Vagabonds! is a story of abundance - a gathering and celebration of those who exist outside the boundaries. It joyously hops from home to home, raising up souls and bringing them together to challenge or support or love each other. It was both a tender and glorious adventure.

Our story begins with an omniscient narrator: enter Tatafo, a clever spirit who serves Lagos’ embodiment, Èkó. Tatafo works diligently for Èkó, focusing only on efficiency and purpose, and doing his job above & beyond. He lives up to his name (“gossip”).

Eventually, his heart is stretched as he becomes curious about the outcasts of the city - the vagabonds. He is tossed out of the spirit class in disgrace and finds himself among them, capturing their stories, rebellions, and acts of fearless love. 

Each story is vivid, authentic, and a little bit dangerous. And the scope involves the undead, a healthy sprinkling of magic, and even some fairygodgirls. These stories were distinctive at first, but over the course of the book they weave together more and more, ending in a beautiful final chapter.

The chapters were each full, rich, mini-worlds that tugged me right in. I found this structure a bit challenging at times, because just as I sunk into the experience and let a character into my soul, they were snatched away. It felt like a bit of loss and grief again and again as I had to open up to a new story. 

But these stories were so, so rich. They offered openings into secondary worlds filled with freedom, they sparked new identities, and they encouraged defiance. They played with who has power and who does not, and how vagabonds navigated the different levels of class they had access to. It also has fascinating takes on spirituality and religion - who it excludes and how those on the outskirts of society find solace or connection to a higher power.

For all the pain & loss & suffering that its characters felt – this book was filled with joy and celebration. It was creative. It was absurdly chaotic. It was magical. It was, as I said at the start of the review, truly abundant.

 

CW: murder, death (child/parent), queerphobia, abuse (child/domestic), assault, misogyny, sexism, religious bigotry, grief, body horror, drug use, torture, infidelity, pedophilia, suicide, fire, classism, cancer, sexual content

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