Behold the Dreamers (Oprah's Book Club): A Novel

"Worth reading" according to Carol Hampton. I was caught up in the story and always looked forward to finding out what would happen next. The characters were well developed and interesting. It gave what felt like a legitimate feel for what life would be like for an immigrant with an uncertain future.I found the contrast between the main characters' response to the idea of returning to Cameroon interesting--probably pretty typic. One of the best books I've read in a while This is one of the best books I've read in a while and I'll be recommending wholeheartedly to friends and family. Great insight on the lives of these characters, the struggles of this poor immigrant family and the struggles of this wealthy American family. Great reminder that regardless of our social status, we all face challenges.. "Heartfelt, but amateurish writing" according to sb-lynn. Brief summary, no spoilers.This story is told primarily from the point of view of an African couple from Cameroon who have come to New York just prior to the stock market crash in 2007. The couple is Jende and Neni Jonga. They were unable to marry in Cameroon because Neni's father didn't find Jende of high enough status to marry his daughter. Nene previously had a daughter with Jende

It was also named as a best book of 2016 by NPR, Kirkus Reviews, the San Francisco Chronicle, The Guardian and the St. She holds a BS from Rutgers University and an MA from Columbia University. A resident of the United States for more than a decade, she lives in New York City.Behold the Dreamers, her critically acclaimed debut novel, won the 2017 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and was nam

With these opportunities, Jende and Neni can at last gain a foothold in America and imagine a brighter future. Her meticulous storytelling announces a writer in command of her gifts.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune. However, the world of great power and privilege conceals troubling secrets, and soon Jende and Neni notice cracks in their employers’ façades. 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 li

--Chris Schluep, The Book Review. An Best Book of August 2016: One of the greatest things a novel can do is to raise empathy in a reader. Clark is rich, but has troubles of his own, and conversations in the car—private ones between Jende and members of the Edwards family, talks overheard on cell phones—begin to reveal these fissures. Jende is poor, living in Harlem, but with his new job he is able to move his wife and son to New York—he feels he is on the fast track to his American dream. Behold the Dreamers does that slowly and surely, as Mbue tells the story of Jende Jonga, his wife Neni, and their six-year-old son. Mbue is a master of presenting a scene and allowing the reader to see between the lines; the result is the thrill of feeling that,