Tag Archives: Hallie Rubenhold

Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie tells the interconnected stories of four Nigerian women who live in the United States. Chiamaka is a travel writer based in Maryland who reminisces about unsatisfying relationships, her friend Zikora is a lawyer, and her cousin Omelogor is a former banker turned grad student. However, the most affecting part of the book belongs to Kadiatou, a maid violently assaulted by a rich hotel guest, and Adichie writes in an afterword that this part of the story was inspired by the Dominique Strauss-Kahn case in 2011. The prose is smooth and well-crafted and the characterisation of the four women is rich and multi-layered almost to the point of being ornate, and slightly at the expense of a coherent narrative arc. Overall, I think Americanah was a bit more satisfying as a whole, but Dream Count is a much welcome return after more than a decade. Continue reading →