Small Towns Behaving Badly

The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I think that the most surprising thing about this novel is how good it is; well-written and brilliantly paced with a large and interesting cast of characters. Most of these characters are fairly repulsive and maybe because of this there is no real protagonist--no single character we follow from start to finish and with whom we identify. The real main character is the town of Pagford itself: a bubbling, seething miasma of emotions, jealousies, and petty politics. The Casual Vacancy is, in fact, a literary novel of high quality and almost microscopic realism.

I have heard Jim Dale--who read the Harry Potter Books for their audio release--described as having the ability to make over 200 characters sound different. After reading The Casual Vacancy, I am not sure that he deserves the bulk of the credit. Rowling is simply superb at dialog and dialect. It is what her characters say and how they say it that distinguishes their individuality rather than the sound of their voices.

It is a longish book--over 500 pages--but there are many characters and lots of things happening--both on and beneath the surface. Outwardly, it is the story of a small English town that loses one of the Town Council members to a stroke, and the machinations that are involved in replacing him. At stake is a section of the town with "at risk" residents and a drug treatment center that serves them. In reality, though, the stakes are much higher: friendships, marriages, even families. The story builds and builds and builds, and as it does, much is destroyed.

A solid 4 here. Not a major literary classic, but one good enough to recommend to everyone. It is a book that will put J. K. Rowling on a new literary map, with much territory still to explore.



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