Yes, money and barter were both used in things fall apart. The main currency was cowries. Major transactions were carried out in bags of cowries. For example, Akuke's bride-price was 20 bags of cowries. The fine for burning down the church was 200 bags of cowries, with an additional 50 bags of cowries as a 'processing fee' for the court messengers.
The villagers use cowries as currency.
In "Things Fall Apart" by Chinua Achebe, cowries are a form of currency used by the Igbo people in the village of Umuofia. They are small shells with a natural hole in the middle, which are often strung together in strings for ease of use. Cowries are used for trading goods and are a symbol of wealth and status in the community.
Chinua Achebe uses an impartial third person narration.
Achebe makes use of traditional African proverbs and stories.
so the cake doesn't fall apart
Ever since the funeral, Aunt Bessy was liable to fall apart at the least mention of Uncle Billy.
Okonkwo had to use sharecropping to build his farm in "Things Fall Apart" because he had no yams of his own to start farming with. By entering into a sharecropping agreement with Nwakibie, Okonkwo was able to gain access to land and resources to begin his farming operation. Sharecropping allowed Okonkwo to gradually build his farm and wealth over time.
The elders of Mbanta gave a portion of the Evil Forest to the missionaries to build their church in "Things Fall Apart". This land was deemed uninhabitable and cursed by the villagers, making it a suitable location for the missionaries.
so the cake doesn't fall apart
It means that Things Fall Apart. This implies first, that there are things, and then states that they fall apart. In terms of it's relation to the content of the book, it highlights many things, the reasons they fall apart, and how they fall apart, in many intricate details.
Physics: The subatomic particles that you possess interact with other subatomic particles, causing substances to break apart with new ones forming as a result. Psychology/Human Behaviour: It because you are looking for the things that fall apart. To be honest, not everything you touch falls apart, but your brain has gotten very good and observing the things that do, and you neglect the things that do not fall apart. A lot of things would have fallen apart even if you were not there, but you now somehow infer that your presence is significant in it falling apart. This is a false assumption, but understandable given your observational pattern. A lot of it has to do with patience and effort. Many things take a lot of energy and effort to keep together. Perhaps you do not wish to put in the effort, or are afraid of trying and failing, so would rather not try and fail to save the effort. You could just be lazy, or you could be busying yourself with other things that may or may not be as important. It could also be that the way you are constructing the things that fall apart is flawed in some way. Perhaps you are not creating some part of the foundation when you set these things up, so that the natural order of it is to fall apart unless great effort is expended.
Things Fall Apart is not legally available for general use online. However, there may be some libraries and such that offer it online (through Adobe Versions or similar software), but you would need to be a member of said library.