Waiting (novel) - Wikipedia Waiting (novel) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigation Jump to search Waiting Front cover of first edition Author Ha Jin Country United States Language English Set in Northeast China, 1963–85 Publisher Pantheon Books Publication date 1 October 1999 Media type Print (hardback & paperback) Pages 320 ISBN 978-0-375-40653-9 OCLC 77547314 Dewey Decimal 813/.54 21 LC Class PS3560.I6 W34 1999 Waiting is a 1999 novel by Chinese-American author Ha Jin which won the National Book Award that year.[1] It is based on a true story that Jin heard from his wife when they were visiting her family at an army hospital in China. At the hospital was an army doctor who had waited eighteen years to get a divorce so he could marry his longtime friend, a nurse. The plot revolves around the fortunes of three people: Lin Kong, the army doctor; his wife Shuyu, whom he has never loved; and the nurse Manna Wu, his girlfriend at the hospital where he works. Beginning in 1963 and stretching over a twenty-year period, Waiting is set against the background of a changing Chinese society. It contrasts city and country life and shows the restrictions on individual freedoms that are a routine part of life under communism. But Waiting is primarily a novel of character. It presents a portrait of a decent but deeply flawed man, Lin Kong, whose life is spoiled by his inability to experience strong emotions and to love wholeheartedly. Plot summary[edit] Army doctor Lin Kong marries Shuyu, a village woman, as decided upon by his parents. While Lin spends most of his time away from home working as a doctor in Muji City, Shuyu raises their daughter, Hua, and cares for Lin's sick parents in Goose Village. Lin feels no love for her, and once he meets Manna Wu, a nurse at the hospital, he falls in love with her and feels that he must divorce his wife. Year after year, Lin tries to divorce the woman he is embarrassed to be married to, and every year when he comes home for a few days during the holidays, he goes with her to the courthouse. Shuyu agrees to the divorce but each time a hiccup crops up at the last moment. Meanwhile, Manna is frustrated that she cannot be Lin's official wife. Though she endures for the sake of Lin, Manna receives unwanted attention for remaining unmarried, particularly by male coworkers who sexually harass her. Lin finally succeeds in divorcing Shuyu due to a law that states that if a man and wife have been separate for 18 years, the man can divorce her without her consent. Once he lives with Manna, however, he feels unhappy with her as well, despite expecting that he will love her since they had chosen each other. After the divorce, Shuyu and their daughter move to Muji City as well. Shortly after Manna gives birth to twin sons, Lin is devastated to learn that her heart is failing and he will be left to raise his children alone. After a heated argument with Manna, Lin reflects on the foolishness of waiting for something that ultimately failed to assuage his discontent. During this time, he realizes too late how much he relied on and failed to appreciate Shuyu's devotion to him. He goes to Shuyu, asking her to forgive him, to wait, and help him raise his children after Manna dies. Lin's visit fills Shuyu with joy, and when Hua goes over to visit Manna and the twins, she tells Lin that they will always be waiting for him. Reception[edit] Waiting won both the National Book Award for Fiction[1] and the PEN/Faulkner Award, was a finalist for the 2000 Pulitzer Prize,[2] and has been lauded for its insights into life in communist China. References[edit] ^ a b "National Book Awards – 1999". National Book Foundation. Retrieved 2012-03-27. (With acceptance speech by Jin and essay by Ru Freeman from the Awards 60-year anniversary blog.) ^ "Fiction". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved 14 January 2014. Awards Preceded by Charming Billy Alice McDermott National Book Award for Fiction 1999 Succeeded by In America Susan Sontag v t e National Book Award for Fiction (1975–1999) Dog Soldiers by Robert Stone (1975) The Hair of Harold Roux by Thomas Williams (1975) J R by William Gaddis (1976) The Spectator Bird by Wallace Stegner (1977) Blood Tie by Mary Lee Settle (1978) Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien (1979) Sophie's Choice by William Styron (1980) The World According to Garp by John Irving (1980) Plains Song: For Female Voices by Wright Morris (1981) The Stories of John Cheever by John Cheever (1981) Rabbit Is Rich by John Updike (1982) So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell (1982) The Color Purple by Alice Walker (1983) The Collected Stories of Eudora Welty by Eudora Welty (1983) Victory Over Japan by Ellen Gilchrist (1984) White Noise by Don DeLillo (1985) World's Fair by E. L. Doctorow (1986) Paco's Story by Larry Heinemann (1987) Paris Trout by Pete Dexter (1988) Spartina by John Casey (1989) Middle Passage by Charles Johnson (1990) Mating by Norman Rush (1991) All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy (1992) The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx (1993) A Frolic of His Own by William Gaddis (1994) Sabbath's Theater by Philip Roth (1995) Ship Fever and Other Stories by Andrea Barrett (1996) Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (1997) Charming Billy by Alice McDermott (1998) Waiting by Ha Jin (1999) Complete list (1950–1974) (1975–1999) (2000–2024) Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Waiting_(novel)&oldid=1003405854" Categories: 1999 American novels National Book Award for Fiction winning works Novels by Ha Jin Novels set in China Pantheon Books books PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction-winning works Navigation menu Personal tools Not logged in Talk Contributions Create account Log in Namespaces Article Talk Variants Views Read Edit View history More Search Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Donate Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Tools What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Cite this page Wikidata item Print/export Download as PDF Printable version Languages Add links This page was last edited on 28 January 2021, at 20:54 (UTC). 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