This House Is Not for Sale by E.C. Osondu | Book Review

There's a house called "Family House" in E.C. Osondu's 2015 novel This House Is Not For Sale and it's at the center of everything that happens in the city. It's a large, wealthy household run by "Grandpa" and its members are not all related by blood or marriage. Some members of the Family House are runaways, abandoned children, and at least one's a murderer. Each chapter in this novel covers one of the many characters inhabiting the Family House and each character commands attention from start to finish. Grandpa is generous with his wealth and so the Family House is a source of assistance to the community but also a ready source of entertainment and the subject of much gossip. The Family House is a spectacle and with every occurrence the city's inhabitants are always there to dish truly delicious commentary.

This House Is Not For Sale is my first book by E.C. Osondu who won the 2009 Caine Prize for African Writing for his 2009 short story, Waiting, and also authored the short story collection, Voice of America. It's an interesting medley of great characters, myths, social commentary and all things Nigerian. The gossip and murmuring of the city's inhabitants, always preceded by a hyphen right after an occurrence in the novel, are some of the best parts of This House Is Not For Sale. It's a really good read.
[Image via Amazon]