But the most poignant character is the Nigerian, Tome Obd, who writes letters to a woman who has no interest in him. Much of the entertainment takes place in the sitting room where the residents gather to watch television. If you love life’s oddballs and eccentrics, this is the book for you, the one that most closely resembles Dickens’ brilliance for characters. The denouement crowns this colourful circus of a book.