Waiting in Vain

Rating:
Summary: A book for intelligent people--chickenheads need not apply
Review: Waiting In Vain is an intelligently written book filled with passion, wit, and a deep respect and profound understanding of the minds and motivations of a wide variety of people of color. Set in New York, London and Jamaica it is a true novel of the diaspora, and it stands heads and shoulders above a lot of the simple-minded fiction being directed toward black readers. It was so refreshing to read a novel that treats black people from outside America as real human beings. Too often, especially in novels written by African Americans, black people from the Caribbean and Africa are caricatured or mariginalized--either maids, or rent-a-dreads or cab drivers. And this is the height of hypocrisy, as we African Americans are always hollering about the depiction of African Americans in mainstream novels and movies--if the role doesn't call specifically for a black character, we have none.

There are a few reviews here on Amazon that take Mr. Channer to task for using Jamaican dialect when Jamaican characters are speaking. Well, what about when African American dialect is used in African American fiction? What do people in the rest of the world do? What about books like Push? Or The Color Purple? And if truth be told, Jamaican dialect is used maybe ten percent of the time. In fact, Mr. Channer uses some of the most beautiful English that I have every read. His prose is so richly embroidered. At times, it borders on poetry.

Apart from the black diaspora, Waiting In Vain goes a step further--it has a key character who is Latino, and further, a Latino who is not running a bodega or cleaning a house, but rather, a FILM MAKER. And what I found impressive about this is Channer's refusal to explain these people's success. He presumes it and moves on with the telling of his story.

And I have read few novels with as many strong and well developed female characters.

Waiting In Vain is landmark in black fiction. It doesn't pander. It is confidently intelligent and painstakingly crafted. No wonder the Washington Post chose it as one of the Best Books Of The Year.

Yes, there are parts that I had to re-read ... because the language was so beautiful, I had to savor it; and sometimes the meaning had so many layers .. and this is good. I like depth. I like intelligence.

As I said in the heading. This is a book for intelligent people--chickenheads need not apply.

Rating:
Summary: Very difficut and lethargic
Review: It's as simple as this: It did not hold my attention and was very long and drawn out. If you have a month to re-read over a dialect and complex story in which you must decipher what will happen with no clues, then read this book.

Rating:
Summary: An intelligent, peotic and sophisticated novel.
Review: Waiting In Vain - a review by Nyantah

This debut novel by Colin Channer takes the reader on a journey; travelling through Jamaica, London and New York in search of love.

Fire, as passionate as his name suggests, is a writer, sculptor and painter. A chance meeting with a woman in New York sends him tumbling headfirst into a complex love affair. The woman, Sylvia, suppresses her passions until meeting Fire, who finds the key to unlock them.

Sensuous and beautifully written Waiting in Vain looks into the complicated world of passion and desire adding a new dimension to the relationship novel. Sub-plots and twists make it an absorbing read. Channer's ability to write about the most intimate experiences, graphically, but without crudeness, is very refreshing.

'He read her like a child, slowly, with his nose against the page, using a finger to guide his way.'

'And the way he was eating that mango--the flesh becoming slush and dripping down his arm. The juice was inking the nib between her legs, making her want to draft an epic on his face.'

An intelligent, poetic and sophisticated novel, Waiting in Vain, is a stunning debut.

Rating:
Summary: an excellent book with a kick of passion and deep feelings
Review: i work in a library and since i had picked this book up i just couldnt put it down...now i am going to buy me a copy...fire is a man of words and taste; sylvia is a woman of passion and uncertainty. together they both bring out feelings that each and everyone of us know we have inside ourselves....a must read for those who believe in love at first sight!! *S*

Rating:
Summary: I have never ever read anything so great!
Review: The book was left in my car by accident. So, I begin to read it. I could not put it down. I found myself caught up inside this book, taking me places that I've never been. I cried, fell in love, laugh, well, lets say I needed several cold showers as well.

To know that such a man, an author such as Collin Channer can express himself in such a way, is in my eyes; a woman's dream.

I found myself curling up with the book on many lonely evenings and letting the book caress me, sooth me and comfort me. Great book!!!!!!!!!

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Rating:
Summary: Deep and expressive, an explosion of passion and culture.
Review: A wonderfully written novel. A journey back home any true rooted Jamaican would want to take. Complex and real a story well told. "Waiting in Vain" is a novel full of passion and pride , feeding your curiosity with every turn of a page. Excellent writing. Complitments to Mr Channer.

Rating:
Summary: He was great.
Review: I couldn't stop reading his book. It was a great book and he made you feel as you was right there with them. I just loved Fire and his passion about himself and others around him. Fire is one of them men that you see but never touch but he touched me in ways that I thought was impossible. I know that there is men out there like that but man don't I wish that I can met him. So I hope that it's a part two to this book because I fell in love with Fire.

Rating:
Summary: FIRE FIRE FIRE
Review: THIS IS A GREAT BOOK. ANYONE WHO IS A REALIST CAN UNDERSTAND AND RELATE TO THE CHARACTERS. THE COLORS ARE REMARKABLE TO THE POINT WHERE IT IS AS IF YOU ARE WATCHING THIS BOOK ON FILM. BIG UP TO THE AUTHOR MR. CHANNER FOR GIVING ME MORE THAN MY MONEYS WORTH.

Rating:
Summary: Difficult to read if you do not know the language.
Review: Overall, I thought the book was worth reading. My difficulty was not being from an island or familiar with the language of Fire's home, it was very hard to comprehend the meaning of a lot of the terms used in the book. I think this might be a book that you would have to read twice to fully understand it.

Rating:
Summary: This book was GREAT, I want more!!!
Review: Colin, I loved the book. This book was long awaited. The kind of love story that people can relate to and use in their lives. This story gives people the opportunity to see what a lack of communication can do to stagnate a relationship, and also see how great it can be when you say what's so. I thank you for giving me some insights on Jamaica and my West Indian roots that I have not explored fully. This book has assisted in the opening of a door to my West Indian roots and I am so excited. "I'll be real excited if I could meet a Fire can guy". I really loved how you presented Fire's spiritual self; he truly lived life to the fullest. Thank you again for writing such a GREAT love story and sharing your vulnerability as a male writer.