The Casual Vacancy

By: J.K. Rowling

Narrated by: Tom Hollander

Length: 17 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's summary

When Barry Fairweather dies unexpectedly in his early 40s, the little town of Pagford is left in shock.

Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war. Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils.... Pagford is not what it at first seems. And the empty seat left by Barry on the town's council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity, and unexpected revelations?

Blackly comic, thought-provoking, and constantly surprising, The Casual Vacancy is J.K. Rowling's first novel for adults.

©2012 J.K. Rowling (P)2012 Hachette Audio

Pretty good!

As much as I love J.K.'s beloved Harry Potter series, it was nice to see her switch things up and show she's had way more depth that we realized. Granted, there is a lot going on in this book, but hey, that's just half the fun of reading.

Brilliant

I don't often write book reviews. In fact, I think this may be my first. But with everyone writing in about how terrible they thought this book was, I thought I'd chip in my two cents.

I thought about not reading this book due to the terrible response it was getting from die-hard J.K. Rowling fans. I didn't want this book to change my opinion that Rowling is one of the best writers out there, as it seemed to be doing for so many fans. I thought about it. I'm glad I ignored them all.

This book will not please everyone because it wasn't meant to. It's like a Tarantino film. It's gruesome, it's hard, and in that way, it is a realistic representation of certain aspects of life as many people experience it in this world. And, like a Tarantino film, this book draws these same hard aspects of life out to such an extreme that it seems to glory in them, making you feel like it's just a little too much -- what? Too much to handle maybe, or too much to believe, or possibly... too much like your own life to really be enjoyable.

The thing that makes the Harry Potter story so fantastic is that it is, actually, painful to the point of being diffult to bear. My childhood memories are flecked with grief drawn by Rowling's pen. I remember where I was when Sirius died, and Dumbledore, and Snape, and (fleetingly) Harry. I felt real, hard, human grief over a character. I mourned the death of -- what? Dumbledore was never more than a cluster of words on a page. How could I feel real feeling at this fictional loss? Still, I remember my dad explaining my sombre expression at a family function. "She just finished the sixth Harry Potter book," he said, and it was all he needed to say. They understood because they'd felt it themselves.

That, truly, is Rowling's power. She has the unique ability to make her readers really feel what her characters are feeling. When a character dies in her books, it can feel like a character in our own lives has passed away.

I would suggest that she has actually honed this power in writing "The Casual Vacancy." Harry Potter was able to escape the post-trauma pain that followed him by throwing himself into school work, solving the mysteries of his world, or exacting revenge.

Escape is not an option in Pagford. Though many of the characters think about getting out, and some try to, their endeavors are always somehow thwarted. Ultimately they must each turn and face the things that make their lives difficult.

It is not an easy book, but then, I don't think Rowling has written an easy book since "The Chamber of Secrets." It is an enjoyable read, if you are the kind of person who doesn't mind walking around in the shoes of people who have difficult lives for a while. "The Casual Vacancy" is complex. It constantly encourages its readers to form opinions about characters and organize them into neat little cubby holes. Then, again and again, Rowling throws those opinions into a vortex, leaving us to try and pick up the pieces of our misconceptions.

Like Zadie Smith's "White Teeth," it's a brilliant reflection of society. You'll like it, if you're the kind of person who isn't interested in an escape.

Seriously Depressing

As I read this thr first thing I thought was - wow the men in this book are severely flawed idiots that I wouldn't like to meet....
Then I thought - wow, the women in the book are severely flawed idiots that I wouldn't like to meet.
I've seen complaints about Rowling's character development, but I honestly don't think she has a problem there; I think her character development is fine, but I think we are quite uncomfortable with the characters she has developed. The thing you come to ask yourself is - are we are as a people really like this? And I think the sad truth is - yes, we are quite pathetic.
The way the book ended depressed me, but I dont think this book could have ended any other way and remain...authentic.

Kitchen sink melodrama

J. K. Rowling is an excellent writer. What's missing here is a driving plot line. It's as if Harry never left the Dursleys. The whole Potter series is his miserable life in the closet under the stairs. Instead of a closet, make it a dank little English town wallowing in child abuse, drug addiction, racism and all-around, mean-spirited thick-headedness. There are a few decent adults, but they tend to be ineffectual. Rowling let Harry off in the end, but don't expect that bounty for "The Casual Vacancy" kid who needed it and earned it here. I kept listening, but I feel as if I need a bath. Good reader.

Couldn't quit listening

What did you love best about The Casual Vacancy?

The best feature of this book was the author's writing style: "shown rather than told". The portraits of the many couples and small groups of people whose conversations carried the story along were so revealing of themselves and the unfolding situation. No long, prosy expostulations were needed and, wisely, few to none were imposed. .

Who was your favorite character and why?

Ordinarily, not finding an appealing character in the first few chapters dooms any book to unfinished oblivion in my library. But Rowling presenting her characters with only the bare minimum of adjectives, allowing the reader to know them almost entirely through their own words, developing a strong picture of a community through those conversations was so fascinating that I found myself reluctant at 3 a.m. this morning to shut down my Kindle and get some sleep.

Which scene was your favorite?

I don't enjoy unpleasantness as entertainment or art, so did not find a single scene I could savor. Reminded of the awful day I squirmed my way through the "realist rooms" at a modern art museum, I was more like mesmerized by the author's ability to communicate economically as in a series of paintings all these unhappy people's numb to miserable interactions. But Tom Hollander's reading was so expressively appropriate it brought Rowling's scenes, ranging from mundane to excruciating, to vivid life. I'm sure the author groomed each of those scenes mercilessly into the work of literary art it is.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The ending, of course, was emotionally draining, effectively devastating. I'll need many hugs to put it behind me. Throughout, Casual Vacancy satisfied the non-judgmental people watcher in me, cringing notwithstanding.

Any additional comments?

Reminded me of reading Shakespeare where everything is revealed through the characters' own words. This book may not be the most beloved ever written, but it will stand as an example of effective, maybe even relentless literary style. I prefer books that leave me with a sense of hope, a redemptive moment to savor. Rowling has created a work of literary art which will grow more important and more admired as time goes on, probably will be required reading for writing and literature classes. I don't like this book of Rowling's, but I respect it just as I respected those really ugly realist paintings hanging in the museum. It's a magnificent piece of work. I'd suggest she take time out to read some Dickens and a few chapters of Winnie the Pooh before she writes her next novel just to recover the hope, humor, and courage that pervaded her previous books. Now that she's said what she needs to say about the hard times that haunted her (may she be healed of her pain), it's time to add some of the qualities that allowed children and adults alike to fall in love with her wizarding world. Adults are not that different from children. They need to be able to find the good in their world and in their books. In conclusion: WOW! What an awesome, incredible, powerful read. Please don't do this to me again.

Those Pagfordians know how to spread the s*#%

I've never read any J.K. Rowling, since I don't really like children's literature (or even young adult), but thought her writing might have something to recommend it since so many youngsters rave about her books. Also, as a mystery/thriller fan, I'm usually bored by mere daily-life stories, so really stepped outside the box on this one. It starts with a death and ends with about the saddest funeral scene ever, which are commonplace enough; but what goes on between those pages was amazing. No murderers, but one serious plan and one guy who thought he himself was one. How did J.K. invent a personality like that? Plenty of intrigue, too, so I didn't really miss the mystery.

Plus, Tom Hollander is such a great reader I hardly noticed him at all, which is how it should be. I looked for more books read by him, but guess he's too busy being an actor to narrate much. Figured he must have something else going on, or there would be hundreds I think.

I don't know how J.K. could create a sequel, but will be looking for more like this.

Grim and Compelling

If you're a Harry Potter fan, then you'll understand when I say that reading "The Casual Vacancy" is like reading a novel set entirely in Little Whinging. If you haven't read the Potter books, suffice it to say that throughout this listen I felt as if I were driving by a tragic car wreck...and just couldn't look away. The characters are real and flawed. The story is dark and raw. The plot twists kept me guessing. I didn't particularly love any of the characters, and yet I was drawn to them, and I wanted to know how things would turn out for them. But there was no relief from the meanness and pettiness of ordinary life in a small town like one finds in the Potter books, no Hagrid or Dumbledore popping in to whisk us away to the world of magic and adventure. Not that I was expecting that. I knew what I was getting myself into. But I couldn't help wishing for such a thing throughout the listen. Still, I resonated with the social commentary, and I found J. K. Rowling's writing to be just as satisfying as I always have. The narration was highly enjoyable. Tom Hollander did a great job of portraying each character with a distinct voice.

Quickly Became One Of My Favorite Books

In a world where books like Fifty Shades of Gray and the Twilight Saga are glorified it is refreshing to actually have some real writing come into the mix. Seamless writing and a wonderful performance by the narrator this book is well worth the listen.

hard to start, but an amazing book

In all honesty it took me a few tries to get through this book. It starts out slow and the author takes her time. The first few times I stopped reading thinking that Ms Rowling was really not reaching me. However, I somehow managed on maybe a 7th try to get through the initial parts, and I cannot recommend this book enough.
The slow start in retrospect does make sense, it sets up the mood for the main point of the book. The banality of the middle class struggle, the author develops characters like no other writer that comes to mind. She makes these regular people interesting through their mundane every day interaction. There is a level of empathy that is generated as the book progresses that is both subtle and staggering.
I think while this is a departure from Harry Potter, it is not a departure for Ms. Rowling. She has a tremendous gift for allegory, for relating her story and characters to the reader. For reaching us where live with things that matter, not statistically or conceptually but where we live without bleeding hearts or over intellectualized gibberish.

interesting but not enthralling

pretty good book with interesting characters. not as engaging as I had hoped. too much foul language.