Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has once again solidified her position as a literary powerhouse, achieving a remarkable feat: all four of her published novels have now earned longlist recognition for the prestigious Women’s Prize for Fiction. This latest accolade comes with the longlisting of her highly anticipated novel, “Dream Count,” released in 2025.
“Dream Count,” Adichie’s first novel since the critically acclaimed “Americanah” in 2013, which garnered her the National Book Critics Circle Award, has been hailed as a “publishing event 10 years in the making.” The narrative intricately weaves the stories of four women navigating complex issues of identity, social expectations, and immigration, set against the backdrop of Nigeria and the United States. The novel delves into a rich tapestry of themes, including romantic disappointments, career struggles, the anxieties of the COVID-19 pandemic, and women’s health.
The novel’s complexity and scope have drawn praise, with The Guardian describing it as “practically… four novels for the price of one.” Adichie, in an interview with the BBC, revealed the personal struggles that influenced “Dream Count,” including a period of writer’s block following the birth of her daughter and the profound impact of her parents’ deaths. She credited her mother’s passing in 2021 with reigniting her creative spark, noting that “Dream Count” explores themes of mothers and daughters, a motif that emerged organically during the writing process.
This longlisting marks Adichie’s fourth appearance on the Women’s Prize list. Notably, her novel “Half of a Yellow Sun,” a powerful depiction of the Nigeria-Biafra civil war, won the prize (formerly the Orange Prize) in 2007 and later received the Women’s Prize for Fiction Winner of Winners award during the prize’s 25th anniversary. Her debut novel, “Purple Hibiscus,” which garnered the Commonwealth Writer’s Prize for Best First Book in 2005, and her subsequent novel “Americanah,” were also longlisted, completing her perfect record.
The 2025 Women’s Prize for Fiction longlist features 16 books, with a significant number of debut novelists. Among the notable authors is Moroccan American Laila Lalami, whose dystopian novel “The Dream Hotel” has earned her a place on the list. Lalami, a celebrated writer whose “The Moor’s Account” was a National Book Award winner and a Pulitzer Prize finalist, previously appeared on the Orange Prize longlist in 2010 with “Secret Son.”
The winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction will be awarded a £30,000 prize and a bronze statuette known as “Bessie,” created by artist Grizel Niven. This year’s longlisting for Adichie underscores her consistent literary excellence and her ability to produce compelling narratives that resonate with readers and critics alike.
