Vagabonds!

https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/vagabonds-by-eloghosa-osunde/

The vagabonds of Vagabonds! are swimming around the murky middle and lower reaches of society in Lagos.

I made a mistake in reading it, in that I did not realise that it was more a collection of linked short stories than a novel, and got frustrated that later chapters introduced new characters without giving closure to earlier plot lines. That’s partly on me (though to an extent also on the publisher for describing it as a novel on the dust jacket). But I think the writer can sometimes demand too much of the reader in discerning the book’s structure.

It’s a very intense description of life at the margins, especially the queer margins, in a developing city economy. The show more deities Èkó and Tatafo guide us through the narrative (which is why the Clarke jury felt that it fell on the fantasy side of the line), but they don’t intervene much, allowing humans to make their own mistakes. The book is fuelled by an energising rage against injustice. It’s passionate and well-described; but as mentioned, I felt the last couple of steps to make it fully coherent were missing. show less

Reader’s annotation: Vagabonds! challenges the way you define the world and the people in it

Review: Vagabonds! is a book that leaves me speechless, in the way that I can't quite articulate what is so compelling about it. The writing is a standout - stylistically inventive and constantly thought-provoking. The novel's structure is more like interconnected vignettes than a whole story arc, yet the reader will still come away with a new perspective having followed these characters. Anyone who picks up this book is in for a strange, yet fantastic, reading experience.

Rating scale:
5 stars: Has elements that will appeal to readers of the genre and not, with high quality writing and composition that lends itself to discussion
4 stars: a solid show more read that can be a great conversation starter, well-crafted and well-received by readers and critics. Appeal characteristics may be more limited
3 stars: recommendation success may vary, a mixed bag as far as quality and appeal factors. May be best suited to die-hard genre fans
2 stars: Unmet potential craft-wise and story-wise, does not successfully execute appeal elements
1 star: The writing and composition of the book is poor with few to no redeemable elements.

Available in hardcover, paperback, audio CD, ebook, and e-audio formats show less

More beautiful writing (was also listening to Ocean Vuong) but an undercurrent of violence led me to sample it only ...