Summary

In Chapter 5, the landlady grows quieter after her sons’ visit. One day the widow surprises Tambu when she is stealing vegetables from the garden. When the widow does not seem to mind, Tambu begins stealing from the garden every day. An unknown visitor comes, and the widow tells her to go back to his village. The word “village” strikes a nerve in Tambu. When the visitor refuses to leave, the widow introduces Christine, her brother’s daughter, to the housemates. Mai Mayanga explains that Christine’s father died in the war; Christine lightly chastises her aunt for her topic of choice.

Tambu reflects on her housemates: the strong Bertha “hardened past femininity by too many things to talk about” (51); the meek Makomboreroro, also known as Mako, a legal secretary at the Ministry of Justice; and Shine, a hypersexual and borderline predatory man. It is...