects of human nature .
041 4 Waiting is such a good book : realism and allegory , irony and especially honesty are all intimitely wound up with one another in Ha Jin's masterfully precice writing . There is also a wry sense of humor that pervades the narrative just beneath the surface , and this - - as well as the simple background details like Chinese social conventions , the politics of the Cultural Revolution , and , above all , food - - makes the novel a quiet joy to read , just on a page-to-page level . But I think that what makes this book so good as a whole , more than anything else , are the Characters : Lin and Manna are drawn so well but so subtly , through small but crucial details , that they acquire flesh almost without our noticing it ; because of this , it becomes almost shocking how emotionally affecting the novel's conclusion is . It is one of the most satisfying books I've read in quite a while .
Whether or not we deserve or appreciate it , Ha Jin is a gift to American readers . I think it's to our benefit as well as to his that he is not a native speker of English : his spare , precise yet nevertheless rich prose reads like fresh mountain water amid the mess that so much contemporary American fiction has become . For Waiting , I'm grateful .
042 4 The title is deceptive . By definition , it insinuates that nothing of significance will happen until whatever is waited for finally occurs , and it further insinuates that this will be the experience of its characters as well as its readers . However , Ha Jin takes on the formidable task of telling a story about what happens _ during _ the act of waiting ; that time period that one usually brushes off as lost to fidgetiness and anticipation . He shows us that , inevitably , if you're made to wait for someone or something too long , the satisfaction of the payoff ultimately decreases . Something about you changes : your disposition , your insight , your emotions , your desire for what you're waiting for . There is an enormous amount of intimate action that takes place in this story , even as it appears as if nothing of much relevance is happening .
Every summer Lin Kong , a doctor in the Chinese army , returns to his village to ask his wife for a divorce . Their marriage was arranged and it is a loveless union . Manna Wu , a nurse in the army and his mistress ( the term is used loosely as they have no sexual contact whatsoever , purity being essential for an unmarried woman within their culture ) waits for the day the divorce is granted and the two of them can become engaged . Each year , however , his wife promises the divorce but does not see it through , and he and Manna must wait another year before he can go back and try again . For eighteen years , summer after summer , they bide their time and endure this waiting . The emotional changes that occur , subtle as they are , during the course of every year that passes is what happens in this story . Jin unfolds their story lovingly , quietly , and deftly , with such rich detail that we understand alot of what is happening between them even as they don't . It's a tender , often harsh , look at two people caught within and crippled by the boundaries of their culture .
For a book in which so little happens , Waiting is a very compelling read . It won the National Book Award and the PEN / Faulkner Award . Well deserved .
043 4 Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife , Shuyu .
- Waiting
So begins Ha Jin's aptly named novel . Lin Kong is a country born doctor now practicing at an Army
hospital in Muji City in Maoist China . There he has fallen in love with a nurse , Manna Wu , a modern
urban woman . But his country wife , Shuyu , refuses to grant him a divorce , despite the lovelessness of
their arranged marriage . The moral strictures of Communist society are sufficiently severe that Lin
Kong and Manna Wu are forced to wait until Shuyu gives her okay , which she continues to withhold
while her daughter by Lin Kong is growing up . Thus , the lovers are forced into a decades long
holding pattern , until Lin Kong compares himself to a sleepwalker and wonders if he's not more in
love with an illusion than with a real being .
Though this story is sometimes maddeningly slow , it is quite beautifully told , in very direct and
stripped down language , and does develop a certain tension as we wait for Shuyu to set Lin Kong free .
Along the way Ha Jin , who was himself a Red Army soldier , provides a fascinating cultural history of
China in the 60s and 70s . But the real power of the story is allegorical . Lin Kong wants to shuck off
the traditional China ( Shuyu ) and embrace the new , modern , Communist China ( Manna ) . But as the
process of attaining the new drags on , with no fulfillment in sight , he begins to question why he
wanted Manna in the first place , wonders whether he even retains the capacity to love , or whether the
continuous deferral of love and suspension of life has emotionally paralyzed him , and grows nostalgic
for Shuyu and the more traditional China of the village he grew up in .
One imagines this must somewhat parallel Ha Jin's own experience , and / or that of many people he
knew in China . At any rate , he deftly takes one of the oldest of romantic plots - - the dependable and
decent spouse abandoned for the sexier , but ultimately illusory , lover - - and imposes the story of
Communist China upon it . It works quite well and makes up for the at times too stately pace of the
story-telling .
GRADE : A -
044 4 A year ago , I stumbled upon Ha Jin's collection of short stories , Under the Red Flag , winner of the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction in 1996 . The stories , set in China at various times during the Cultural Revolution , were remarkable for their crystalline pure prose , realistic attention to detail and depiction of the intersection of the personal and the political in the quotidian lives of their characters . From that first reading , Ha Jin struck me as perhaps the finest prose stylist writing in English today .
Ironically , Ha Jin was illiterate in his own Chinese language until his mid-teens , when he began reading voraciously while serving in the Chinese army on the Russian border . It was not until the age of twenty that Jin began studying English and , twelve years later , in 1988 , began writing in English . By that time , Jin had completed graduate study at Brandeis University and , in the wake of the events at Tiananmen Square , emigrated to the United States . While Ha Jin's prose is remarkable for its austere beauty , and his themes are universal and set in the ordinary , everyday lives of his characters , the setting of his fictions remains exclusively and particularly Chinese .
Waiting , Ha Jin's second novel , tells the story of an eighteen year love triangle among Lin Kong , a doctor in Muji City , his loyal , but illiterate wife , Shuyu , and his educated and urbane mistress , the nurse Manna Wu . Kong lives and works apart from his wife , in a hospital in Muji City , where he meets Manna Wu . Each year , for eighteen years , Kong returns to the country to visit his wife and to request a divorce so he can marry Manna Wu . Each year Kong's wife , whose bound feet are a sign of her rural backwardness , refuses to consent to his request . It is a simple story told in simple prose . Set during a period from the early 1960s until the 1980s , Waiting is a realistic and human tale of relationships set against the backdrop of Chinese culture and society during the years of the Cultural Revolution and its aftermath . Marked by Ha Jin's remarkable attention to the details of everyday life , Waiting is a sparkling gem of a novel , a deserving winner of both the National Book Award and the PEN / Faulkner Award .
045 4 I agree with many of my fellow reviewers - - it's a solid bookwith lots of insight into Chinese customs , but it's not nearly at thelevel of winning something as major as the National Book Award . After the first 100 pages or so , the narrative starts to unwind a bit - - if not for the fact that i don't like to leave a book unfinished , I wouldn't have kept going . Plus , the main character was so devoid of passion that it was hard to believe that he would have even made it through the 18 year wait . I suppose the ending has a philosophical point ( ending up back where you started ) , but I found it unsatisfying . Remains of the Day was much better in the vein of inability to acknowledge feelings and emotions while a book like Memoirs of a Geisha was infinitely more interesting . I did enjoy this book , I just thought it was 100 pages too long and not quite at the National Book Award level . For both those reasons , I found it disappointing overall although I certainly enjoyed parts of the book .
046 4 I stayed up until 3 am reading this novel . When I was done , I got up and started cursing and shaking my head : I couldn't believe it . It was so beautiful I wanted to cry . The sustained and meditative style of _ Waiting _ is quite different than his other works , which can be quite bleak . But this novel is utterly , utterly beautiful . Haven't read a book this good since Kazuo Ishiguro's _ Remains of the Day _ .
047 4 This book has a wonderful premise . Every summer for 18 years a man returns home to his village to divorce his wife , but something always goes wrong . The tone is somber , the story telling is restrained and clear . This book also won this year's National Book Award for fiction . I do have a couple of criticisms about the book . The first is that the story leaves you feeling unsure of who to sympathize with - - the wife , the husband , or the girlfriend . The second criticism is that there is something of a short story trick at the end of the book . I can't explain what it is w / o giving the story away , but I felt slightly cheated by the story's ending . I think the trick would have granted a short story immense value , but I think it brought the novel down a notch . Regardless , I'm just picky . This book is worth the money and is a great read .
048 4 Does Waiting tell a tragic story ? My answer is no : worse than that . Why , then , and how ? These are questions hard to answer , although the story seems simple , and simpler is the writing style .
Waiting must be read in a rather philosophic way . It is not a novel that enhances the process for waiting . Instead , the constant hopelessness and frustration of waiting in the story are its very effects that Ha Jin tries to configure and then to denounce . The plot is a deceptive cover in order to portray a sheerly deprived social reality where the most instinctive human desires and impulses are condemned . This explains why , after such a long period of waiting , the protagonist Lin Kong couldn't even enjoy the union , not even physically , with the woman who had waited 18 years for him .
Although the author does not explicitly attribute Lin Kong's pathetic status to the social reality , it is clear that , as the only intellectual in the novel , Lin Kong embodies the outcome of Chinese Communism ideology .
Worse than a tragedy which still expresses a strong value system , the nihilism is the ultimate spiritual reality of the protagonist . I find the ending of the novel masterful : it perpetuates such passive aspects of social reality by letting the former wife wait for the protagonist to return home , thereby starting another viscous circle .
I admire the courage of Ha Jin in insisting on a realistic writing while the major trend of creative writing seems to pursue a fashionable , postmodern , and often incomprehensible style .
Regrettably , I find the narrative development lacks imagination .
049 4 Ha Jin's Waiting invites readers into the post-War China where predetermined marriages still prevailed . It was the time when divorce was not even an option . Anyone who tried to divorce was labeled anti-revolution , heartless , and cruel . The court rarely granted divorce but tried its best to repair the marriage . A man abided by his parents ' will and married a woman Shuyu whom he did not love and gave birth to a daughter . After finishing medical school , Lin Kong served as a physician in the Revolutionary Army . Lin was content with his tidy military life until he met and fell in love with Manna , one of the nurses at the army hospital . Regulations forbid an army officer to divorce without his wife's consent - - until 18 years have passed , that is , after which he is free to marry again . So year after year , every summer Lin Kong returned to the Goose Village to divorce his wife Shuyu . Shuyu , a woman in her forties who looked like if she was sixty , had humiliating bound leg . Her face withered . She had been attentively taking care of Lin's parents who passed away before Lin met Manna . Shuyu found favor in the eyes of villagers and the judge . Madly in love with Manna , Lin also felt trapped in a marriage that embarrassed and repelled him . Lin felt he could not bring Shuyu with him around his work . Ha Jin has encompassed a wide range of truths and attitudes about human heart-Lin's insecurity and indecisiveness ; Manna's jealousy and Shuyu's faithfulness . I was completely mistaken for what the title of the book really means until the very end of the novel . The meaning of waiting is in fact two-fold : the 18 - year wait for divorce is only the surfacing idea . The true waiting that Ha Jin refers to is that of Lin's wife Shuyu . She had waited for her husband to come to senses what he really desires and treasures in his life . For 17 years in his life , Lin had been people-pleasing : he tried to please Manna by divorcing his wife ; he tried to please the fellow workers by getting a more presentable companion . Lin became blinded to who he really was . You have to persist to the very end when the author takes a turn and surprises you with the ending . I highly recommend this novel .
050 4 It's interesting , but not surprising , that most reviewers either thought this book was a masterpiece or a waste of time . I find myself empathizing with both camps - on the one hand I feel that the glimpse that the book provided me into a fascinating period of time in China was worthwhile , but on the other hand I felt that the reading was definitely laborious at times ( particularly in the middle of the book ) . The surprise ending was definitely a redeeming feature , but I almost thought I might not get there . I was also torn with both liking and becoming bored with the very simplistic prose . Overall , I don't regret having read the book , but I can't strongly recommend it , and I certainly can't understand why it received the National Book Award .
051 4 I see that people have beat me to it . Waiting is a no frills novel that cuts through the extras of life and gets right to the brunt of the problem , which , in this case , is the love affair between an army doctor and nurse in communist China . The characters are all wonderfully developed , though not particularly as people that you'd want to spend heaps of time with yourself . It's not a novel , though , that leaves the reader with a sense of satisfaction when he or she has finished it . Perhaps it's because Ha Jin tells his story about the senselessness of life but doesn't offer any convenient salvation for Lin and Manna , the two lovers . And though I know that sometimes life goes that way , people are disappointed , frustrated , and unhappy , I guess that in a way I read books to get away from all that . Still , Waiting is well written and gives you a periferal insight into Chinese society , but it's most certainly neither a relaxing nor joyous read .
052 4 This novel is set in China during the Cultural Revolution of the late twentieth century . The three main characters are Lin Kong , a doctor in the Chinese Army , Shuyu , his wife through an arranged marriage and the product of a traditionalist upbringing ( i.e . with bound feet ) and Mannu Wu an educated , mordern nurse that Lin plans to marry . Under military law , Lin must wait 18 years before he may secure a divorce without the consent of his wife .
The story operates on multiple levels . It is in part a story which explores the nature of love - - what does it mean to love someone and how does one know when he or she is in love ? The story also works as a political allegory of the Communist regime in China . Closely related to the latter , it is a fable about a traditional way of life coming into contact with modernity and industrialisation ( communist or not ) .
On all levels , the story shows the ambiguity of the human heart and the difficulty of self-knowledge . These are basic difficulties in being human , and their understanding is basic to human love , politics and change . The story shows both how hard it is for people to know their own hearts and also how difficult it is to pursue any ends without bringing , in some way , harm to another person .
The story is told in an eloquent , minimalist prose . The writing is simple and beautiful . I found theprimary characters and a host of secondary characters well , if suggestively and sparely , presented and developed .
This book reminded me of another highly acclaimed book : Disgrace by J , M . Coetzee . Both books are written in a restrained prose . Both are about repressive political societies ( South Africa and China ) in an uncertain state of transition . And both present situations fraught with moral ambiguity which seem to point beyond themselves for understanding .
This is a thoughtful and sad story about what a party leader accurately describes at an important moment of the book as a bitter love .
053 4 Subtle , smooth , slow and cold , Ha Jin's Waiting moves at a glacial pace and cuts as deep , carving its path deep into the hard ground of everything you once thought you knew . The book is unrepentant . In its quiet-but-raw way , it builds , it swells , gaining tension , ever advancing . Finally , it opens , gradually , languidly , like a delicate , fierce , hungry , dying black flower of pure , exquisite anguish . And at the center of that flower is both the wonder of discovery and the despair of utter futility , all wrapped up in a tangled mass of memories and hopes , and , most of all , regrets . This is a book that shows you what it doesn't - - what it can't bear to - - tell you . In its elegant , composed and even tranquil way , it chops you right down to size . Once you miss your chance , it says , that chance is gone . Poof ! Forever . So , you have learned that Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans . Too bad . The book feeds you just a meager taste of the truth , but even this teaspoonful is insufferable , intolerable , gagging , and bitter as bile . The book does to you what Lin does to himself , makes you wait . . . and wait , and wait and wait , and seems never to deliver . But it does deliver . Only what it delivers is pain , pain disguised as a rare treat , enticing you to take a bite , the Garden-of-Eden-what-the-hell-did-I-just-do bite , the bite that made all the difference .
054 4 I seem to be the only reader on earth at the moment who found this novel bland and bloodless . It does offer a rich look at China in a historical time and place , but so would a good history book . Jin's been compared to Henry James , which means that no one has read Henry James lately . Ordinary , dull sentences , wooden dialogue , and irritating characters . Certainly there were more compelling reads available to the National Book Award jury ?
055 4 Waiting grabbed me from the first page with its gripping and moving story of frail , mortal human beings in a China very much under the thumb of the Communists . For the first time I saw the people of China as PEOPLE not the faceless masses they are presented as in our media . Ha Jin's story is populated with human characters whose travails became my own as the plot progressed . This to me is the true test of any work of fiction - does it take you away , for a few hours , into a world whose characters ' concerns become your own concerns and whose fate becomes , however briefly , your own ? This book meets that test . Read it and enjoy something quite special . A very deserving winner of the National Book Award .
056 4 With a short but precise prologue , Ha Jin introduces the main conflict in this novel effectively to his readers - - - - Lin Kong returned to his countryside home to divorce his wife every year . That did surprise me . Why he had to do that every year ? - - The reason is : his wife agreed to his divorce at home , but changed her mind every time when they were in the court . Lin had a difficult decision to make . He did not love his country wife at all , having been away from her for over fifteen years . However , the country wife had done everything for his family - looking after Lin's parents , saving money for Lin and so on . Manna Wu , a girl at Lin's hospital who fell in love with him , had been waiting for Lin to divorce his wife for over ten years .
In this way the story develops , with many twists and turns . The main story line is clear . I find it difficult to criticise this story . I would like , if I may , to criticize those negative criticism about Lin's novel instead . The story is set in mainland China in the 1970s and early 1980s . I do understand that the cultural revolution in China has been blamed by a large number of people . However , I do not think Ha Jin wrote this novel so as to blame the destructive ten years in China . Instead , the author set the story in this background that he himself had lived through , to bring out a universal understood theme - love and affection . This reminds of ( Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet , though there is a large cultural and time gap between the two stories . ) I have always been asking myself what the main characters in the novel are waiting for throughout my reading . At first glance , I thought Manna Wu and Lin Kong had been * waiting * for Lin's divorce and their own marriage . However , I was wrong . In my opinion , what they have been waiting for is under sub-consciousness - - - - they are waiting to grow up spiritually and to understand their life better . Lin waited for eighteen years to divorce his wife . He finally was granted the divorce and married Manna Wu . However , the two's relationship did not last long . Manna Wu soon became ill and was diagnosed to have coronary heart disease and that she would die in a few years . The second last chapter devoted itself to reveal to us Lin's deepest thoughts in his heart - - - - he has never loved Manna Wu . They loved each other because of the presence of this seemed-divine years of waiting . They fonded each other because they had not understood what true love was .
Ironically , the true love lay in no other than the one between Lin and his own wife , Shu Yu .
A person in the review section claimed that Ha Jin's novel looked rather like a translated work . Were it translated , I would describe the translator as a brilliant one . There are always differences between the two culturals which have been separated by the Pacific Ocean . Had Ha Jin set the story in America , it would have sounded as convincing as the original script . Further more , from my point of view as a Chinese , I have to admit that Ha Jin has a wondrous manipulation of the English Language . Arriving in American in the middle of the 1980s , Jin has been able to win the national book prize is indeed something not easy . I feel proud of him , and am indeed reassured that Literature is borderless . It is argued that this unfortunate story happened because of the communist China . Although I agree that the Cultural Revolution has brought negative effects to the growth of China , we should not pump out unreasonable anger at it . The reason is because the environment is set there . It is difficult for an individual to alter it . I believe we should look more at characters rather than the evironment they are in . A good book teaches us a good idea . Ha Jin's Waiting fullfiled this . Do give this book a try . I find it enjoyable and hope you too .
057 4 I found this novel extremely easy to fall into . The storyline was intriguing describing as it does Chinese societal mores through the personal struggles of one man .
However , I found the conclusion to be extremely disappointing and not up to the high standards of the rest of the book . It is a 308 - page book that flows nicely until about the last 50 pages where it seems to rush to a very unsatisfying conclusion .
While quickly getting Lin to some personal understanding , the author simply concludes the story without ever showing us what his main character does with his new-found insight .
I was all the more disappointed because this book is , for the most part , extremely well-written and appropriately paced . Though I hesitated doing so because of the uninspired conclusion , it is for the writing style that I gave it three stars .
058 4 I thoroughly enjoyed this book . The story was quite simple and nothing dramatic happened , to some readers ' disappointment . But I found that it's what life is like . We all have waited for something , and often the process of waiting turned out to be the most exciting part . When we got what we wanted , we're often not so sure it's better .
In the book , Lin Kong tried to divorce his peasant wife Shuyu unsuccessfully for 18 years . Some reviewers here argued that it's actually very easy to divorce a woman in China in the 50s or 60s . But I think they are missing the point . Of course , in the book other officers divorced their wives easily . Lin clearly didn't try hard enough , because he was ambivalent towards both women . He thought he had no love for Shuyu , but he's also not sure if he really wanted a marriage with Manna , his lover . He never thought hard about his relationships . So , the court's rejections were actually his excuses for inaction .
On another level , I can really identify with the characters in the story . My grandmother had bound feet , and she was a quiet , always obedient woman just like Shuyu . I also could understand Lin Kong's indecisiveness and apparent lack of emotions . He's an intellect , and it's considered superior in China to be a reserved man . But the writing is very touching and moving . These characters were just like us here , with real emotions like jealousy and fear , and their lives were plain , just like most of ours .
I definitely don't think the book was written to exaggerate the conditions during cultural revolution in China , or to be exotic as to appeal to a western audience . I have read many other books that were like that , where the characters endured unimaginable sufferings and then triumphed miraculously . In this book , life is strangely familiar and similar to what we have here . I enthusiastically recommend this book .
059 4 Ha Jin has an eye for detail and the quirks of Communist China , as well as for the average human being , that makes this book read like a fable . I found myself hypnotized by his spare and economical prose , where the people and the situations they dealt with were the story , and not flowery language and metaphor . This book wasn't a metaphor for a certain life led , it was life itself . It was funny and had me rolling on the couch at times . It is a very whimsical look at a very harsh and disturbing time . He is to be commended for his accomplishment . This is realism , people . A word many readers ( and writers ) hate , being as it so often is identified with plotless , depressing , and dull prose . Hell , if I had to live in Red China , I sure hope I would have been able to remain vivacious about my life , if not entirely satisfied . You grab what you can , and milk life for what it is worth , which Ha Jin's characters do . Maybe it takes an author whose first language isn't English to remind us what good writing is all about . Never tell more than you need to tell , never tell less than the story demands .
060 4 Ha Jin writes with such lovely , engaging prose that I was immediately drawn into this novel . His characters seem so human , their flaws so believable as to seem both slight forgivable - - flaws of patience or foolishness that one might excuse in oneself . His portrait of masculinity is almost feminine in its description - - a gentle unflinching look at the heart of a man . The characters seemed so true to life the portrait of the cultural changes in China that emerges like a backdrop only serves to make the people more real , their emotions choices more believable . The pacing of the story is as thoughtful deliberate as a heartbeat , drawing the reader steadily through the two decades until we look back with the protagonist wonder where the time has gone . In the preface , one wonders if he will choose to stay with the arranged marriage he keeps at a distance in the country or break with convention to marry the woman he works with in the city . His life goals seem to work out as being both less more than he expected . This is a fascinating portrait of a man who seems drawn down the path of his life by the external rules of custom the decisions of others . This shouldn't seem like a criticism , though . I didn't mind waiting until the end of the book to find out how the opposing demands of honorable behavior would work themselves out . I enjoyed every word .
061 4 I was not impressed by the initial chapters of the book but , like its theme , my patience was rewarded in spades . Ha Jin's writing is simple and schoolboyish at times , not what I would expect from a prize-winning effort . However , it is quite apt for this tale of simple unambitious characters from the heartlands of China caught in the thick of the country's evolution into capitalism . It is to Ha Jin's credit that the waiting is as frustrating for the reader as it is for Manna . The beauty of the novel lies in the underlying themes of the rapid changes in China and how it eventually drives home to even a most loyal follower like Lin Kong . The final chapters where Lin Kong finally realises how he lost 17 - years of his life trying to marry the woman he thought he loved and missed the growing years of his daughter , completely blind to the devotion of his duty-bound wife , is simply heartbreaking . This book is a little gem that's worth the wait .
062 4 I read the first 75% of the novel with disdain , and most of it was directed at the two protagonists of the novel , Lin and Manna . I've never read any main characters as passive , stupid , and pathetic . I don't know if Ha Jin was trying to generate sympathy for the characters , but it didn't work for me . Like I said before , I looked down on the characters - - most of their misfortunes were self-inflicted , whether from Lin's arranged marriage to his dumb wife or their pointless waiting itself . And I didn't buy for a New York minute that Lin would keep on going back to his wife for a divorce once a year for 18 years without thinking of trying something else ; I mean , how dumb can a guy be ?
So . . . going into the final quarter of the novel , I expected a total cliched tragic ending . A lot of these Chinese books and movies always go for this , like Joan Chen's witless movie Xiu Xiu . However , Ha Jin does something interesting , and the ending surprised me . Far from being cliched , it was quite original and utterly believable and realistic . Ha Jin shows what reality is : that no matter how sad the people and their situation , life goes on . Sad people generally do not commit suicide or die of cancer when it's convenient for the plot . As such , I applaud this novel .
063 4 This was an mildly interesting book written in classic , no-frills Chinese prose . The characters were deep but only if the reader was willing to do the analysis of the character motivation themselves . Ha Jin did not assume his reader would need to have this spelled out for them . There were no excess words here to describe feelings . His words focused on describing facts and situations . One really has to look behind the facts for the emotional parts of the story . I liked that . If you are sympathetic by nature , you will find the book very deeply touching . I found it also to be immensely sad since every character in this book was a victim of themselves , a victim of the life at that time in China , and a victim of circumstances . If the reader is not able to be empathetic with the characters , this book will be utterly boring and may seem pointless . The morale of the story , and perhaps the biggest downer is - sometimes when you finally get what you want , it's not what you think it's going to be ( a twist on the old grass is always greener concept ) . Don't let the rather depressing theme deter you from reading this book if 1 ) you have an interest in fine , clean writing and 2 ) using your brain to intuit the characters ' psyche and motivation doesn't scare you . I would , however , suggest you read this when you're in pretty good spirits or it may give you that so this is all there is in life ? kind of feeling .
064 4 Waiting is a wonderful story . It's characters are brought to life in a simple calm narrative that engages the reader immediately . The effects of the book are felt long after the reading experience has ended . The book is not only an exploration of the effects of living in a severely repressive environment , but it is a study of what it means to be a full human being . Desire is withheld for an eighteen year period between two compatable workers at an army hospital . They are seemingly in love . Yet , the effects of their witholding of their passion from one another leads to a very tragic end . Understanding their choices and restraint is a difficult journey that the author skillfullly takes the reader on . I have beneffited enormously from the ride and recommend this book wholeheartedly .
065 4 This review is from :
Waiting : A Novel ( Paperback )
Ha Jin , who taught himself English while working as a railroad telegrapher on the Sino-Soviet frontier , decided not to return to China after Tiananman Square , and , like Conrad and Nabokov before him , willed himself into becoming a writer in English , is a self-made man . His personal story epitomizes the American Dream and underscores a certain political point of view about China . Perhaps for this reason , Waiting , his first novel , has been overrated and over-awarded .
The backdrop of the novel - - the daily life of proletarians and party officials in Mao's China - - is interesting enough and sometimes amusing , but the author's development of his central characters and his narrative technique will disappoint readers used to Western fiction . There is little of the subtlety of Checkov or Turgenev , or the expanse of Nabokov , here .
Physician Lin Kong and his chaste lover , nurse Manna Wu , begin and end as tentative , slight characters , virtually devoid of inner lives or major contradictions . The so-called twist at the end of this book is , in reality , little more than a double dose of the tentativeness which affects Lin throughout . To the extent Lin and Manna face dilemmas , they do so , not through actions which the reader might interpret and identify with , but rather through interior monologues of the angel-on-the-left-shoulder , devil-on the-right-shoulder variety . As a result , their problems never really become our problems .
This is easy , but unfortunately not rewarding , reading .
066 4 Ha Jin , who taught himself English while working as a railroad telegrapher on the Sino-Soviet frontier , decided not to return to China after Tiananman Square , and , like Conrad and Nabokov before him , willed himself into becoming a writer in English , is a self-made man . His personal story epitomizes the American Dream and underscores a certain political point of view about China . Perhaps for this reason , Waiting , his first novel , has been overrated and over-awarded .
The backdrop of the novel - - the daily life of proletarians and party officials in Mao's China - - is interesting enough and sometimes amusing , but the author's development of his central characters and his narrative technique will disappoint readers used to Western fiction . There is little of the subtlety of Checkov or Turgenev , or the expanse of Nabokov , here .
Physician Lin Kong and his chaste lover , nurse Manna Wu , begin and end as tentative , slight characters , virtually devoid of inner lives or major contradictions . The so-called twist at the end of this book is , in reality , little more than a double dose of the tentativeness which affects Lin throughout . To the extent Lin and Manna face dilemmas , they do so , not through actions which the reader might interpret and identify with , but rather through interior monologues of the angel-on-the-left-shoulder , devil-on the-right-shoulder variety . As a result , their problems never really become our problems .
This is easy , but unfortunately not rewarding , reading .
067 4 After reading Ha Jin's collection of short stories ( Bridegroom ) , I eagerly anticipated visiting a full novel , more to see if this writer of succinct , crystalline prose could maintain interest over the course of a complete tale . Waiting succeeds on every level . Not only does his clarity of vision and description of the most minute bits of beauty in his created world remain intact , he caresses his reader with simple people , simple situations , simple outcomes that make the overall effect of his novels simply heroic . The story of the ideals and frustrations of waiting for the right way only to find at the end of the day that the waiting dislodged the pleasure of what was already in place - this simple lesson is universal , tender , heartrending , and wholly understandable . Ha Jin distills life into a prism of words that reflect and refract life . What a rewarding and refreshing writer he is . The National Book Award was justly deserved !
068 4 Ha Jin's novel , Waiting , is about Lin Kong , a gentle and scholarly man who is stuck in a loveless marriage with the stolid and dependable Shuyu , who was given to him in an arranged marriage . He leaves Shuyu in the countryside with their daughter , Hua , and he becomes an army doctor . The novel spans several decades , as Lin forms an attachment to a nurse named Manna , and decides to divorce his wife . The novel has little plot . Ha Jin concentrates on how Mao's Cultural Revolution changed the life of the Chinese , and how the social atmosphere in China from the sixties to the eighties limited the choices that men and women could make in work and in love . Ha Jin explores the attempts of the characters to express themselves as individuals and , at the same time , do what is proper in the eyes of the state and of their fellow citizens . How can they accumulate wealth without being denounced as bourgeois ? How can they find love when the State stands in their way ? Both Lin and Manna make difficult choices and they pay a price for their happiness . Only Shuyu , who asks for nothing and gives of herself unstintingly , seems to emerge emotionally unscathed . Ha Jin has written a touching and low-key novel that beautifully describes life in China from the Cultural Revolution through its aftermath . He captures the feeling of rural China particularly well , describing the hardscrabble life that people live on a day to day basis . The characters and dialogue are simple yet affecting . Ha Jin seems to be saying that happiness , especially in a culture as constricting as that of China , is an elusive commodity . People who are brought up to repress their feeling and emotions often forget how to feel and often do not even know what they want . Waiting is a glimpse into a culture with which most Americans are completely unfamiliar .
069 4 This was a great book on two levels . The portrayal of China during and after the Cultural Revolution was revealing and did much to humanize the lives of average Chinese during that time . It gave a nonjudgemental accounting of one man's life during that time . The heart of the book is the telling of a long term affair and its effects on the lives around the affair . Told by a male narrator in spare language , the reader is able to see into the mind and heart of Lin . As a single woman , the descriptions of feelings , changes , and outcomes of this affair ring true . I will give this book to anyone considering an affair . Lin and Manna cross cultures to provide insight into what is normally romantized .
070 4 How refreshing to read a book about modern China that doesn't involve incerations or focuses on the Cultural Revolution . I love books that do , don't get me wrong , but here's something different .
The role of women in China has really changed . That's no secret but this book highlights the dilemma created , and what was lost what was gained and the sacrifices on both ends . The traditional wife in the village compared to the modern , educated woman in the city .
We also get real insight on lives and careers during the era and how they changed .
The doctor was the only disappointment . A real limp fish . Definitely not a guy worth waiting for ! But the book is worth reading . Can't wait to read more by Ha Jin .
071 4 despite the ratings is below four , i would give this book full five stars . This book is a gem .
072 4 It is rare that the essence of a book is so completely captured in its title . The title of this particular book , Waiting , is apt in many ways . First of all , the protagonist , Lin Kong , spends 18 years waiting to divorce his wife . While he is waiting , as is his intended bride-to-be , the reader also waits in the daily grind of his job , duties , and other human interactions , for the day Lin Kong is finally able to divorce his country-bumpkin wife and marry the woman of his dreams . So both the protagonist and the reader wait , page after page , event after event , yearning for that end to his unhappiness .
If , however , the waiting was meant only for this long-awaited divorce , the reader finds out that the book goes on to narrate the married life of Lin Kong and his new bride , Manna Wu , after the supposed end to his waiting . Is the book all of a sudden not about waiting anymore ? It turns out that this waiting is not just for the one event in life , rather it turns out to be the very condition of continuing human existence . As the protagonist realizes that he was waiting for the sake of waiting , it is the very thing that kept him alive and living .
Thus , when his waiting for the divorce is over and he starts a family with his new bride , he starts to have regrets . When his bride turns out to have a heart condition which would eventually kill her , he yearns to wait again . This time , the reader is left with the impression that he will have to wait for Manna to die , in order to be reunited with Shuyu , his first wife , whom he now regrets divorcing . The very last image with which the novel ends is telling : as Lin comes to the realization that he will have to wait for her to die , Manna looks out the window , radiantly and so alive , greeting those outside it . There is no mistake here that the reader is being led to believe that the waiting this time will again take a long time . Just as the divorce was certain but slow to come , the reader is left to believe that Manna's death , which will set Lin free again , will be certain , but again slow . So the waiting game begins again .
Ha Jin's prose is impeccable . It is flawless . He writes better than most native English speakers . It reminds me of Franz Kafka's prose , written in impeccable , but book-learned German . Undoubtedly the fact that both Ha Jin and Franz Kafka are writing in a language that is not native to them sets them apart from those to whom language comes easily . At the same time , both Ha Jin and Franz Kafka , because they are conversant in a non-native language , are able to see common human condition before they see particularities in disparate cultures . Therefore , both Jin and Kafka end up writing in a universal language that is easily understood by everyone . It speaks to everyone and is felt by everyone . At the same time , as writers of minor literature , as inside outsiders , they are able to jar consciousness and make the reader see things differently .
In a short story by Kafka called , The Judgment , the protagonist , Georg Bendemann , jumps off of a bridge because he has seen the true nature of human condition . Not being able to deal with it , he opts to die while the endless traffic crosses under the bridge . This image of Georg in his final moment and Manna Wu's radiant face at the end of Waiting seemed to me two sides of the same face , one who is denied the kind of waiting that sustains humanity and the other who enables it .
073 4 This is the story of a man who seeks to divorce his wife in order to marry a woman whom he has grown close to at the hospital where they work . The story takes place in China . The wife is not a worldly woman , but she has been a faithful wife , a good mother and taken care of her in-laws in their old age , illness and death . Her husband seems to be a man who has not truley known love , his marriage was arranged and was a suitable match . He lives away from his family and visits them once a year . His female companion , a comrade at the hospital , believes that she should be his wife and after many tries to start a life without him , she decides to wait until he is allowed to divorce his wife . The span of this tale is an 18 year marriage . The story portrays the lives of the people in China.It describes the military and political aspects as well as their daily routines , living conditions , meals and attitudes etc . It does so in a very concise and simple manner that gives you a clear glimpse into their lives . All of the characters seem to be waiting for contentment and love . . . . the question is who waits the most patiently and eventually receives what it realy is that they were waiting for . This is an interesting book and very well written . The big surprise is which character ( s ) you really dislike and which you care about .
074 4 Waiting is an extraordinarily annoying , yet suspensful read . The author makes the reader wait to find out if the new relationship will outshine the hollow relationship that Lin Kong had with his wife Shuyu . The ending makes the drawn out sequence of events - - in which Lin Kong travels back to his home town each year to divorce his wife and fails - - worth the wait .
The book is not just about love and arranged marriage , like the cyclical events appear to imply . The book is about a man's struggle to realize who he is , what he desires , and how long he has waited to find it . Though Lin Kong's girlfriend , Manna Wu , waits for decades before she can marry Lin Kong , her wait is inconsequential . Shuyu waits for her husband to return to her and Lin kong is waiting for realization , contentment , and home .
The book's ending is one surprise you won't mind waiting for .
076 4 Waiting to me , is on a whole a deceptive romantic love story . Initally , through reading the first two parts of the novel , the reader will get an idea that she is reading an enduring love story where love can conquer all odds.However , at the end of the novel , I get the idea that no love exist at all between Lin Kong and Manna . They are just together because they have been Wating for each other for so long . Waiting thus gives the reader a depressing view of love in the end . To me , no true love exists in the book and the last line of the novel clearly illustrates the idea that Lin is just waiting for Manna to die so that he can return to Shuyu.The protagonist is selfish and crowdly to the very end and he is a pathetic character who does not know what he wants.This book is a fine literary read that offers many ideas about human emotions . It is a must read for anyone who wants to think about the issues of love and the selfish nature of man . I truly enjoyed this book although it is , on the whole , a really bleak portrayal of human nature and love.Ha Jin's simple and direct prose also assists in bringing his ideas more closely to the reader .
077 4 Readers of Edith Wharton's Ethan Frome will find striking parallels between that classic and this new book by Ha Jin . In both , the atmosphere is claustrophobic , in both , the hero is trapped in an bleak life and a loveless marriage . In both , a younger woman offers escape and hope . In both , the conclusion is not quite what the hero plans or expects . Ha Jin is a Chinese living in the US , writing in English about a life in China . As such , I think the writing of this evocative novel is a triumph . His style is terse , without frills - no flashbacks , no elaborate metaphors - and cheerlessly evokes the daily grey-beige life of a middle-class professional in the post-Cultural Revolution era . How would happiness be possible in such a sepia-toned world ? - one longs for a ray of sunshine , a burst of color , but there is only overcast sky and endless cadres in uniform . An old Chinese saying advises : Be careful what you wish for ; you might get it . This story is a good example of this idea also .
078 4 A beautifully written book describing the harsh reality of living in China in this century . Deals with love , family , repression , sex , mores , and power . A book that accelerates in its second half , and a writing style that feels Chinese . Recommend highly but be ready to be depressed .
079 4 I was really looking forward to reading this book , because it sounded like it would be very rewarding and thought-provoking . However , nothing about it convinced me that it is worthy of a National Book Award . The writing was elementary , unimpressive , and rather simple . While this made the book a fairly easy read , and while I never seriously thought of not finishing it , whenever the plot would build to some sort of climax ( and there weren't any exciting ones , to be sure ) , the next section or chapter wouldn't deal with it . It was just on to the next thing , which was equally unexciting . I kept hoping something monumental would happen , but halfway through I realized that since the author told the reader the pivotal thing in the first pages of the book , there was nothing else to be told . It plodded along , from year to year , which is I guess the point of the book - - that life goes on no matter how we try to change it - - and when I reached the end , I was glad to have finished the book so I didn't have to read it anymore . The ending was disappointing also ; something happens that makes you think Aha ! So this is the message of the story , but even that falls flat .
080 4 Subtlety . Ha Jin takes us to school on this subject . The book , richly written , is loaded with subtlety .
I enjoyed reading this book , which is probably the most appropriately titled book in the history of the written word . Lin Kong returns home every year to his small village to his wife and child , asking for a divorce . He has fallen in love with Manna Wu , a co-worker , but he remains faithful to his wife despite his never have loving her .
It is interesting to read about the trials that Kong and Wu endure as they are waiting for eighteen years for the divorce to go through . It made for a better love-story and it helped the character development , even though it did move along somewhat slowly .
I did appreciate the wonderful language used , as well as the simple flow of the book . Such a nice easy prose made for crisp reading and using a background of the political views of the China was also a nice touch , and it help to add meaning to the story .
The thing that I found most entertaining was the subtle humor peppered here and there . You have to look for it , but it is there , and makes for a more pleasant reading experience . Overall , this book was quite enjoyable .
081 4 To understand the characters of this novel , you have to be able to wait along with them throughout their ordeal . When introduced to Lin Kong , he is at court , trying to divorce his simple but loving wife , for yet another unsuccessful time . The reader wonders what could justify his patient yet undeniably cruel wish to divorce her year after year .
Then we're taken back almost twenty years , when Lin meets Manna Wu , another notoriously patient character , who has been jilted by her lover . Eventually these two fall in love , yet are not able to consummate the relationship due to the social politics of 1970s China . This setting was perfect and wonderfully detailed as to why Lin and Manna suffer along in their comfortable misery , in development reminiscent of Kundera's The Unbearable Lightness of Being .
In the end , neither is satisfied with the wait , but the reader comes to understand how Lin , Manna , and even Shuyu's minds are warped by their heart's sense of impending justice .
Jin , as always , writes quite simply but effectively . I highly recommend this work , and any of his .
082 4 thinks the main character in this story about tradition , family , love and loyalty . Army Doctor Lin Kong , at the urging of his family , agrees to an arranged marriage with a footbound woman from the country . They have a child together , but little else in the way of a relationship . She remains at their home raising their daughter , caring for her ailing parents ( and his ) , while he works at a hospital in the city . Eventually , he becomes interested in having a relationship with a nurse named Manna , and , in order not to jeopardize his standing at the hospital and to comply with the strict rules involving relationships between members of the staff , he decides to divorce his wife . Year after year , he returns home , discusses the situation with his her and cajoles her into going along with it in front of a judge . But invariably , although sometimes with the intervention of her loyal brother , she gets cold feet . He waits torpidly , knowing that at the 18 years of separation mark , the divorce can be granted without his wife's consent .
Novel negatives : The writing is on the stiff side , a particularly graphic scene is included , and getting through the first two-thirds of it is about as insufferable as the wait of Lin and Manna . Positives : With only a handful of characters appearing in the novel , there is ample space to learn what makes them tick and ( patience being a virtue ) the virtuous will be rewarded with an entertaining resolution . The story's message may fall somewhere between : The grass is greener on the other side of the fence , If you can't be with the one you love , love the one you're with , and , You reap what you sow . Whichever , it provides a lesson about how an individual's choices can affect the lives of many . Was it worth the wait ? For the reader , yes , for Lin Kong , read and find out . Better : Pearl S . Buck's The Good Earth , Amy Tan's The Bonesetter's Daughter and The Kitchen God's Wife and Anchee Min's Red Azalea .
083 4 This spare novel caught my eye since I had worked for many years for a company owned and mostly populated by Chinese . As such , I was an observer of the culture and the indirect way of communicating that permeated the company . Waiting was a novel that was familiar to me due to my experience , yet startling new in its exploration of the character of a man willing to wait , rather than to act . The character development of the major players is excellent and the emotions that each feels is described in a way concise , yet palpable way . I am not sure whether to give this 4 or 5 stars - I keep waffling so I wish there were a 4.5 designation . Nevertheless , highly recommended .
084 4 ' Waiting ' is a strange tale to a Westerner . Jin Kong and Manna Wu wait 18 years for Jin to finally successfully divorce his wife after many attempts . They seem to be in love , but are they really ? Or is the waiting simply making Jin desire what he cannot have ? Or once he gets it will he just want something else , like what he had or could have had but always rejected ?
The book deftly portrays the interplay of rural Chinese traditions and the Communist Chinese bureaucratic rules - both of which seem designed to prevent happiness and to constrict and bind the characters ( sometimes literally ) . The restrictions force Jin to live in his head and make the reader want to strangle him at times .
Not necessarily a ' fun ' book , but a fascinating read nonetheless .
085 4 This is the second book I have read by Ha Jin . The first , The Crazed , was somewhat slow , but quite enjoyable by the end . This one was a much easier , faster read - - one with a very different objective . Both novels are set in China during the time of the Cultural Revolution , a very interesting time indeed . While The Crazed focused more on a historical and cultural experience for the characters , Waiting truly is a love story , one that is heartbreaking and touching on so many levels . The characters are complex even while the storyline seems simple . The themes of waiting and restlessness , of dissatisfaction , and ultimately of regret and redemption really resonated with me . I felt a part of these characters ' lives , and that is why I read books in the first place . Be patient with this story ; let it unfold at its own pace . Stories like this need to be savored , not rushed . Take some time when you are finished to reflect not only on what has developed in these 308 pages , but on what you yourself have done over the last 20 years or so . What are YOU waiting for ? What have you missed ? ( In both senses of the word : what have you failed to notice and what do you long for ? )
086 4 This is a wonderfully quiet and introverted book with what looks initially to be a simple story , but at the end will make the reader wonder with which character he / she should morally and emotionally align himself / herself . Thus , despite its quiet style , the book will have a dramatic impact in its readers .
A man married to a wife that he does not love falls in love with a woman whom he cannot marry because his wife does not give her permission to a divorce . Set in communist China , all characters struggle with leading private lives in what is an un-private world . Nothing can be kept secret . Thoughts , emotions and actions are constantly exposed and put under scrutiny . People are put under the microscope and individuality is suppressed . Meanwhile , there is a huge double-standard between the regular worker and the politically involved elite . If you have never been exposed to Communism and what it does to the people that live under its regime , this book will provide you with a wonderful insight into how lonely and depressed this society is .
Widely different in their quest for happiness and a fulfilled life , the three main characters are emotionally bounded for over 30 years . The reader will move through history with them , being exposed to each characters good and bad sides . He / she will grow with them and experience that really nothing is simple in life and that people who live in a suppressed society have little options and hardly any choices .
Jin's writing is masterful in its lyricism . With simple sentences and words , he is able to show - not tell - the lives that his three main characters live . The reader is swept into this story quickly and not much is needed to keep him / her engaged . Waiting is a wonderful book that is highly recommended for book clubs or class room discussions .
087 4 This review is from :
Waiting : A Novel ( Paperback )
One of the few extravagant touches in this plain-spoken , calmly narrated novel is its attention-grabbing opening line ( ' ' Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife , Shuyu . ' ' ) . For nearly two decades , Lin has been trying to get his long-suffering wife to agree to a divorce so he can marry his coworker , Manna Wu , but Shuyu always changes her mind at the last minute , for one reason or another ( usually under pressure from her meddlesome brother ) . Eighteen years of separation are required by law before Lin can be granted a divorce without his wife's consent , and the novel opens just prior to the end of this long delay .
Come on , next year I'll divorce her , whether she agrees or not . Let's just wait another year , all right ?
Another year ? Her voice turned rather shrill . How many years do you have in your life ?
This humorous beginning launches Ha Jin's reflective meditation on the nature of love and the lengths ( chronological and emotional ) that lovers go through to fulfill it . Many things other than the patience required by a wait of eighteen long years complicate the couple's journey : Lin's feelings toward his first wife , while not passionate , are hardly opprobrious ; he is nearly a stranger to his only daughter ; Manna Wu , a single and otherwise available woman , must suffer the reputation of a spinster and the aggressive advances of powerful men ; and , most fascinatingly , every character in some way endures the clash between , on the one hand , Western ideas of literature and of divorce and , on the other , Communist ideology and Chinese traditions .
Stylistically , Waiting is , as its very name implies , a quiet novel , but its simplicity is deceptive : the events and the characters it describes are fully animated . The prose itself is what the word lyrical was invented to describe . True - - the resolution of the characters myriad affairs is somewhat expected , but the details of this comedy are a pleasure .
088 4 One of the few extravagant touches in this plain-spoken , calmly narrated novel is its attention-grabbing opening line ( ' ' Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife , Shuyu . ' ' ) . For nearly two decades , Lin has been trying to get his long-suffering wife to agree to a divorce so he can marry his coworker , Manna Wu , but Shuyu always changes her mind at the last minute , for one reason or another ( usually under pressure from her meddlesome brother ) . Eighteen years of separation are required by law before Lin can be granted a divorce without his wife's consent , and the novel opens just prior to the end of this long delay .
Come on , next year I'll divorce her , whether she agrees or not . Let's just wait another year , all right ?
Another year ? Her voice turned rather shrill . How many years do you have in your life ?
This humorous beginning launches Ha Jin's reflective meditation on the nature of love and the lengths ( chronological and emotional ) that lovers go through to fulfill it . Many things other than the patience required by a wait of eighteen long years complicate the couple's journey : Lin's feelings toward his first wife , while not passionate , are hardly opprobrious ; he is nearly a stranger to his only daughter ; Manna Wu , a single and otherwise available woman , must suffer the reputation of a spinster and the aggressive advances of powerful men ; and , most fascinatingly , every character in some way endures the clash between , on the one hand , Western ideas of literature and of divorce and , on the other , Communist ideology and Chinese traditions .
Stylistically , Waiting is , as its very name implies , a quiet novel , but its simplicity is deceptive : the events and the characters it describes are fully animated . The prose itself is what the word lyrical was invented to describe . True - - the resolution of the characters myriad affairs is somewhat expected , but the details of this comedy are a pleasure .
089 4 Humans cannot understand others until they know themselves . The theme of Waiting is the idea that in society , individuals are constantly searching for an identity , and Lin , the protagonist of the novel , searches the most out of any of the characters . Essentially , he is waiting to discover something that ignites his sense of self .
It is crucial to the plot of the novel that the setting be Communist China . While western philosophy focuses on the individual , the concept of Communism values the collective . Therefore , numerous examples in the book show Lin's inability to find his true self , because of the oppressive government . For example , since most literature has been banned in the society due to the cultural revolution , he is not exposed to a myriad of literature . The communist society in which he lives parallels that of George Orwell's in 1984 . Just as Orwell proves in 1984 , in a Communist society , Lin and his comrades lose their identity due to conformity .
Lin looks for some sense of identity in Manna , the woman he is waiting to marry . Manna is a strong-willed individual who waits with Lin for eighteen years of separation in his marriage to pass so that she can marry him . Lin hopes to find some identity in the rock of Manna's personality , but as she changes with time , he realizes that her personality is not as stable as he had hoped .
There is irony in throughout the story in the fact that Lin misses the point that it is not the destination in life that matters , but the journey . He is so focused on marrying Manna and living in an utopian that he envisions , that he never focuses on the bits of happiness that he experiences in the present . Lin hopes to find an identity when he marries Manna , but in the end his waiting proves to be futile .
090 4 I won't waste anyone's time by going into the details of the book . The other 276 reviews posted here do that in plenty of depth . I would merely be wasting my time restating what countless people have already said . Generally , the book is titled Waiting . And it's about waiting . That's about all you need to know going into the book . There's an everyday adage about wishing and being careful , which we see the fruits of in this book . Enough said in that regard .
The book is simple , no doubt . The story itself is mostly unremarkable , but I think that's what makes it what it is - an interesting read . Those familiar with Chinese culture and sociology at any level can probably appreciate the simplicity . Manifest in that simplicity is a patience which breeds a longing . As we see , the longing must be tempered with patience . Thus the waiting . Am I being too vague ?
Almost any modern book about life in China will see a fiction littered with discussions of life under Mao and the Cultural Revolution . Again , readers who are familiar with Chinese culture and it's modern literature will be well aware of that . It's virtually impossible to read a Chinese author and not see that in the pages . Perhaps only Amy Tan has managed to avoid it , but I have yet to read her full complement of books .
I'm not surprised by those who give the book 1 star , and I can't disagree with them in terms of subjective assessment , since they obviously had certain expectations going into the book . However , it's clear these expectations were misguided . In almost every case , the reader likely knew nothing of the culture they were reading . Collectively , these negative reviews express their impatience with the overused quip that , I'm still waiting for something to happen . Their impatience is overshadowed only by their unoriginality .
However , I'm not going to sit here and proclaim this a brilliant book . I bought it because it was the National Book Award winner in 1999 and the PEN / Faulkner Award winner in 2000 . Knowing that , I expected more than a slowly meandering walk through pages which mostly brought you exactly where you thought it would . Nothing happens in the story that you can't reasonably expect . Not to say that this is bad , per se . But it is what it is . And the narrative's slow crawl in an expected direction leads you to an anti-climax when you reach the end .
Still , the narrative is enjoyable enough to keep you interested , and the writing style is top notch , as you might expect . The core of the story is something many people in life never learn , true forest for the trees stuff here . If it only takes 300 pages for you to understand , you should consider yourself lucky . For most people , it takes a lifetime . More than likely , this is why it won those awards .
091 4 This is a well-written story that describes an unconventional love triangle stretched out over two decades .
The protagonists are Lin Kong , a Chinese physician serving his Communist masters faithfully ; Shuyu , his peasant wife from an arranged marriage ; and Manna Wu , a nurse at Mr . Kong's hospital .
The central drama of the book revolves around Mr . Kong's repeated attempts to divorce his childhood bride so that he can marry Manna Wu . Lin Kong himself is conflicted . On the one hand , he feels shame and guilt over even trying to divorce his wife , as she has done nothing worthy of divorce , faithfully serving both him and his entire family without a single complaint over the years . On the other hand , he longs to be with Manna , a much better match for him by intellect and by temperament - - so his repeated failures at finalizing the divorce fill him with a mild case of self-loathing .
One of the beauties of this book is that it stretches the narrative over nearly 20 years . You live with these characters for twenty years , seeing them change , age , and grow . This kind of story-telling is the antithesis of the whirlwind courtship followed by and they lived happily ever after ( a la Bridget Jones ' Diary ) .
The backdrop to this story is China , which itself changes dramatically from the 1960s to the 1980s . For a very different sense of China during the same period , I recommend reading the non-fiction Gang of One by Fan Shen .
The writing is astounding for someone who didn't learn to write in English until so late in life . I found the external events more dramatic and compelling than Lin's internal conversations with himself , which sometimes felt a little stilted . Still , overall , this is a compelling read and a remarkable achievement for a non-native writer .
092 4 For me the greatest aspect of Waiting was Ha Jin's writing style ; even though this book is about what its title declares : waiting , I had no such experience while reading it . A bonus delight was to look back and see this novel as an allegory of China's need to appreciate the provincial , rather than sell it in favor of what the government currently considers urbane . ( Will the mistress retain her allure despite time and self-discovery ? )
As for my concerns with this book . . . . The first one had to do with Manna , as a nurse , should have known better than to try jumping around in hopes of warding off conception . This seemed grossly ignorant , thus inconsistent . Next was during her labor , Manna's cries seemed ludicrous in light of her own possessiveness over her finances and belongings . Given this , I laughed out loud over her pain , which was disturbing since I doubt Ha Jin intended that reaction . As for the strong sense of longing successfully sculpted into my reading experience , it was not on behalf of Lin and Manna ; for that I also wondered if it was intended by Ha Jin .
093 4 This novel takes place in China during the Cultural Revolution and afterwards , but it is a social , not a political novel . Its protagonist is a military doctor assigned to a hospital in a small city , with a peasant wife living in a rural village , and a long standing relationship with a nurse at the hospital . The doctor entered his marriage out of respect for his parents who needed a daughter-in-law to help them , and he is not allowed to divorce for 18 years . Ha Jin tells a quiet , unadorned story , which is mostly interesting and occasionally dull . For the most part , the characters are colorless , perhaps reflective of their situation . The doctor is a well developed character , a moral , competent , yet passive human being . His wife is drawn broadly , but with sympathy and appreciation . The reason to read this book is to experience a slice of Chinese life of the period , a time and culture when a small degree of freedom and material comfort went a long way .
094 4 This was a National Book Award Winner . It's title , Waiting , seems to tell you what it's about , it's about patience , endurance , constancy of human spirit . Why should you read it ? Were it not for the depth of the characters and the beauty of the writing , this book might bore us - - after all , it's about waiting - - but Ha Jin pulls it off , we stay engaged throughout , and the payoff is terrific . Even , at the end of the book , there is a surprise , when we learn that we have been reading the less important of two stories . The greater story , merely implied , has been waiting for us to discover and write it in our imaginations . But this is not a box of crackerjacks , you can't open your surprise early . The surprise is worth waiting for .
Having said that , be careful which reviews you read . Some people can't keep a secret and will spoil it for you .
095 4 This was a lovely book . It's text is simple , but moving . It plot remains with you long after you've finished the book . A beautiful glimpse into the mind of a fine Asian writer .
096 4 Ha Jin's new novel , Waiting , is understated and restrained as it is eloquent . Lin Kong is an army doctor entangled in a dissatisfying arranged marriage . His wife , Shuyu , lives in the country tending to his ailing parents while Lin pursues his military career in the city . Lin meets Manna , a nurse who works in his ward at the army hospital . Despite obvious obstacles , they pursue a courtship and fall in love : Her moist lips curled with a dreamy smile as though she were drunk . Slightly dizzy himself , he stood up and hurried away for fear that others might see his face , which was burning hot . Jin constructs a powerful tension , a dichotomy of individual desire versus obligation and stifling conformity within a collective society that drives the narrative . Lin's desire resonates as an aching yearning yet strangely he quietly accepts her lot . For seventeen years , Lin treks back to his village in the hope of being granted a divorce from Shuyu . Each year his petition is denied . The village council sees no reason why the couple should divorce . Lin returns to the city disappointed and weary , his relationship with Manna impossible and unconsummated . The simple plot is less interesting than the political allegories the lie underneath the surface of the story . Shuyu represents a remnant of China's past , with her bound feet and subservient manner . She continues to defer to Lin even after he treats her indifferently or poorly . Manna is a product of China's revolution after Mao's regime . She is disconnected and appears to be self-reliant yet paradoxically she is emotionally crippled and clings to Lin . Lin is the most fascinating of all the characters because he's an anti-hero , flawed , almost meek , yet the reader feels sympathetic to his situation . He is a protagonist on the cusp of change , straddling two worlds . Ha Jin is a skilled writer and undoubtedly there is more to this story than I grasped during the initial reading . The characters and their entanglements are interesting and multifaceted . This book can be read on many levels .
097 4 Personally , I loved the book and found it very philosophical . However , I admit it didn't end as I expected , and so therefore required much thought afterwards , such as in the choices I've made in my love affairs - - when I was passive ( and waited ) and when I was not . I believe no matter how well-calculated decisions can be , we are never totally free from outside influences and pressures . There are no fouled-up choices , only ones that lead to opportunities for something else , hopefully something better , as this applies to love , politics , health , etc .
098 4 This review is from :
Waiting : A Novel ( Hardcover )
Waiting turned me into an enthusiastic Ha Jin fan . I cannot exactly describe the book as a page turner but it's interesting and downright suspenseful towards the end . The story is an unsentimental one about feelings , often deep feelings of love and yearning . Jin has an irrepressibly wry sense of humor . I chuckled throughout the book .
I feel sorry for those who got turned off by the first several chapters and never finished the book . In simple and un-flowery language , Jin reminds this reader - who struggled through the slow beginning - that the heart sometimes has to hibernate , and even die in order for the body to survive in a cold and repressive environment . And who hasn't experienced the disappointment after a long wait , and the regret after a careless loss ?
099 4 Waiting turned me into an enthusiastic Ha Jin fan . I cannot exactly describe the book as a page turner but it's interesting and downright suspenseful towards the end . The story is an unsentimental one about feelings , often deep feelings of love and yearning . Jin has an irrepressibly wry sense of humor . I chuckled throughout the book .
I feel sorry for those who got turned off by the first several chapters and never finished the book . In simple and un-flowery language , Jin reminds this reader - who struggled through the slow beginning - that the heart sometimes has to hibernate , and even die in order for the body to survive in a cold and repressive environment . And who hasn't experienced the disappointment after a long wait , and the regret after a careless loss ?
100 4 I was excited to read this National Book Award winner , but wow , did it start slowly . The first two parts of the book are tedious and depressing , but once the third part begins , the author shows us why he is so acclaimed . This is definitely a book that sticks in your head after you finish it .
I often wanted to kick some sense and emotion in to the head of the main character , Lin , and finally realized this is exactly what the author wants the reader to feel . The book was a great insight in to people living their life as tools in a restrictive society .
101 4 This work was excellent , loved it from page one . fascinating discussion of life in that period , with some great themes running throughout .
i now plan to find more works by this author and hopefully devour them with the same appetite that the first few pages of waiting instilled in me .
i recommended this to everyone I know , well almost , I didnt recommend it to my impatient friends who would be better of reading a book based on a movie like terminator 2
102 4 ' Waiting ' , by Ha Jin is an interesting exporation into the nature of love as the novel travels between cultures and across years . Lin Kong , an army doctor , is held between two worlds : He lives and works in an army camp near the city where he waits with his girfriend Manna Wu for the divorce that will allow them to marry . For two weeks of each year , he visits his wife , Shuyu , in provincial Goose village . Each year he attempts to secure a divorce . Each year , he fails .
Ha Jin makes subtle use of the flow of political and cultural change in the People's Republic to provide an intricately drawn backdrop to Lin Kong's life at the hospital . Meanwhile , Goose village remains relatively unchanged . It is a timeless place of dirt floors and hard work . It is a place in which Shuyu's bound feet , frugal ways and quiet devotion to an absentee husband make her a peerless wife - and Lin's attempts to divorce her absurd in the eyes of the villagers and local judges .
While Ha Jin does a wonderful job of bringing the times and places in ' Waiting ' to life , he is less successful with his female characters . Neither woman , Manna Wu or Shuyu , is fully developed . Both are architypes - revealing much in general about the kind of women they represent in large , but lacking the spark of soul that would bring them to life in the mind's eye of the reader .
This last is the great failure of ' Waiting ' . The author's view of love in its many forms and ways is seen through the filter of an uwaveringly male viewpoint . Ha Jin never succeeds at getting inside the hearts and minds of the women in his story . The wants and needs of Shuyu and Manna are built on little more than duty and tradition on one hand and the fear of ending up alone on the other . This turns what might have been a great book and a memorable story into just another week at the book club .
103 4 This is spare writing , the kind Mark Twain had in mind when he apologized to an audience by saying he'd have written a shorter speech if only he'd had time to write one . A highly disciplined writer , Ha Jin only gives us the words that matter . Despite the lean , elegant prose , the story and characters are down to earth and richly understood . They are as real and complex and endearing and frustrating as your friends and family , but we know them better because Jin lets us spend time inside their heads . And despite Hemingway-esque word and sentence lengths , the lingering effect isn't cynicism and emotional sterility . Kindness and warmth underly most of the warped relationships here . What's most original about this book is the plot structure . How does Jin manage to keep us moving forward when we already know how the story turns out ? I want to re-read the book to figure that one out ; all I know is he kept me going . Oh , but don't get me wrong - - there are intriguing twists . . . all the way up to the last page . Only one plot line struck me as implausible and devoid of truth-like detail , but I don't want to give that away . ( It's a trauma that falls to Manna Wu . ) An added bonus : The backdrop for the story is China's cultural revolution , a fascinating study in change and human nature . This insider's view personalizes history for us , fleshing out the emotional content within one of the world's greatest political experiments . Our book club ( six people ) gave this a thumbs up , though we were divided in our degree of enthusiasm . Raves came from those of us who particularly admire understated beauty . Others in our group merely enjoyed the book and felt they'd learned some things about China .
104 4 Waiting is the story of the long relationship between Lin Kong , a doctor of the Chinese Army and Manna Wu a nurse who works in his same hospital . Lin feels in love with Manna but he is married and moral rules are very strict in the Communist China . Although every year he tries to divorce his wife to end his loveless marriage he always finds a refusal on her side and he is forced to postpone his plans . Trapped between two different women he leads his life , in quite desperation , waiting for happier times .
In spite of the very good description of the Chinese habits , environment and customs during the period of the Cultural Revolution this is not a book about China or , at least , only about China . I think that the main themes of the story are about men's life styles and attitudes . The story , although China during the period described is a very favourable set , could have happened in every other place and time . Lin is presented as a very considerate and sensible person . These qualities and the subsequent fears of hurting others bring this character to an unnerving state of paralysis . Sometimes this lack of action might be unnerving to the reader who sees the lives of the characters going by without major events .
I found this book exceptionally enlightening especially for the way it ends . It really makes the reader think about life and about the soundness of our aims . As Tolstoy wrote in what men live by referring to a character that ordered a pair of shoes when he actually needed slippers because the next day he was going to die : men really do not know what they need .
105 4 I don't believe it is fair for me to review the plot , the storyline or the character development in this book . I liked the book for the insight I believe I received into Chinese society , thinking and view of relationships . Even though fiction , I felt special in reading this book . I felt as if I knew the characters , could understand their very oriental motivations and could appreciate the beautiful analogies and words that describe the situations and the characters ' reactions . I feel that Ha Jin has enhanced my understanding of a great many things as a result of reading his fiction .
106 4 I knew nothing about this book before it was nominated for and won the National Book Award . But then curiousity got the better of me , and once I began reading this tale set in China , I gulped dpown the pages of this intriguing novel .
Ha Jin , who teaches at Emory University in Atalnta , has written a well constructed tale set agains the political climate of Commusinst China almost 30 years ago .
The main character , Lin Kong , a doctor tries year after year to obtain a divorce from his country wife whom he only married so she would take care of his aging parents . But Lin Kong works in a a large city most of the year where he has a mistress who is urging him to marry her after all this time . And while his city mistress is more worldly than his country wife , it still doesn't change the fact that every year there are stumbling blocks to Lin being free to marry anyone .
And in an ironic twist worthy of O . Henry or Alfred Hitchcock , by the book's end Lin King is found still waiting .
I really enjoyed this book and while I'm not sure it should have won the National Book Award I do think its well written and very interesting .
107 4 I am not sure why this is called a love story , since Lin , by his own admission , has never been in love . He finds the true details of love intrusive and is actually looking for maid and laundry service . The language of the book is extremely uneven . The narration is sometimes lovely , sometimes archaic ( they copulated a long time . ) while the conversation is full of jarring Americanish colloquialisms ( Girl , you're crazy ! ) which do not fit the characters or events . The omnipresent voice couldn't be a more overused device . Lin's stilted conversations with ' the voice ' was like being hit over the head with the obvious . Ultimately , this is a dreary book about a self-centered man who only wants what he doesn't have and the two women who , for reasons never understood , love him .
108 4 An expert in wine may appreciate the smallest nuiance in it's character , but the search for that nuiance takes precedent over the enjoyment of the bottle . If you want a story that will require you to revell in the smallest of subtleties at the expense of enjoyment of the book , then Waiting is for you . If you a looking for a tale of love , faith or hope , there are much better pages to turn . The prolouge reveals to us that the Lin's sought after divorce will not materialize for 18 years , so we read the next 200 pages knowing that Lin and Manna Wu will not be united , if at all , until much later . While the details of the 18 years are , at first , interesting , they begin to blur together into a series of inconsequential events . Like Lin and Manna Wu , who become comfortable in their relationship rut and plod along , the reader churns through the pages and plods through the story . While it is true that the years build and develop the characters , they do so at a snails pace . How many times do we have to be shown that Lin is indecisive and timid ? How often will Lin and Manna Wu suffer because they cannot break out of societal norms ? The plot develops more in the final chapters , but the outcome is telegraphed . Lin's eventual revelation that they waited just for the sake of waiting is both predictable and , worse , emotionally unsatifying for the reader . A true critic might call this a love story of infinte subtlety . I would not call it a love story at all . Ha Jin has instead written a political allegory of 60 ' s and 70 ' s China . Lin's wife and his love respectively symbolize the old and the new China as they fight for the soul of Lin . Lin is the people of China whose infinite patience ( or is Ha Jin saying infinite timidity ? ) makes them unable to act and unable to change things for the better . For a book praised for its ' subtlety , the symbolism is obvious .
109 4 This review is from :
Waiting : A Novel ( Paperback )
A man convinces himself that he is unhappy with his marriage , waits forever for the Chinese bureaucracy to grant him a divorce so he can marry the woman he is infatuated with .
Without giving up plot specifics , let me say this novel is a fable that underscores George Bernard Shaw's famous quote : There are two tragedies in life . Not getting what you want and getting it .
This novel is both emotionally felt and brutal of its examination of the ironies born from self-delusion . I read the novel 8 years ago and remain haunted by it .
110 4 A man convinces himself that he is unhappy with his marriage , waits forever for the Chinese bureaucracy to grant him a divorce so he can marry the woman he is infatuated with .
Without giving up plot specifics , let me say this novel is a fable that underscores George Bernard Shaw's famous quote : There are two tragedies in life . Not getting what you want and getting it .
This novel is both emotionally felt and brutal of its examination of the ironies born from self-delusion . I read the novel 8 years ago and remain haunted by it .
111 4 What a read ! So many lessons on writing can be drawn from this book , including a what not to do lesson . Ha Jin drew me into China with vivid settings , insights into the social culture , and the harshness of old Chinese law through an exploration of Chinese history through his character's eyes .
Jin's main character Lin is a self-deprecating man who believes himself incapable of loving another person . We can see through both plots and subplots that Lin not only can love , but loves deeply ; two women and his children from two marriages , but perhaps not himself .
This book , at times , left me with the sense of wanting to shout at or shake Lin : Ha Jin drew me in that effectively . This example of creating a strong emotional reaction in a reader is of priceless insight to me . I want to move my readers and emotionally tie them to my characters as Jin does .
Jin teaches us lessons in respect through his characters , as well . He coaches us in proper human behavior through allegorical scenes as his story plays out . As his characters grow , we somehow grow along with them , experience their mistakes , and even learn from those mistakes when the characters do not .
He paints beautiful settings using descriptions of sight , sound , scent , taste , and touch . I believe , however , that his story would have been a bit stronger if Jin would have woven his setting descriptions into character dialogue or thought , instead of using multiple paragraphs to describe the surroundings in the midst of an active scene .
112 4 Ha Jin's novel , Waiting , resembles a more contemporary version of Pearl Buck's The Good Earth . Like Wang Lung , Lin Kong never seems to be at peace . The love he wants is always beyond his grasp . Lin waits 18 years for his wife to consent to divorce before he can finally marry his love , Manna . But the ideal Lin has carried with him for 18 years is not what life presents . Often times I wanted to scream at Lin and Manna , but other times I could feel their frustration and wanted to reach out and comfort them .
All in all , I enjoyed Waiting . It was a moving and sometimes comical tale full of recent Chinese history and great character development .
113 4 As a young man Lin Kong , a doctor in the Chinese army , is asked by his parents to let them arrange a marriage for him . Having no great objection to this , he agrees and finds himself marrying Shuyu , a deeply traditional Chinese woman with bound feet . Embarassed by such an outdated bride , Lin goes through with the marriage but keeps his wife separate from his life in the city , keeping her and the daughter she gives him away in their village . Things get complicated when Lin meets Manna , a nurse at the hospital who falls deeply in love with him and whom he cannot resist feeling attracted to . Due to the strict social constraints surrounding how men interact with women , Lin and Manna are denied any way of expressing their love so long as he is married to Shuyu ( the two are only allowed to interact by taking walks through the hospital compound where they can be watched by the gossipy doctors they work with ) . When Lin is repeatedly unable to divorce Shuyu the two are forced to put their love - - and their very lives - - on hold for each other , believing that it will all be worth it in the end so long as they can finally be together . But what price will this couple pay for waiting ? By holding out for Lin will Manna come to resent him for her wasted youth ? Is Lin really willing to hurt Shuyu , a woman who has never done anything bad to him except adhere to an outdated set of rules regarding how a wife should honor her husband ? When you put love on hold can you ever get it back again ? Ha Jin explores these questions and more with remarkable ease and clarity as he takes us from Lin's marriage and first meeting with Manna at the height of the Cultural Revolution in the 1960 ' s to the summer in the 1980 ' s that Lin finally has solid legal grounds to divorce his wife - - if he still wants to go through with it , that is . Jin's depiction of life in China during the reign of Chairman Mao is thought-provoking and interesting as a setting , and his keen eye for writing intelligent but stunted characters serves him well . However , while it is not difficult to empathize with Lin and the decision he has to make , I did start to feel a little distant from him in the end . It is a little difficult to relate to such a uniformly passionless and seemingly apathetic person for me . But , on the whole Waiting is a great read with an interesting premise and excellent execution on Ha Jin's part .
114 4 Ha Jin does a great job of showing the duality of human nature . The two characters are forever caught between two equally valid interpretations of reality .
Is Lin Kong's love for Manna true love , or simply a symptom of his own stunted emotional growth ? Is Lin Kong truly a caring and sophisticated man , or is he just too timid to express his true passions ?
Maoist China serves as the force which divides reality into these two spheres of interpretation . The traditional Chinese ideal is constantly being overturned by Mao's suppression of the old ways - - an embrace of the new which forces Lin Kong to sometimes despise the village life . Yet he can never completely suppress his love for the idyllic rural family life .
As the novel moves to the post-Mao Deng's to get rich is glorious era , the carpet is swept from under the characters ' feets and they are forced to consider the possibility that they are pathetic victims who never actually made a real choice in their entire lives . Ha Jin portrays this internal conflict by having the characters actually holding conversations with voices inside their head .
If you can identify with these characters - - and I think anybody who has ever looked back on their lives with some hint of regret will be able to - - you will find that Ha Jin successfully tries to assuage those regrets by universalizing our suffering . There is a universal element to Ha Jin's prose because it speaks of emotions so literally . His use of analogies are used to explain specific emotional events , rather than to offer over-arching interpretations .
Unlike a plot-driven novel where the author intentionally deceives the reader ( to the reader's great joy ) , Ha Jin leaves these characters completely exposed to us . And unlike characters in a plot-driven novel , Ha Jin's characters are without clear intentions , without unambiguous motivations , but constantly flooded by internal conflict .
What the Chinese call mao dun .
115 4 This review is from :
Waiting : A Novel ( Paperback )
This book held my attention and I looked forward to picking it up and reading every free moment I had . Look inside this book and read the excerpted first pages . The writing style continues the same throughout . The author is a master writer ; he is almost a minimalist painter ( with words ) much like the Chinese landscape painters . I would say it gave a good picture of China during the time of the cultural revolution , which was the reason I decided I wanted to read this book . As for the storyline , it made me think about the question , What is love ? Naturally , the book did not really answer the question and the reader has to decide for him / herself . I came away from this book being glad for the time I spent reading it . I would recommend this book to anyone , provided they aren't looking for an action packed thriller about cops and robbers or a passion packed sex-filled romance novel . To me it is a piece of poetry .
116 4 This book held my attention and I looked forward to picking it up and reading every free moment I had . Look inside this book and read the excerpted first pages . The writing style continues the same throughout . The author is a master writer ; he is almost a minimalist painter ( with words ) much like the Chinese landscape painters . I would say it gave a good picture of China during the time of the cultural revolution , which was the reason I decided I wanted to read this book . As for the storyline , it made me think about the question , What is love ? Naturally , the book did not really answer the question and the reader has to decide for him / herself . I came away from this book being glad for the time I spent reading it . I would recommend this book to anyone , provided they aren't looking for an action packed thriller about cops and robbers or a passion packed sex-filled romance novel . To me it is a piece of poetry .
117 4 A man manages to get what he wanted , struggling through the inflexible Chinese social system disallowing freedom . The essence of this story , however , resides in man's nature of which the desire is endlessly unfulfilled regardless of his struggles . I interpreted this story to warn against chasing something for many years , which we may find we don't want in the end . We are all apt to fall into this type of situation more or less , for countless and endless desires human nature . Also , the writer illustraes an interesting way the man's tendency to follow a more presentable woman to find in the end that she was not what he wanted .
118 4 What makes this 20th century Chinese fable so memorable is its subtle portrayal of time . The portrayal of time's passage in a life we see as not fully-lived and marked by restraint , is told so elegantly and richly that moments lost to the characters are transformed into those which are the best lived , and truest ( certainly the most innocent ) of their lives .
It may strike readers as a fairy tale or fable for the ending , when the illusions that were bound up in the doctor's years of waiting for his sweetheart are unleashed . Then the reader must question the years he waited , following the law . What were they for ? Was his commitment to a woman in the world or to waiting itself ? The allure of the unattainable is perhaps a universal human weakness , but you cannot ask for a more beautiful portrayal of it than in this fine book . His epiphany on love at the end of the novel still does not ultimately change his character , one in which the act of waiting for something is almost his very own reflection .
Historically , this is an excellent portrayal of both interior life as it existed under Chinese communism , and the interference of public onto private life found in any society .
119 4 If you can recall the feeling of wild expectation you had on Christmas eve , and then the sudden flatness of Christmas day once the gifts were all opened , you can relate to this book . I'm not going to recount the plot here , other reviewers have done that very well . But , I will share some of my thoughts and feelings having just finished reading the book . It is no secret that the culture in China has never valued women . Imagine then , the de-humanization of all Chinese people under the reign of Mao . Men were de-valued , they were cogs in the Communist machine . Women went even lower , carrying all the Chinese cultural ideas about subservience to men , but now they were also subsurvient to the greater ideas of the Chairman . How did any individual find fulfillment in this all for the greater good environment ? Sometimes their attempts aren't pretty , using other people to provide them their value when none can be had through normal societal means . Perhaps some people overcame this oppresion . The main characters in this book do not . Unfortunately , they use each other , everyone trying to attain some kind of fulfillment , hoping their dreams reside in attaining the admiration of someone else . It is a sad book . The emotional immaturity of all the characters is something that I could relate to , but , luckily , the way they choose to interact with each other , and the world , is something in my childhood memories . But , lest I sound smug , I was raised in an environment , a culture , a society , where I was allowed to grow . This book is a frightening parable of suffocation of the human spirit .
120 4 I read this book in three days and enjoyed it very much . The story of Lin and Manna gives you something to think about . The moral of the story is be careful what you wish for as it may eventually come true . Lin and Manna were so obsessed with the idea of getting married and being together that they never considered if they truly loved one another . It was intresting to read about the culture differences and customs people of their country had to face . I agree with some of the reviewers that the ending was not in keeping with the rest of the book and seemed rushed . The book was not fast paced , but then it wasn't meant to be . I would recommend this book as it is well written , keeps your interest , and is a good read .
121 4 I gobbled up this novel very quickly because it was written in such a way that I made me eager to unfold the next development in the problematic love story between Lin and Manna . However , I felt that the best part of the novel was not the love story itself , but it's message about the nature of the dynamics between men and women . The novel relates a love story of how a humble , virtuous man and a humble , modest woman still encounter the relationship problems decribed in Men from Mars / Women from Venus ! I loved this book !
122 4 Ha Jin has written an eloquent story of longing and the effects it has on ones own reality . This story flows with grace , providing the reader with much to think about . This would be an excellent choice for a book group as well as for the individual reader .
123 4 A disclaimer : My wife and I disagree about the literary merit of Ha Jin's Waiting . While I felt it was a perfectly competent novel , but undeserving of NBA , she was moved by the story of the two lovers , waiting for happiness , unable to find meaning in the limted sphere's of their lives . Where my wife found allegory , I found pedantry and clumsy psychology . Where she found interesting detail , I found only superficial description and little insight into a society in the midst of enormous transformation . To cover nearly 2 decades of China's most tumultuous period and hardly mention the pogroms , the reeducation camps , the starvation , detente , the trials of the Gang of War ! I woudn't mind the lack of political / historical context if there were psychological subtlety , but alas there isn't any beyond the occasioanal rhetorical question .
In short , dear reader , if you want to read a novel about waiting , read Love in the Time of Cholera .
125 4 Jin has been called a ` realist ' by less perceptive critics , but ` realism ' is not to be equated with dullness . A great writer knows how to highlight those ` realistic ' moments that catch a snippet of the transcendent , and juxtapose them with other elements to create a poetry of the real . Jin , however , writes dully on dull events and people , content to let the PC trappings of the exotic do the heavy lifting a strong narrative should accomplish . Much of his prose seems to bear out the fact that English is not his native tongue . How this book could win many prestigious awards is a testament to the power of PC over excellence . The characters are cardboard cutouts , and there is not a single defining ` event ' . Not that a plot-driven tale is necessary for excellence , yet this novel is not merely a ` slice of life ' , ala A Tree Grows In Brooklyn , or The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter . Worst of all , though , is that the book begins with a prologue that removes any surprise this dull tale might reveal . Right away we definitely know all that will occur , save for the very end , where Lin regrets his waiting for Manna , which any astute reader could see coming anyway . And , despite the claims , this is not a love story , since none of the characters really loves , nor knows how to love . As Jin banally tells us of Manna , ` the long waiting had dissolved her gentle nature , worn away her hopes , ruined her health , poisoned her heart and doomed her . ' Yes , this is very like most marriages around the world , but it's not the crux to build a compelling work of art around . At least a novice writer like Jin cannot do so . Waiting , despite its Political Correctness , is not a terrible book , merely yet another bad book that should never have been published . But , when did that ever stop PC from giving out laurels ?
127 4 I'm confused , like those who gave the book both good and bad reviews , as to why this story merited the National Book Award . I think that raised my expectations too much , because while I liked the idea behind the story , I found the writing to be slightly ponderous . The passage of 18 years is supposed to happen to the characters , not to the reader .
128 4 In the novel Waiting , Lin , the main character is the victim of circumstances in both of his marriages . One , he is the victim of tradition , where love is secondary in a marriage . Second , his new relationship is dictated by his government , where the party line is more important than individual needs . Lin is a great character , and the book a very good novel .
129 4 Charming , ingenious , and profound , the author Ha Jin has pegged the human heart correctly and written a brilliant story to match . This love story is full of bittersweet pathos that is very believable : we wait and wait for the one great love of our lives only to discover the gem that we overlooked along the way . Westerners will get a unique glimpse into the Chinese culture , political system and the pressures that influence their lives and decisions . Highly recommended for the contemplative reader .
130 4 This is such a simple story that I don't know why it is so good . Possibly because the reader discovers the thinking and reality of the average citizen in China in a way that all can understand . You are always sympathetic with the two women in Dr . Lin's life and always want to know what is going to happen next . Waiting is an apt title . . but to the new reader . . . what is the waiting for ? The winning of the National Book Award is warranted here .
131 4 I don't know why this book captivated me so . I was unable to leave it alone even when I was supposed to be doing other things ( I suppose this theme of secret happiness stolen at the risk of official censure is appropriate to the book ) . English is a second language for the writer , and he doesn't make daring attempts at prose style . Most of the sentences seem to be about as simple as they could possible be made . At some points , where the characters experience tragic emotions , the prose is embarrassingly simple , and you feel even more moved , somehow , that their sadness hasn't even the dignity of sentences that can please in themselves . The prose is as drab as Communist interior decoration , but it is compelling . I suppose in some ways my response to the book could be seen as consistent with a racist impression of Chineseness , equating China with inscrutability : that is , the book's surface reveals little yet one feels that there is much there . I can say , though , that this novel made the idea of life's brevity much more urgently apparent to me than any of Shakespeare's sonnets . When you're thinking about something like When I consider everything that grows / Holds in perfection but a little moment , / That this huge stage presenteth nought but shows / Whereon the stars in secret influence comment , you are so fascinated by the sentences ' grammar ( shows changing from a verb to a noun , or everything changing from the object of consider to the subject of holds as quickly as your eye travels over a line break ) that the sadness of lost time doesn't really strike you as mournful . After all , it is the occasion of so much gorgeous writing . But in Waiting , the ache of lost life creaks in the ungiving sentences . This novel is almost unbearable . The lack of explanation is worse than explanation , or dazzling display . The characters are so sympathetic , so dutiful and good according to their rules , that one wishes that they would find love ; one wants them to be loved as the reader loves them . But I suppose that the book's point may be that obedience to morality and rules , which makes these characters sympathetic and deserving of love , in practice frustrates their chances to realize love . In fact , while the book is a love story , the only consummated sex scene related in any kind of detail whatsoever is a contemptible rape , as though only scoundrels have the courage to get what they want .
132 4 The cover of this novel boasts a suspenseful love story , which it is . However , don't let it fool you , it wasn't the same kind of suspense one would expect . . . yet , I still couldn't put it down ! The way Ha Jin writes is so so calm , simple , nothing crude or crass . It's a story about Lin Kong , a doctor who lives in the city , who's fallen for Manna Wu , a nurse who lives in the city . . . but they can't get together because Lin has a wife from an arranged marriage , Shuyu , who lives in the country .
This is a story spanning over 18 years , with Communist China as the setting . I liked how the description of the regime sort of paralleled Lin's story and the choices he made . On one hand , you see how the communist regime sneaks itself into the fabric of everyone's personal lives and decisions . All the while , Lin mentally commented on the idiosyncrasies of the past traditions . Yet , near the end , he started to appreciate some of the concepts that the old tradition held .
I was surprised at how the writer was able to manipulate my feelings for each of these characters ( or maybe I'm just easily manipulated - - lol ! ) . For a while I was sympathetic to Lin's plight , but then I was annoyed at his selfishness and lack of passion . Again , I thought Manna was a sweet woman who deserved to be with Lin , but then eventually , she seemed cold . . . but she had a good reason to be so , after 18 years of waiting for a man she loved , enduring some painful incidents throughout . Finally , there's Shuyu , whom I wanted out of the picture from the beginning , but could see how special she really was .
I just think that Lin Kong was such an odd character . He went through life almost like a passive observer . He became frustrated when he found himself in these difficult situations , yet did little to get out of them . He looked at life like a series of events that just fell into his lap . Fortunately , it seemed that finally he started to realize that he was , in fact , the master of his own destiny . Yet it was a bit late in life when he discovered this . Still , I'm not sure he would really make the transition to emotional maturity by the end of the novel , but at least he started to appreciate the good things he had in his life .
It's a wonderful theme to which any of us can relate : Take stock in what we have . Find the beauty that surrounds us . People who want something they can't have may spend their lives reaching for it , only to have anger and bitterness in the end because they never appreciated what they already had . They wasted their lives wanting what others possessed , be it love , money , or freedom .
133 4 because that's what you do , as you're reading . . . wait . . . for something to happen . And it's all about people on the cusp . . . the problem is they never take the plunge , really . I found this book to be well-written , thoughtful , but ultimately meandering , at best .
134 4 I hope readers will ignore - - and manage to forgive - - the profound stupidity displayed by the last two readers . What is exquisite and understated about Ha Jin's beautiful novel will be lost on those expecting the equivalent of Jurassic Park and Terminator 3 . This novel operates on a very different level , with a different sense of time and plot development . If you're genuinely interested in reading about another culture , and prepared to give this book the time and attention it deserves , Ha Jin's novel really is a magical piece of writing .
135 4 I really enjoyed this book . I felt like I had a chance to spy on a love triangle of ordinary people living and working in China . Lin Kong , a reserved military doctor . Manna , his younger girlfriend who works in the hospital and is afraid of becoming an old-maid , and his family-arranged wife Shoyu , who has bound feet and who politely will not grant a divorce . It's universal in it's complexity and dialogue , and there's lots the reader gets to learn about Chinese culture . Ha Jin's wonderful storytelling is the real gem of this rich read . Highly recommend !
136 4 This review is from :
Waiting ( Kindle Edition )
This is a really great story about what the passage of time can do to things . How it erodes and eats away at the value of things and relationships and emotions etc . Yet conversely , there was no waiting when reading this book . For sure it was a story told by a man because there was no time spent lingering too long on anything . It was perfectly paced . He just kept it moving and while you were reading you would know that something else was about to happen soon because the pace was predictable and that made it a great page turner too . The feminine voice of his female character was not ruined by the manly pace of the book . The setting is a Chinese military hospital . It's about a relationship between a couple who never consummate the affair because they wanted to wait to get a problem out of the way . but as the problem persisted , and the waiting went on and on , the waiting ate away at their deepest emotions and time threw everything including the bathtub and kitchen sink , causing them to question both their character and those deep feelings they once thought they held . This book is a great piece of literature and is perfect for a book club .
137 4 This is a really great story about what the passage of time can do to things . How it erodes and eats away at the value of things and relationships and emotions etc . Yet conversely , there was no waiting when reading this book . For sure it was a story told by a man because there was no time spent lingering too long on anything . It was perfectly paced . He just kept it moving and while you were reading you would know that something else was about to happen soon because the pace was predictable and that made it a great page turner too . The feminine voice of his female character was not ruined by the manly pace of the book . The setting is a Chinese military hospital . It's about a relationship between a couple who never consummate the affair because they wanted to wait to get a problem out of the way . but as the problem persisted , and the waiting went on and on , the waiting ate away at their deepest emotions and time threw everything including the bathtub and kitchen sink , causing them to question both their character and those deep feelings they once thought they held . This book is a great piece of literature and is perfect for a book club .
138 4 The title succinctly expresses the book's theme . The irony of the title is that all three main characters are waiting for something , but once that something materializes , it's anti-climactic . The reader does a lot of waiting , too , for something tragic to happen , but when it does , it's a bit of a surprise . Still , like the characters , the reader realizes at the end that the waiting was the best part .
139 4 I can always tell when a book is well written - - I think about it days after reading it and observe more and more about it long after I've put it down . This is one of those books . It's written in almost folk-tale style and centers around Lin , a military doctor who pines for the life he thinks he wants , with his military nurse lover Manna . He longs to be free of his village wife Shuyu , who is simple and has bound feet ( apparently long after such things were generally done ) and who , frankly , embarrasses him . But year after year , she refuses to divorce him . So year after year , his life is one of longing . The situation does ( slowly ) resolve , but that's mainly the whole story - - the lives of these people moving along , marking time .
But what goes on underneath this little folk tale is what's so interesting . There is the obvious caution to be careful what you wish for . The parallels with The Good Earth cannot be ignored . All characters are affected in some way by the ongoing Cultural Revolution : in the way they live , react to their fates , see their place in their world .
It's a very easy little tale to read , but will leave you thinking for days after you've finished . Go ahead - - give it a read !
140 4 When I first picked up the book Waiting , I was immediately drawn to the National
Book Award on its cover . Remembering the saying , never judge a book by its
cover , I disregarded my original rationale and opened to the prologue . Right
away I was shocked at the authors pinpoint broadcast of the events . As I read
on I decided that this , along with impeccable detail made for a productive and
artsy way to present this sad love tale . At some points the plot seems predictable ,
until you reach the next chapter and are thrown from your allegation . This
quick read novel is far from cliché . It outlines the important aspects of
social life , self responsibility and caring for others .
The author's clever approach begins with introducing the main character . Lin
Kong is a well respected doctor for the military , he's stationed away from his
wife and daughter in the town , Muji . Lin supports his family well , although his
marriage was arranged and he no longer loves his wife . His futile efforts to
divorce his wife is due to the strict unwritten marriage laws of Chinese
society . Lin's unhappiness with his wife Shuyu is the direct reason for his
divorce attempts , but it is clear that his new friendship with his comrade Manna
is the biggest factor . Lin loves his job and respects his marriage and does not
want to complicate them by having an affair . Year after year he returns home
and he and Shuyu face another judge to appeal their case . The year Shuyu
finally promises to divorce Lin , Shuyu's brother Benshang interferes and tells
the judge not to allow their relationship . Mean while Manna and Lin are getting
serious but don't know how far to take it . By means of a bylaw , Lin and Shuyu
separate , Lin still has to support his family financially . Lin and Manna marry
and give birth to twins just in time to find their partner's wrinkly face and
tired body , and realize the length of time that has passed by waiting for each
other .
This Ha Jin masterpiece ends with an indeterminate resolution in a way that lets
the reader decide what the characters are thinking and their emotions . After
reading the book , it is realized that the things that a person says and does on
a day to day basis have more meaning than you might think . Take for instance
when Lin went out of the house to tutor some nurses on chemistry . Manna was
left pregnant with two twins and no one to help with the house work . While Lin
thought that he was helping other people learn chemistry , he was denying his
obligation to his wife . This book should be read by any newlywed or someone
that is thinking about marriage . This book reminds us all of our personal
responsibilities within our relationships , but it does so in an utterly subtle
way that highlights the characters ' realistic attributes and the plot's multiple
climaxes .
141 4 HA JIN's Waiting is a quick read for me . I spend only one day to finish it off . But its simple narrative enthralled greatly . I am a native Chinese speaker and English is my second language , same as the author himself . But his command of the English language is really impressive . From the interviews of the author , we know that he treats his draft very seriously , often rewrites them more than ten times . Some vocabulary are definitely impressive , such as nippy ,
french chalk , kraft paper , dog-dead , wisp , etc . His narrative has a rather fixed plot - first , some hope for marriage , then some diversions , either a potential mate , a sexual encounter , it makes the waiting more unexpected , as a supposed long march to marriage . once in a while he will describe the physical environment such as the polar trees , grass , the sentry post , which reminds me a Brownte novel . The historical context is always present . the cultural revolution , the reform after Deng . Ha Jin described what he know best , namely the chinese army . He served in the PLA for a number of years before enrolling in the university after 1977 . This background will reapprear in his newest novel , WAR TRASH , in which he described the wrenching expierence of a chinese POW in the Korean War . I reject some reviews which read too much politics in the novel though . This novel is basically a novel about humanity , love , relationship , society , not about ideology . Both Manna WU and the protagonist is not ideologically inclined to anything , all they believe is humanity and progress . that is all . This novel reminds me a recent short fiction by JIAN MA in on recent issue of New Yorker , in which a mid-level party official try to get rid of his baby-girl fruitlessly , for consecutively dozens of times . I suspect some borrowing here , I mean on the part of JIAN MA . But obviously JIAN MA is shadowing more family planning politics in his short fiction .
142 4 I have to agree with many other reviews on this one . I spent the first 100 pages of this novel waiting for the story to pick up the pace . The story is about a love affair in perpetuity . Manna Wu and Lin Kong are comrades and soul mates who meet while working at a hospital in China during the Cultural Revolution . The relationship has one huge hurdle , Lin is married . Although the marriage was arranged by his parents and based on the parents ' need for elderly care , Lin is bound to the union by tradition and law . Each year , Lin returns to his village from his job in the city to request the court to grant him a divorce from his wife . Each year , the request is denied and Lin returns to the city where he and Manna's relationship grow more intense - the absence of any physical expression of their love also serves to intensify their bond . Finally , after waiting eighteen years , Lin is granted a divorce from his wife with the understanding that he is to pay alimony and find their daughter a job in the city . He and Manna are married and begin their life legitimately as husband and wife . Lin , newly married - and unlike his previous marriage , living with his wife - finds the daily demands of marriage exhausting . Soon , Lin begins to questions his love for Manna and his decision to leave his first wife .
Ultimately , the novel explores the nature of love and personal commitment in the face of social and government restrictions . Although Waiting starts off slow , it picks up a bit in the later half of the book . Ha Jin does an excellent job with setting and depicting the Chinese atmosphere during the Cultural Revolution . This wasn't a bad read , just a slow one . Perhaps it was the author's intent to have the reader experience waiting in the way the characters do . So , is the grass greener on the other side ? Well , like most things , it depends on the eyes through which the observation is being made . I'm not suggesting that you run out and buy this one but if it crosses your path give it a try .
143 4 I also read this book immediately after Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha , and agree that the writing styles are in stark contrast to one another . But the point is not to be lyrical , as the other reviewer suggests .
I found myself transported , each chapter moving slowly but purposefully to the next .
Although the narrative seemed to drag a bit in places , Ha Jin's light touch lends the story a subtle urging throughout . Despite the pity you feel for Lin's faithful but unloved wife , the longing between Lin and Manna is heartbreaking , lingering on for years while circumstances keep them at arm's length from one another . Some might call the ending anti-climactic , but I thought it only made the story stronger and all the more compelling .
144 4 Waiting is a well crafted tale that will elicit thoughtful discusion in a book club . The characters may be hard to relate to given the setting and the culture but that is precisely what makes the book interesting . The order and simplicity of the lifestyles portrayed allow the underlying question of What IS love ? to be revealed.With prose that is clear and never distracting , Ha Jin weaves in irony and resolution for a satisfying read .
145 4 I found this an engrossing look at life in modern China - - it's hard for us in the West to grasp the restrictions - - not only political but personal - - that these characters lived under . But on a deeper level this book is about home , and tradition - - the annual visits home were beautifully described - - watch especially for the character's description of the food he eats in the country as opposed to the city . I loved the description of the simple country wife - - her shopping list . Her stubborn patience , asking nothing for herself , is something no Western woman could ever understand .
146 4 This book was recommended to me by a Bulgarian woman because she said it was a very accurate portrayal of the beliefs and limitations on peoples ' lives under the control of a communist government . The story of Lin's plight to divorce his wife in a society that does not accept such practices for the average worker is both eye-opening and compelling . It is important for anyone with an interest in China to read this novel for a very well written ( although somewhat depressing ) portrayal of the struggle of the average man .
147 4 What a remarkable , gentle , story . I was enchanted with Mr.Jin's style of writing . I felt that the story wasn't told so much as it was unfolded . I enjoyed reading a story set in contemporary China . The contrasts between the village and the city were interesting and told in enough detail to really give you a feeling for how life would be . Plus the information about traditions that were still being upheld and others that had been let go was fascinating . Overall I felt this was a relaxing , pleasurable read .
148 4 I read ' Waiting ' and enjoyed the meditative style of Jin's portrayal of an innocent , yet illicit , love story of a married doctor and a nurse . Jin's story enlightened my limited knowledge of the Chinese culture . It takes a dedicated and patient reader to enjoy this work by Jin . The title itself sets the mode for the reader . Patience is a prerequisite for ' waiting . ' The National Book Award validates the importance of this work .
149 4 Ha Jin's Waiting is a bittersweet love story set against the backdrop of Communist China ( mid ' 60s - ' 80s ) . While the plot seems simple enough - a young man , both physician and soldier , in love with an educated , modern woman , though married to a traditional , peasant woman - the daily , mundane decisions of an ordinary life are magnified by the dichotomy of Chinese traditional beliefs and communist philosophies .
The protagonist , Lin Kong , is in a traditionally arranged marriage with a woman whom Lin finds unsatisfactory even before the marriage , though his dissatisfaction with her lies almost entirely on her physical appearances . As a doctor and soldier , Lin lives in the city where he is stationed , and returns to his rural country home annually . Lin inadvertently complicates by falling in love with an attractive nurse , who also is a soldier working at the same hospital . During the course of twenty years , Lin repeatedly requests a divorce , something traditionally frowned upon , and virtually impossible to obtain via the communist regime . Thus , the story revolves around the doctor's dilemma and the two women who inextricably complicate his entire adult life .
Waiting is a love story that seems to be at the mercy of a fickle , communist regime , where trends are determined by current political interpretation and thought . Love is put on hold , sacrificed for the greater good of the State ; there to stagnate , as opposed to being nurtured naturally through intimacy , trust and affection . Among the many subtle messages in this novel , Ha Jin shows us that emotions , including and perhaps especially , love , cannot be regulated as one would try to regulate and control the economy . There are forces in nature more powerful than any dictatorial force thus discovered . Finally , although love with its full complement of accompanying ambivalent feelings is the prevalent theme throughout the story , Ha Jin writes of the human condition in a communist state and intimately reveals how many Chinese survived during such senseless communist reforms as Chairman Mao's Cultural Revolution .
150 4 In this highly structured novel of life within the Chinese People's Liberation Army and in the very rural countryside , Ha Jin offers the reader a way to understand the culture and character of people living under repressive conditions . To Lin Kong , his wife Shuyu , and his chaste lover Manna Wu , life is a process of acceptance , not choice , a life in which there are no personal goals , other than working for the greater good of the country and its leaders . Because the concept of freedom simply does not exist here , it never enters anyone's mind . No one feels its loss or yearns for it , and an individual seeks neither happiness nor pleasure , instead finding satisfaction within the system .
Lin Kong , a physician working eleven months of the year in Muji City while his wife works the farm in Goose Village , experiences the sensations of love for the first time when he is attracted to Manna Wu , a nurse at his army station . Having previously accepted an arranged marriage , he is the legal husband of an older woman whose only attraction has been the care she lavished on his sick and elderly parents . For eighteen years he endures the limbo of trying to obtain a divorce from his wife while obeying the army's requirements that he and Manna Wu remain physically chaste .
Ha Jin's prose is efficient and straightforward , much like the life of his characters , and one neither expects nor misses the flights of poesy so often found in novels of China written by westerners . The chief attraction of this novel is the care with which Ha Jin recreates the atmosphere of life in Communist China , showing us how ordinary people conduct their lives under conditions which we would find intolerable . His careful choice of details to illuminate the ironies of his characters ' lives give power to a narrative about people who have no individual power . He succeeds admirably in bringing to life characters whose whole concept of what it means to be a person is diametrically opposed to our own , making humans out of people who live lives of structure , not of choice . Mary Whipple
151 4 I enjoyed the book , except the almost very end where Lin started to feel discontented with his second marriage life . The ongoing voice in his head was just a bit overstated for me . Other than that I enjoyed the story . The simple language easily helped forming the scenery , environment and the characters in my mind . I especially enjoyed the developing of the story to the point that I found myself reading it straight through for several hours three nights in a row . In some way Ha Jin was able to keep me engaging in the book to find out what'd happen next .
As an Asian I realized that the characters portrayed in the book do exist in real life . The wife's loyalty towards their husbands , the double standard upon women , the well and long kept thoughts and feeling inside the characters . All these things were based on reality .
152 4 While the message of this book ( Be careful what you wish for or The grass is always greener on the other side ) has a quality like that of a Grimm's fairy tale , the writing style is much more reserved and devoid of emotion . However , this isn't a criticism . I find that this is often true of Chinese writers and can appreciate the cultural difference . I almost think the writing style enhances Lin Kong's pathetic character by making him seem more bland and spineless . I agree with other readers that Waiting doesn't feel like a love story , but I don't think it's intended to be - - it's more an exploration of one man's misinterpretation about what matters most to him in this world . At first , he thinks it is his lover Manna , but after becoming so entangled in this belief that he can't turn back , he realizes that it is his routine and solitude that he most values . I think this novel is worth reading for a look at the culture , but I agree that the subject matter doesn't really leave you feeling satiated at the end .
154 4 Waiting is an appropriate title for this book , as I kept waiting for something to happen . The protagonists fall in love , but must wait 18 years for the man to divorce his wife from an arranged marriage , because of the legal limitations on divorces at the time . Throughout this lengthy courtship , nothing much happens between them .
The tale in Waiting supposedly spans the Cultural Revolution , and a few years after its end . What bothered me most about this book was that it almost ignores the realities of life during this oppressive time in history . The portrayal of life is unrealistic , based on what I have read . The harshest thing which we hear about is the almost voluntary confiscation of a few books ( leaving many more behind ) . Otherwise , the Cultural Revolution appears to have no impact on the story .
The interaction between the characters is interesting since they reflect views of both traditional and Maoist China . However , the book drags , so much so that I found myself waiting ( with the lovers ) for something to happen . At the end , your sympathy for the primary characters vanishes .
155 4 I found this book so interesting , yet very subtle . The story line is slow moving and not to be hurried , just like the life of the main characters . I found this a delightful story that builds slowly , inch by inch , to a very thoughtful and surprising finish .
BRAVO !
156 4 Ha Jin does a good job of drawing the dynamics of each character into the story and tying them together . His book gives a nice window into the lives of people in China during the Mao years . One of the most rewarding things for me is seeing the commonalities between any relationship , regardless of culture or country .
157 4 Realistic , detailed description of the people and events occurred in the Mao ` s age makes me reminiscent of the days spent in China.The content of the story is nothing original to the Chinese who are over 30 years old.However , the story is still attractive to alien readers who are not so familiar with the background of Culture Revolution.The totalitarianism , the puritan discipline , the serfdom to obey . what I admire most in Ha Jin is his courage to write in an entirely new language with such fluency , confidence and clearness.Is ` nt it a miracle !
158 4 Because I love writing which is ( truly ) spare and elegant , it irritates me to see this phrase so blithely thrown around - - such as by many of the reviewers of this decent , but not great , novel . Many of Jin's descriptions of the natural surroundings ( in the city and in his home village ) are , indeed , spare and elegant . Where Jin gets into trouble is in describing his characters ' thoughts and actions . In these sections , his writing is often klunky and melodramatic . If you want truly spare and elegant ( and great ) writing , try Ron Hansen , Cormac McCarthy , or Michael Ondaatje . And , as for reading about Chinese culture , I'll take Amy Tan any day .
