Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Although I tried to find something wrong with Dream Count, I just couldn’t because this story was just so good.

I read Dream Count quicker than I initially planned because I was getting so many bad reviews, and I was confused because I had seen good reviews earlier, too. I tried to find something wrong with the story, but I just couldn’t because this story is good.

It was totally worth my time, maybe because I listened to the audiobook. After all the reviews I saw with the physical copy, I decided that I needed to start with the audiobook, and it was so worth it.

Now, though, I understand why people who read the physical copy had not-so-good things to say about it, especially the beginning; it’s not exactly an easy start to get into if you are reading.

What I liked

I loved the story and the themes explored in it – Women not really wanting to be partnered, women taking out their wombs to save themselves, and men seeing marriage as a utility.

The lives of the four women were so true and powerful, I’m glad that story was told—such powerful stories. My heart broke for Khadiatou 😭😭😭. Her story typifies the typical lived realities of women.

What I didn’t like

My only discomfort with Dream Count was that I lost track of the timelines. There have been books written with the same style, so it’s not because of the style. Rather, I think Adichie didn’t do well in making sure that we did not get sidetracked with the timelines, because I was confused at some point with the timelines.

The stories intersected, but I was lost, regardless. The book started with the lockdown, and the way the story was told shocked me to meet lockdown again.

In fact, it was Omelogor’s story that confused me. Because from Chia’s narration, Omelogor left the banking job to come to America; however, some part of Omelogor’s story almost made me believe she was back from America and doing banking.

At some point, we were back again to understanding that Omelogor was now leaving the banking job to go to America. Omelogor’s story was what confused me. And Khadiatou’s story, too. I was confused about the timelines because we didn’t really see snippets in Chia’s life like that. Beyond the timelines, the story was good.

Final thoughts

Also, I could swear that Omelogor’s story was something Eloghosa could write. Tell me about underworld behaviors in Abuja and not Lagos this time.

I didn’t know Adichie had it in her because I swear it was giving Eloghosa the whole time, and I’m not complaining.