For eighteen years army doctor Lin Kong and Manna, a nurse, have wanted to marry but they must obey the crazy rules of the Cultural Revolution which allow his village wife to refuse to divorce him and forbids them to be seen together beyond the hospital confines let alone cohabit. Sometimes funny, often sad, this novel vividly depicts life under an authoritarian regime and demonstrates how the passage of time alters desires and perceptions.
(Jenny Baker - bwl 11 October 2001 ) |
