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A story of how individual lives overlap and intertwine to create something incredibly complex. Like a row of dominoes; one slight movement and they each tumble, one into another into another. Rowling has created a world as real as any other, populated by a unique, and yet still ordinary, set of individuals, to form the collective whole of the town of Pagford.
Do not read this book looking for Hogwarts. The lives of the people of Pagford are not touched by magic. Do not read this book expecting t ...more
Do not read this book looking for Hogwarts. The lives of the people of Pagford are not touched by magic. Do not read this book expecting t ...more

This is a character-driven book, rather than a plot-driven one. If you are looking for the grand adventure of Harry Potter, step away, as you will be disappointed.
The Casual Vacancy details the petty, ordinary lives of the citizens of Pagford and the fallout from the death of one man, Barry Fairbrother, who had been influential in their lives (whether they liked him or not). Overall, none of the characters are are all that likable, though I did come to care for several of them, despite their fl ...more
The Casual Vacancy details the petty, ordinary lives of the citizens of Pagford and the fallout from the death of one man, Barry Fairbrother, who had been influential in their lives (whether they liked him or not). Overall, none of the characters are are all that likable, though I did come to care for several of them, despite their fl ...more

I read this on my Kindle, and if I'd read it in book form, it probably would have been a solid three. As it is, it's a 2.5.
First, as a warning, this is not at all written for the same audience as the HP books are. If you picked it up thinking that, go find something else. In my experience, this reminded me more of the Katie Fforde and Maeve Binchy books I've read: small town, big cast, and a regular everyday event that affects everyone.
At the beginning of the book, I had a hard time keeping any ...more
First, as a warning, this is not at all written for the same audience as the HP books are. If you picked it up thinking that, go find something else. In my experience, this reminded me more of the Katie Fforde and Maeve Binchy books I've read: small town, big cast, and a regular everyday event that affects everyone.
At the beginning of the book, I had a hard time keeping any ...more

Sadly, this one is demoted to a 3. While the characters are amazingly multifaceted and very individualistic, any book that I spend the middle half, maybe third of chanting "It's by Jk Rowling, It's by JK Rowling, It's by JK Rowling" to keep myself going and invested and reading has some problems.
That aside it's an interesting enough Fiction books, and I'm still baffled by how THAT CHAPTER (you know which one I'm talking about if you've read it) is suddenly SuperFast, and SuperJamPackedWithAction ...more
That aside it's an interesting enough Fiction books, and I'm still baffled by how THAT CHAPTER (you know which one I'm talking about if you've read it) is suddenly SuperFast, and SuperJamPackedWithAction ...more

Oct 01, 2012
Lisa
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