Waiting by Ha Jin

This is a slowly told tale about a Chinese army doctor, Lin Kong, who lives in two worlds- one with his traditional wife and daughter in his rural village and the other in the army in a city where he works and secretly pines away to marry the nurse he works with, Manna Wu. Lin Kong and Manna Wu eventually express their love to each other and have a very slow courtship, as they are not allowed to engage in any physical love with each other at the army hospital unless Lin Kong gets a divorce. Each year on vacation he goes back to his country wife, Shuyu , to ask for a divorce and each year she refuses until after 15 years of requests she finally gives in. Lin Kong marries Mannu Wu, but as alas finds that he may have made a mistake. Life is not peaceful, she bares him twin sons and he regrets that he gave up his previous wife and daughter (they have since moved to the same city so his daughter can find work) as well as his ability to loose himself in reading books. The rigid life of the Chinese who follow traditions as well as the new strict communist regime make me appreciate the culture I live in and take for granted most of the time.