A compulsively readable debut novel about marriage, immigration,
class, race, and the trapdoors in the American Dream--the unforgettable
story of a young Cameroonian couple making a new life in New York just
as the Great Recession upends the economy
New York Times Bestseller - Winner of the PEN/Faulkner
Award - Longlisted for the PEN/Open Book Award - An ALA Notable Book
**NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY
NPR - The New York Times Book Review - San Francisco Chronicle - The
Guardian - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - Chicago Public Library -
BookPage - Refinery29 - Kirkus Reviews
**
Jende Jonga, a Cameroonian immigrant living in Harlem, has come to the
United States to provide a better life for himself, his wife, Neni, and
their six-year-old son. In the fall of 2007, Jende can hardly believe
his luck when he lands a job as a chauffeur for Clark Edwards, a senior
executive at Lehman Brothers. Clark demands punctuality, discretion, and
loyalty--and Jende is eager to please. Clark's wife, Cindy, even offers
Neni temporary work at the Edwardses' summer home in the Hamptons. With
these opportunities, Jende and Neni can at last gain a foothold in
America and imagine a brighter future.
However, the world of great power and privilege conceals troubling
secrets, and soon Jende and Neni notice cracks in their employers'
façades.
When the financial world is rocked by the collapse of Lehman Brothers,
the Jongas are desperate to keep Jende's job--even as their marriage
threatens to fall apart. As all four lives are dramatically upended,
Jende and Neni are forced to make an impossible choice.
Praise for Behold the Dreamers
**
"A debut novel by a young woman from Cameroon that illuminates the
immigrant experience in America with the tenderhearted wisdom so lacking
in our political discourse . . . Mbue is a bright and captivating
storyteller."--The Washington Post**
"A capacious, big-hearted novel."--The New York Times Book Review
"Behold the Dreamers' heart . . . belongs to the struggles and small
triumphs of the Jongas, which Mbue traces in clean, quick-moving
paragraphs."--Entertainment Weekly
"Mbue's writing is warm and captivating."--People (book of the
week)
"[Mbue's] book isn't the first work of fiction to grapple with the
global financial crisis of 2007-2008, but it's surely one of the best. .
. . It's a novel that depicts a country both blessed and doomed, on top
of the world, but always at risk of losing its balance. It is, in other
words, quintessentially American."--NPR
"This story is one that needs to be told."--Bust
"Behold the Dreamers challenges us all to consider what it takes to
make us genuinely content, and how long is too long to live with our
dreams deferred."**--*O: The Oprah Magazine
"[A] beautiful, empathetic novel."--The Boston Globe
"A witty, compassionate, swiftly paced novel that takes on race,
immigration, family and the dangers of capitalist excess."--St. Louis
Post-Dispatch
"Mbue [is] a deft, often lyrical observer. . . . [Her] meticulous
storytelling announces a writer in command of her gifts."--Minneapolis
Star Tribune
