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Title: excellent book
Review: This book takes you into the culture of China under Chairman Mao in the 1960's and 70's. Ha Jin was born in China. He moved to USA to study. He had delays in bringing his wife here after he immigrated. He knows about waiting and the frustration of state regulations. His book takes you into the mind of a man, who has repressed his own instincts in favor of respectability. The hero is ineffectual but credible. The two women portrayed belong to the pre-revolutionary and post-revolutionary worlds. Again the emphasis on the way culture shaped the individual is clear. The writing feels natural, as if written by a native speaker. Really worth reading, especially for Westerners who now are now steeped in individualism and notions of self fulfillment.
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