Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue is a timely novel that follows the journey of a Cameroonian couple, Jende and Neni, as they immigrate to America in search of the elusive American Dream. Set against the backdrop of the 2008 financial crisis, the story delves into the struggles faced by the couple while working for a wealthy Wall Street family. The novel captures the complexities of immigration, class differences, and the stark realities of trying to build a better life in a new country, all while showcasing the multi-faceted characters and their intertwined destinies.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
The book contains themes of financial instability, deportation, and domestic issues, which may be sensitive topics for some readers.
From The Publisher:
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
Ratings (11)
Incredible (3) | |
Loved It (1) | |
Liked It (2) | |
It Was OK (5) |
Reader Stats (18):
Read It (11) | |
Want To Read (7) |
1 comment(s)
Aunque esta muy bien caracterizado y mantiene un movimiento constante, algunos dialogos se me hicieron demasaido repetitivos y algunos detalles innecesarios.
What can you read after
Behold the Dreamers?
About the Author:
Imbolo Mbue is the author of the New York Times bestseller Behold the Dreamers, which won the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and the Blue Metropolis Words to Change Prize and was an Oprah's Book Club selection. Named a notable book of the year by The…
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