Description

NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORKER

In the bustling streets and cloistered homes of Lagos a cast of vivid characterssome haunted some defiantnavigate danger demons and love in a quest to lead true lives

As in Nigeria vagabonds are those whose existence is literally outlawed the queer the poor the displaced the footloose and rogue spirits They are those who inhabit transientspaces who make their paths and move invisibly who embrace apparitions old vengeances and alternative realitiesEloghosa Osundes brave fiercely inventive novel traces a wild array of characters for whom life itself is a form of resistance a driver for a debauched politician with the power to command life and death a legendary fashion designer who gives birth to a grown daughter a lesbian couple whose tender relationship sheds unexpected light on their experience with underground sex work a wife and mother who attends a secret spiritual gathering that shifts her world As their lives intertwinein bustling markets and underground clubs churches and hotel roomsvagabonds are seized and challenged by spirits who command the citys dark energy Whether running from danger meeting with secret lovers finding their identities or vanquishing theirshadowselves Osundes characters confront and support one another before converging for the onceinalifetime gathering that gives the book its unexpectedly joyous conclusion

Blending unvarnished realism with myth and fantasy Vagabonds is a vital work of imagination that takes us deep inside the hearts minds and bodies of a people in duressand in triumph