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

interesting but not enthralling

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

Absolutely spellbound

Decided to only listen while at the gym and cooking. I have spent a minimum of one hour at the gym every day and made a home cooked meal every night. I have never dreaded the ending of a book so much. The story is lavish and wry and the narration is excellent.

Compelling

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I highly recommend this book. It can be difficult at times, as the characters are somewhat raw, and sometimes thoroughly unlikable. However, the story is compelling and drags you along even if you want to give up on the lives and petty concerns of the inhabitants of this small town. By the time I reached the end, I was sorry it was over, and sorry that I would not be traveling farther with the inhabitants, about whom now I want to know more. It was beautifully read.

It's Been a While

It's been a while but this made quite the impression on me. It was her first book I read after the Harry Potter series and it was obviously much different. What impressed me was that with so many characters, I felt each were very well developed and unique just like life. Years later I have read the Cormoran Strike series. While I enjoy them, one of my major complaints is that the two main characters are nowhere near as believable as this novel with it's influx of main characters. Very impressed and am looking forward to rereading it.

Loved this story!

JK Rowling is a great story teller. Love the characters! Loved Tom Hollanders narration!!
Will think about the characters for weeks to come.

Unexpected - and realistic

Narration was excellent, but the story was not what I expected at all. It is not a bad story or poorly written; quite the opposite. But it just felt like Rowling had been hanging on to all her experiences prior to the HP years, desperate tell that story, with all the swearing, mindlessness, poverty, bigotry and depravity all the while she was writing about Hogwarts, and they all gushed out in one long torrent.
It was a bit like I imagine a modern day Grange Hill might be.
It was thought provoking for sure, and of course, very well written. And very, very realistic. These people could just have easily inhabited inner London, or any of the council estates in the Home Counties, as in a West Country village like Pagford. But aimed at an adult audience, as opposed to the young adults in the Hogwarts audience? Not sure about that. If it is purely social commentary, it does very well. As a story of modern day, mindlessness that can so poison modern-day life in so many towns and cities it is spot on. And she doesn't pull any punches. But it seems like it was written with the same audience in mind, those who grew up reading HP, as well as baby-boomers and the intervening generations, as a cautionary tale. Certainly many of the characters behaved mindlessly, selfishly, living their meaningless lives without any real hope or aspirations. None of the characters, with the exception of Krystal, behaved like grown ups, like adults, which is a little ironic given her teenaged years.
With that all said, it is certainly well worth the time to listen, though it takes some time to get into it, and it won't be to everyone's liking. Though that is the point, I am sure. It grows on you, like a (hog)wart. And be ready for the warts and all depiction of modern-day life in small-town England, and don't expect anything of the class of Cormoran Strike or the magic of Harry Potter.

Regarding the swearing. I am an Englishwoman who has lived in Kansas for 18 years, but I have to say that I found the language and bleakness to be very realistic. Many Americans have a rather rose-coloured view of the English, that we are all so very polite, speaking the Queen's English, that the villages with their thatched roofs are all so quaint, just like the people. Well, guess what: quaint we ain't. We swear. A lot. A very lot. Not everyone, of course, but the amount of swearing and the words used, by the characters who used them, are realistic, almost painfully so, even twenty years ago. So the swearing in the book, while not particularly entertaining (but I don't think this was intended to be light-hearted entertainment, more social commentary), are not gratuitous, but gritty and very true to life.

Give it a whirl. it may taste strange to begin with, but as you become acclimatized, you'll begin to like it.

An outstanding read. Hard to stop once started.

Excellent character development and compelling interpersonal relationships move the story forward along multiple lines to converge at an unexpected and emotional finish. I felt such deep empathy for some characters and bordered on hatred of others. Together they create a most excellent and entertaining story. Highly recommended. If you enjoy this I also recommend the writings under her alter ego, Robert Galbraith. The depth and breadth of Jo Rowling's work simply astounds.

Prefer JKR's Petty, small-minded folk to Franzen's

Would you listen to The Casual Vacancy again? Why?

I thoroughly enjoyed my listen, but I don't listen to any audiobooks a second time. I would definitely listen to other audiobooks narrated by Tom Hollander. He was outstanding.

What did you like best about this story?

The way she showed the interconnections between people, the clever dialogue, the realistic portrayal of small town politics and gossip, and the keen insight into the various personality types that lurk behind the facades people erect to fool their family, friends, and neighbors.

Which scene was your favorite?

Andrew's feelings anytime he was around Gaia were finely-drawn. Nobody understands writing about teenagers better than JKR.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

All politics is local.

Any additional comments?

Fantastic writing. If someone like Eggers or Franzen had written this novel, it would be the toast of literary critics everywhere. The backlash against Rowling for her success and for not writing another Harry Potter--I can't understand if it is jealousy or misogyny. Probably a little of both.

Surprisingly Good

Slow start but a great story. Became teary eyed at the end. I most enjoyed how the characters lives intertwined.

Very Positive Experience

After reading a good few reviews of The Casual Vacancy on Audible I was somewhat hesitant to choose this novel as my first ever audio book. I am extremely happy that I did, however!

For those who prefer very plot-heavy texts (or who are expecting Harry Potter), The Casual Vacancy might disappoint. For those who appreciate beautifully close attention to detail and an in-depth look into characters' psyches, I would recommend this book. I never once found myself bored or felt that the action moved too slowly. Rowling's frequent shifts from one character's point of view to another held my interest and kept the story flowing.

I found myself quite attached to the characters, in a way that I might not have been if I had simply read the book (I think I would have read some of the characters to be more harsh and abrasive)- this speaks to the skills of narrator Tom Hollander. For this reason I would highly recommend getting the audio version of this book rather than the print.