Synopses & Reviews
A Wall Street Journal Best Fiction Book of 2014! An exciting and hilarious debut novel: a remarkable picaresque set in post-Soviet Georgia--land of corruption, love, and power shortages In the republic of Georgia, the Communists are long gone, replaced by . . . well, by what? Something much more confusing. There are no jobs in the cities. And when there are jobs, employees aren't compensated. And when they are compensated, it's because the jobs
Review
A Wall Street Journal Best Fiction Book of 2014!
"Like Kingsley Amis with a social conscience, Christina Nichol combines an ear for the absurdities of globalized English with an acute awareness of the everyday sufferings and indignities of daily life in post-Soviet Georgia. The result is a pitch-perfect dark comedy that tracks the myriad miscommunications among ‘global partners and next-door neighbors and combines them into one of the most powerful novels yet written on the effects of globalization.” —Marco Roth, author of The Scientists “This book is a triumphant, sustained, comic performance. I cant recall a contemporary American novel anywhere near as funny. Be aware that Waiting for Electricity is defiantly un-PC, and also that it manages to provide between the lines as acute and mordant a reading of post-Communist Georgia as one could conceive. The narrators letters to Hillary Clinton are more brilliantly hapless than any of Herzogs to his famous addressees. I got a kind of joy from experiencing Christina Nichols transformation of an extreme reality into further documentation of the human comedy. I dont think Ive ever before used the word “joy” in quite this way.” —Norman Rush, author of Subtle Bodies
“A wise, funny debut novel that finds endless entertainment in cultural differences and clashing personality types . . . Nichol writes with sharp, knowing exactitude of both Georgia (where she once taught English) and her native Bay Area, and though Makashvili is a figure of jape and jest, hes by no means a caricature. Indeed, hes one of the most fully realized characters in recent memory, and readers will take much pleasure in going along on his adventures—and misadventures.” —Kirkus Reviews
"This indeventive debut novel from Nichol, who has taught English in the Republic of Georgia, where the book is set, provides a satirical but good-natured look at the clash between American and Georgian attitudes . . . Tongue-in-cheek humor and Slims's deadpan narration of his improbable tale add considerable appeal to this promising first novel." —Publishers Weekly
"Nichols clever debut is rich in cultural commentary . . . Nichols well-drawn characters and satirical flourishes make Slims journey and interactions both enjoyable and thoughtful." —Booklist
"Waiting for the Electricity is a wildly original and ambitious debut, a novel that tackles cultural clashes with satirical hilarity. I haven't read a first novel this promising since The Confederacy of Dunces." —Jill Ciment, author of Heroic Measures
"Waiting for the Electricity is not just a wise, funny, moving novel but a feat of extraordinary literary ventriloquism. In these pages, the American writer Christina Nichol becomes the Georgian "Slims" Achmed. Her Georgia is his Georgia. More remarkably, his America is her America. A fine debut, and a welcome antidote to the provincialism of so much recent American fiction."—David Leavitt, author of The Two Hotel Francforts
"Endearing and dryly hilarious." —The Wall Street Journal
Review
"Like Kingsley Amis with a social conscience, Christina Nichol combines an ear for the absurdities of globalized English with an acute awareness of the everyday sufferings and indignities of daily life in post-Soviet Georgia. The result is a pitch-perfect dark comedy that tracks the myriad miscommunications among 'global partners' and next-door neighbors and combines them into one of the most powerful novels yet written on the effects of globalization. " Marco Roth, author of The Scientists
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"Endearing and dryly hilarious." Wall Street Journal
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"Seamlessly inventive and enchanting." The Rumpus
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"Richly, often blissfully comic...I would happily read as much of [the novel] as Nichol could have been persuaded to write." Literary Review
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"Nichol has written a laugh-out-loud funny picaresque novel about post-Soviet Georgia. Sound unlikely? Just dive in." Reader's Digest
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"Nichol brings the curiosity and critical eye of the seasoned traveler to her debut, keenly observing both her Georgian protagonists and the Americans they idealize. In her capable hands,
Review
"Truly inventive in its ability to weave a politically savvy tale of capitalism and corruption with a hysterical and uplifting character perspective is one of the most exciting debut novels in years." Booksmith Review
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"Christina Nichol's debut novel takes us on a humorous ride toward the possibility of the American dream. The hero, Slims Achmed, comes from the country of Georgia to San Francisco, the land of opportunity. While enduring culture shock, Achmed sees a San Francisco he wasn't quite expecting. The setting is perfect for the Sebastopol author's wry comedy as well as social commentary on America." SFGate
Review
"Not since the title character of Saul Bellow's epistolary novel (1964) have I encountered one as outlandish as Slims, a working-class Georgian who writes to Hillary Clinton seeking America's help in stabilizing his country. While written in a satirical style, Waiting is heart-achingly poignant." Chico News and Review
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"The writing was good, funny, and the main characters were all well developed.
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"A wise, funny debut novel that finds endless entertainment in cultural differences and clashing personality types . . . Nichol writes with sharp, knowing exactitude of both Georgia (where she once taught English) and her native Bay Area, and though Makashvili is a figure of jape and jest, he's by no means a caricature. Indeed, he's one of the most fully realized characters in recent memory, and readers will take much pleasure in going along on his adventures--and misadventures." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"This inventive debut novel from Nichol, who has taught English in the Republic of Georgia, where the book is set, provides a satirical but good-natured look at the clash between American and Georgian attitudes . . . Tongue-in-cheek humor and Slims's deadpan narration of his improbable tale add considerable appeal to this promising first novel." Publishers Weekly
Review
"Nichol's clever debut is rich in cultural commentary . . . Nichol's well-drawn characters and satirical flourishes make Slims' journey and interactions both enjoyable and thoughtful." Booklist
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"Hilarious...An assured debut." The Daily Mail
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"[] packs a huge satirical punch, creating a fast romp for those of us who like to concentrate on a good story with more beneath for those of us who like to be sent away with thoughts on which to ruminate.... From beginning to end this is a spell binding story." The Bookbag
Review
"Utterly Winning." Stevereads
Synopsis
"This book is a triumphant, sustained, comic performance. I can't recall a contemporary American novel anywhere near as funny." --Norman Rush
About the Author
Christina Nichol is a 2012 recipient of a Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers' Award. Nichol grew up in the Bay Area, studied at the University of Oregon, and received her MFA from the University of Florida. She has traveled widely, worked for nonprofit film companies, and taught English in India, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan,