Each year, students in FIT’s Presidential Scholars Program read an assigned book over the summer to discuss with faculty and administrators at a September colloquium. This year, students read Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue. The critically acclaimed novel, which won the PEN/Faulkner Award and was picked for Oprah’s Book Club, tells the story of a family that immigrates from Cameroon to New York just as the financial crisis of 2008 dismantles the economy. As a special treat to students, Mbue came to FIT on September 27 to read from her novel and answer questions about her writing process and her career.

“I was looking for an immigration story that wasn’t blatant,” said Yasemin Celik Levine, professor of Political Science and World Affairs and executive director of the Presidential Scholars Program, about her decision to select Mbue’s novel. “And I was looking for a New York story. Part of our mission is to expose students to New York.”