THE CASUAL VACANCY by JK Rowling

Ever since I was a little girl, I have been a fan of JK Rowling and the Harry Potter Series. Of course, when I heard that she was about to publish a new book, I was very excited. It interested me even more to hear that the book would have nothing to do with magic. 

With that excitement, however, came the realization that I would have to put all thoughts of the magical world of Harry Potter out of my head while reading this book. The Casual Vacancy was about a totally new set of people and a completely different place. A normal place filled with normal people.

Or so I thought. 

The Casual Vacancy is set in the small and suburban town of Pagford. Despite the seemingly sleepy appearance of this West Country town, Pagford's residents are all at silent, personal wars with each other. The two main wars in the town are of a political nature. The first war, a long-fought battle of divided local sentiment, is being fought over the possibility of disassociating the town from "The  Fields", a nearby local estate which is mostly filled with what the old Pagford families refer to as "good-for-nothings". The second war is being fought over a seat on the Parish Council, the town's local government, which was left empty after the death of Parish Councillor Barry Fairbrother, a well-loved member of the community who championed the cause to keep the the Fields with Pagford. 

The set of characters present in JK Rowling's newest book range from reckless young children to restless adults. These characters, like the depressed and socially awkward Sukhvinder Jawanda, the idealistic newcomer Kay Bawden, the  self-absorbed leader of the Parish Council Howard Mollison whose head size is matched only be that of his stomach, and the outspoken and misunderstood Krystal Weedon, are the crowning glory of the novel. All of JK Rowling's characters are extremely well-developed, vividly distinct, wonderfully human, and deliciously flawed. I found myself either relating very well to the feelings of many characters or thinking that I knew someone who was exactly like the characters being described. 

The book does not have a fast-paced, action-packed plot. Rather, it has a character-driven plot made up of interconnected story arcs which concern the different residents of the town. This makes the book's plot as a whole progress slowly, yet it highlights how the characters and their decisions affect one another, whether they intended to or not. I have two main comments regarding the plot: (1) there were chapters which I felt were not needed to further the story along, but were very useful in developing the characters and (2) not all of the noticeable conflicts were resolved in the end. 

I loved JK Rowling's writing style: simple and unpretentious yet witty and flowing. The novel itself is intelligent and insightful, talking about issues like politics, drugs, sex, poverty, prostitution, and social class, without being preachy. 

Overall, I thought it was a good book. It had its flaws here and there, mostly with the plot, but it was still an enjoyable read. You will only enjoy the book, however, if you do not compare it to Harry Potter. Under a completely different genre, The Casual Vacancy is its own book.