What Napoleon could not do

What does the American dream mean to those for whom it wasn't created? In his debut novel, Nnuro follows three characters who believed that America promised much only to find that it failed to deliver. Since childhood, Jacob and Belinda's goal has always been to make it to America. But after multiple failed visa attempts, Jacob is beginning to question if America is worth the heartbreak. Belinda, married to an African American man and still denied a green card after 10 years, wonders if the dream was always an illusion and if the fight is worth continuing. What Napoleon Could Not Do is a multifaceted drama of familial relationships, duty, loss, and dreams deferred. Nnuro creates beautiful symmetry between America and Ghana, juxtaposing the physically draining disappointments of the Ghanaian government with the emotionally draining letdowns of the U.S. bureaucracy. He boldly explores discrimination across and within race and culture and intricately crafts characters readers will feel intimately connected with. In this deeply thoughtful tale, Nnuro establishes himself as a powerful storyteller.

Nnuro debuts with an engrossing saga of two Ghanaian siblings and their shared desire to make it in America. Belinda, the brighter and more tenacious of the two, moves to the U.S. for college in the late 1980s, becomes a lawyer, and marries Wilder, a wealthy Black businessman. Belinda's older brother, Jacob, stays behind in Ghana and seethes with jealousy. He has no financial stability, and his love life is stymied by his preferences for S&M relationships. Belinda tries to help him out by setting him up with her former roommate, Patricia, and though the two never meet, they end up getting married, and for a while, Jacob is hopeful. As he tries to secure a visa so he can be with Patricia in Virginia, Belinda's green card application keeps getting delayed. After Jacob is twice rejected for a visa, his old jealousy returns, unaware as he is of Belinda's struggle not just with the green card process but also with a husband whose experience of being Black in the U.S. challenges her glorified view of the country. Nnuro explores a range of themes, from familial bonds to sexuality, racism, and the pitfalls of the colonized mindset. This author has much to offer. Agent: Richard Abate, 3 Arts Entertainment. (Feb.)