Dream Count

I did join the rest of the literary world in celebrating the release of Chimamanda’s Dream Count. I was eager to read what she has released to be published and more so because it was dedicated to her mother. The relationship between girls and their mothers is a complex one; love hate. As a child you look up to them, copying everything they do. As a teenager rebellion kicks and you form your own opinions and act differently from what she advices. As a woman, you understand your mother and hold a special place for her and only hope you can even be a fraction of the woman she is.

The biography does not give much. We only know we would be reading about the lives of black women but we did not know if they are connected in any way. I am particularly in awe of the writing style. The book is divided into 4: Chiamaka’s life, Zikora, Kadiatou and Omelegor. Each part is divided into chapters that delve deeper into the character and their story. We also get to see each characters perspective of events that transpire in all their lives. The major thread wound in all their stories is life during Covid, where they were when they heard about the virus and how it impacted their lives.

Starting particularly with Covid was Nostalgic. Having lived through it, reading about it was a throw back. It made me relate easily with each of the characters. Chimamanda writes in such a way that she is able to give a back story to a dialogue a character is having with another without losing you. She further ties that dialogue and carries it forward to another chapter when we get to hear the responding character’s POV. I found this very tasteful.

As usual there were thought provoking quotes

Keep your house clean enough to be healthy and dirty enough to be happy – This is the perfect balance. Do not fret over the few things that are out of place.

It is easy to be sad; sadness is a low hanging fruit. Hope and Happiness you have to reach higher for.

what charms you is eventually what will irritate you – This was in relation to a romantic relationship. For resentment to grow, it requires knowledge of each other.

We inherit our parents scars more often than we know.

The author did not leave us without food for thought. What does it mean to you to say that you have been to a country? Is it interacting with the locals? Or maybe having your passport stamped in that country? Is it eating the local food or doing the tourist activities? In the book Chiamaka is a travel writer and she writes about countries she has visited focusing on lighter topics. Chimamanda giving us an African character whose life is of ease was a breath of fresh air. I am tired of reading about hardship, suffering, failed marriages, miscarriages or settling in life which is what most African authors tell in their stories.

Dream Count breathes life into stories of successful women. Women who are thriving in and of themselves. Women with brilliant minds. Women with a laissez faire perspective. Women who are dreaming of great futures and creating those futures. Dream Count is of course not aloof to all that is happening in society. It taps into miscarriage, loss of a husband, the unsupportive male once a child is sired, sexual assault. We do get to see men make choices that are seemingly void of consequences and at times that is just life. We get to see women not wallow in self pity, acknowledge their misfortune and continue chartering a path of their own.

I have heard both hate and praise for the book. It is not one of those books I will push down your throat as a must read but I would recommend it for a more nuanced reader.