Manny Ita
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has returned to long-form fiction after a 12-year hiatus with “Dream Count,” a novel that has quickly moved from anticipation to global acclaim since its release in March 2025. The book has remained on international bestseller lists into early 2026 and has become a central subject of literary debate, marking one of the most significant publishing events of the past year.
Set during the COVID-19 lockdown, the novel follows the intertwined lives of four women whose stories unfold across Nigeria and the United States. Adichie frames the narrative around what she calls the “dream count,” a concept that reworks the idea of a “body count” into a measure of the loves, longings and emotional choices that shape a life. At the center of the story is Chiamaka, a Nigerian travel writer living in the United States, who finds herself isolated during the pandemic and begins to digitally revisit past romantic relationships while reflecting on the decisions that led to her present loneliness.
Another central character is Zikora, a successful lawyer whose carefully constructed life collapses after a personal betrayal. Her storyline, which Adichie had earlier hinted at in a short story released in 2020, examines single motherhood, fractured expectations and the strain of familial judgment. Omelogor, Chiamaka’s cousin, is portrayed as an outspoken and financially powerful figure in Nigeria, offering a sharp and often humorous critique of corporate corruption and the culture of Nigerian “big men,” while asserting female agency within a male-dominated system. The fourth narrative follows Kadiatou, Chiamaka’s housekeeper in the United States, whose experience as an immigrant exposes the fragility of the so-called American Dream and centers on a traumatic act of injustice.
Critics have described “Dream Count” as Adichie’s most intimate work, noting a thematic shift from the historical and racial preoccupations of earlier novels such as Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah. The novel focuses more closely on the nature of love, questioning whether lasting fulfillment is achievable or inherently transient, while also exploring the tension between motherhood and personal autonomy. It further interrogates what commentators have called the “double burden” of the diaspora, as Nigerian women negotiate moral contradictions at home and exclusionary realities abroad.
By January 2026, the novel had garnered widespread critical acclaim. Reviews from The Guardian, The New York Times and World Literature Today praised the work, with one assessment describing Adichie’s prose as “moral and furious yet deeply empathetic.” The book was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction shortly after publication and is regarded as a strong contender for several major international literary awards in 2026. Beyond formal criticism, the novel has generated notable cultural impact, with the “Dream Count” challenge trending on social media as readers shared personal reflections inspired by the book.
In Nigeria, “Dream Count” is published by Narrative Landscape Press and is available through major retailers including Rovingheights, The Bookworm Cafe and Ouida Books in cities such as Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt. Adichie has said the novel took more than a decade to complete, and readers have singled out the character Omelogor as a standout, particularly for her fictional “Only for Men” vlog embedded within the narrative.
