Ask a Bookseller: ‘Dream Count’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now. 

As we continue our focus on books of hope and connection, Lori Virelli of Harvey’s Tales in Geneva, Ill., wanted to recommend Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s new novel “Dream Count.”

It’s Adichie’s first novel in over 10 years. Virelli called it “a beautifully written book about lovely, flawed characters.”

The novel moves among the points of view of four female protagonists, most of whom have a connection to Nigeria. It’s largely set around Washington, D.C., during the pandemic, at a time that invites the characters to take stock of their lives. Key in the story is the power of female friendships.

Adichie is not one to shy away from hard-hitting events in her novels, which include “Americanah” and “Half of a Yellow Sun.” In “Dream Count,” one of the women experiences an assault. And without giving any more way, Virelli said the events set the table for conversations about privilege and “who is owed justice in the world and who is not.”

“There’s also some lovely themes about just sort of hitting those middle aged years and appreciating the love that you’ve seen in your life.”

As for what qualifies it as a book of hope, Virelli said, “Hopeful for me is not always wrapped up in a pretty little bow. Hopeful for me is seeing depth in relationship and knowing that you have people to count on in your life, and, you know, looking at your own insecurities and how you face the world knowing what you're going into.”