$eleven.ninety
A compulsively readable debut novel about marriage, immigration, class, race, and the trapdoors within the American Dream—the unforgettable story of a younger Cameroonian couple making a brand new life in New York simply because the Great Recession upends the financial system
Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award • A New York Times Notable Book • 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 dwelling in Harlem, has come to america to offer a greater life for himself, his spouse, Neni, and their six-yr-previous son. In the autumn of 2007, Jende can hardly consider his luck when he lands a job as a chauffeur for Clark Edwards, a senior government at Lehman Brothers. Clark calls for punctuality, discretion, and loyalty—and Jende is keen to please. Clark’s spouse, Cindy, even provides Neni short-term work on the Edwardses’ summer time residence within the Hamptons. With these alternatives, Jende and Neni can eventually achieve a foothold in America and picture a brighter future.
However, the world of nice energy and privilege conceals troubling secrets and techniques, and shortly Jende and Neni discover cracks of their employers’ façades.
When the monetary world is rocked by the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the Jongas are determined to maintain Jende’s job—whilst their marriage threatens to crumble. As all 4 lives are dramatically upended, Jende and Neni are pressured to make an unimaginable selection.
Praise for Behold the Dreamers
“A debut novel by a younger lady from Cameroon that illuminates the immigrant expertise in America with the tenderhearted knowledge so missing in our political discourse . . . Mbue is a vibrant and fascinating storyteller.”—The Washington Post
“A capacious, huge-hearted novel.”—The New York Times Book Review
“Behold the Dreamers’ coronary heart . . . belongs to the struggles and small triumphs of the Jongas, which Mbue traces in clear, fast-shifting paragraphs.”—Entertainment Weekly
“Mbue’s writing is heat and fascinating.”—People (ebook of the week)
“[Mbue’s] guide isn’t the primary work of fiction to grapple with the worldwide monetary disaster of 2007–2008, nevertheless it’s certainly among the best. . . . It’s a novel that depicts a rustic each blessed and doomed, on prime of the world, however all the time susceptible to dropping its stability. It is, in different phrases, quintessentially American.”—NPR
“This story is one which must be advised.”—Bust
“Behold the Dreamers challenges us all to think about what it takes to make us genuinely content material, and the way lengthy is just too lengthy to reside with our goals deferred.”—A: The Oprah Magazine
“[A] lovely, empathetic novel.”—The Boston Globe
“A witty, compassionate, swiftly paced novel that takes on race, immigration, household and the risks of capitalist extra.”—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“Mbue [is] a deft, typically lyrical observer. . . . [Her] meticulous storytelling declares a author in control of her presents.”—Minneapolis Star TribuneBehold the DREAMERS: A Novel
