'Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife, Shuyu.' For more than seventeen years, Lin Kong, a devoted and ambitious doctor, has been in love with an educated, clever, modern woman, Manna Wu. But back in the traditional world of his home village lives the wife his family chose for him when he was young - a humble and touchingly loyal woman - whom he visits in order to ask, again and again, for a divorce. In a culture in which the ancient ties of tradition and family still hold sway and where ...
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'Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife, Shuyu.' For more than seventeen years, Lin Kong, a devoted and ambitious doctor, has been in love with an educated, clever, modern woman, Manna Wu. But back in the traditional world of his home village lives the wife his family chose for him when he was young - a humble and touchingly loyal woman - whom he visits in order to ask, again and again, for a divorce. In a culture in which the ancient ties of tradition and family still hold sway and where adultery discovered by the Party can ruin lives forever, Lin's passionate love is stretched ever more taut by the passing years. Every summer, his compliant wife agrees to a divorce but then backs out. This time, Lin promises, will be different. Tracing these lives through their summer of decision and beyond, Ha Jin vividly conjures the texture of daily life in a place where the demands of human longing must contend with the weight of centuries of wisdom. Waiting charms and startles with its depiction of a China that remains hidden to Western eyes even as it moves with its piercing vision of the universal complications of love.
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Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $0.99, fair condition, Sold by Booksalvation rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Manchester, LANCASHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2000 by Vintage Books.
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Fair in fair dust jacket. Outline: -For more than seventeen years Lin Kong a devoted and ambitious doctor has been in love with an educated clever modern woman Manna Wu. But back in his traditional home village lives the humble loyal wife his family chose for him years ago. Every summer he returns to ask her for a divorce and every summer his compliant wife agrees but then backs out. This time after eighteen years` waiting Lin promises it will be different. -> the publisher of this PAPERBACK book is Vintage Books The date of this copy is 2000 booksalvation have grade it as Acceptable and it will be shipped from our UK warehouse This book is from the Series. Shipping is Free for UK buyers and at a reasonable charge for buyer outside the UK.
Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $1.48, very good condition, Sold by Jenhams rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dundee, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2000 by Vintage.
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Very good. This book is in stock now, in our UK premises. Photos of our books are available on request (the pictures you see on Alibris are NOT our own).
Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $12.32, new condition, Sold by Books2anywhere rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Fairford, GLOUCESTERSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2000 by Vintage Publishing.
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PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $16.80, new condition, Sold by Books2anywhere rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Fairford, GLOUCESTERSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2024 by Everyman.
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PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $2.20, very good condition, Sold by Reuseabook rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester, GLOS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2000 by Vintage.
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Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. Though second-hand, the book is still in very good shape. Minimal signs of usage may include very minor creasing on the cover or on the spine. Grubby book may have mild dirt or some staining, mostly on the edges of pages.
Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $2.20, good condition, Sold by Reuseabook rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester, GLOS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2000 by Vintage.
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Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. This book is in good condition but will show signs of previous ownership. Please expect some creasing to the spine and/or minor damage to the cover. Aged book. Tanned pages and age spots, however, this will not interfere with reading. Damaged cover. The cover of is slightly damaged for instance a torn or bent corner.
Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $2.20, fair condition, Sold by Reuseabook rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester, GLOS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2000 by Vintage.
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Fair. Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. The book is perfectly readable and fit for use, although it shows signs of previous ownership. The spine is likely creased and the cover scuffed or slightly torn. Textbooks will typically have an amount of underlining and/or highlighting, as well as notes. If this book is over 5 years old, then please expect the pages to be yellowing or to have age spots. Aged book. Tanned pages and age spots, however, this will not interfere with reading. Damaged cover. The cover of is slightly damaged for instance a torn or bent corner.
Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $3.52, very good condition, Sold by Kennys.ie rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Galway, IRELAND, published 2000 by Vintage.
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Very Good. Lin Kong, a devoted and ambitious doctor, is in love with an educated, modern woman, Mannu Wu. But, his family chose a wife for him when he was young. Tracing these lives through their summer of decision, this work conjures the texture of daily life in a place where the demands of human longing must contend with the weight of centuries of wisdom. Num Pages: 320 pages. BIC Classification: FA. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 196 x 131 x 21. Weight in Grams: 230. Good clean copy with some minor shelf wear We ship daily from our Bookshop.
Add this copy of Waiting to cart. $4.99, very good condition, Sold by Brit Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Milton Keynes, BUCKINGHAMSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2000 by Vintage.
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Very good. Simply Brit – welcome to our online used book store, where affordability meets great quality. Dive into a world of captivating reads without breaking the bank. We take pride in offering a wide selection of used books, from classics to hidden gems, ensuring there's something for every literary palate. All orders are shipped within 24 hours and our lightning fast-delivery within 48 hours coupled with our prompt customer service ensures a smooth journey from ordering to delivery. Discover the joy of reading with us, your trusted source for affordable books that do not compromise on quality.
Add this copy of Waiting (Vintage International) to cart. $4.99, good condition, Sold by Goldstone Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Ammanford, CARMS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2000 by Vintage Books USA.
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Good. All orders are dispatched within 1 working day from our UK warehouse. Established in 2004, we are dedicated to recycling unwanted books on behalf of a number of UK charities who benefit from added revenue through the sale of their books plus huge savings in waste disposal. No quibble refund if not completely satisfied.
Ha Jin's acclaimed novel "Waiting" 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, modern nurse that Li... n 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 industrialization (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 the understanding of these difficulties 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 the primary 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.
"Waiting" is a thoughtful and sad story about what a party leader accurately describes at an important moment of the book as "a bitter love".
Having lived in Asia, I found this to be a beautiful and sad tale about the values of love and marriage.
It was very realistic and tragic. Lin Kong waits two decades to marry the woman he really loves. The time it takes to get a divorce without the wife's permission. His humble wife lives at home, dedicated to him, while she knows that... he is planning for when their marriage will end.
When he finally does get to marry the love of his life, he finds that the expectations are nothing like the reality.
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