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Title: overrated
Review: I'm afraid that Mr. Ha Jin doesn't quite know how to write good English prose. The plot, although potentially delicious in a minimalist way (the book is quite literally about waiting) is underserved by his style. There are few authors who could write sparely and get away with it, e.g. Hemingway. Not Ha Jin, mainly because he just isn't that great, but also because he hasn't even nailed basic English language usage. On page 179 Ha misuses "bisexual" to mean "hermaphrodite"; on page 296 he forgets to translate the Chinese for "idiot" and leaves it in literal translation as "stupid egg". I don't really care about the exotic terrain: it isn't exotic enough to me (I'm from China and am quite familiar with life and culture under Chinese communism) to redeem the other, glaring flaws within this book. Perhaps after a few more English immersion courses Ha Jin will manage to write something that deserves the National Book Award. In the meantime don't bother reading this book.
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