Waiting
Ha Jin

'Dreamy and beautifully written ... Reading it will take you into a different world altogether' Marie Claire 'A deliciously comic novel' Time For more than seventeen years, Lin Kong, a dedicated doctor, has been passionately in love with an educated, 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. 'Imagine if Romeo and Juliet had been made to stretch out their passion for 18 years, without consummating their love. Now imagine them in China during the crazy bureaucracy of Mao's Cultural Revolution, unable to talk in private let alone kiss ... the insights into Chinese culture and the complexities of human longing are beautiful and compelling' Daily Mail 'A classic folktale ... an extraordinary novel' Independent