THE
CASUAL VACANCY
by
J.K.
ROWLING
THE
BLURB:
In the idyllic small town
of Pagford, a councillor dies and leaves a “casual vacancy”- an
empty seat on the parish council.
In the election for his
successor that follows, it is clear that behind the pretty surface
this is a town at war. Rich at war with poor, wives at war with
husbands, teachers at war with pupils... Pagford is not what it
first seems.
From the smallest of
elections in a sleepy British town, J.K. Rowling conjures an epic,
emotional and completely readable tale that has had millions of
readers hooked.
THE
REALITY:
This was the first J. K.
Rowling book I have ever read. Had I been a child when the Harry
Potter series was released, then I would have devoured them as they
would have been right up my street. But I was an adult and, by that
stage, not in the least bit interested in fantasy or sci-fi.
Incidentally, I've not seen any of the Harry Potter films, nor the
television adaption of The Casual Vacancy. This
looked to be quite a tome, and I'm a big fan of a tome/ saga. So
therefore I was quite surprised (given that and the author's
credentials) to find that I couldn't finish this book. I didn't even
get half way, and what I did read was a struggle to enjoy.
I'll
start with the positives... The characters are varied in nature,
interesting and well-described. They are also universally
unlikeable, but I don't hold that against a novel- after all, I love
Wuthering Heights, and
just about every person in that classic is despicable. The sections
were also relatively short, so the book was well-paced, and shifted
along nicely (despite the subject matter dragging, if that makes
sense.) But... The storyline did not enthral me. I mean, the
thread of a councillor dying and having to be re-elected seems just
so banal and pointless. It's hardly like a whodunnit, when the race
is on to find the perpetrator, or a rags-to-riches story where you're
interested in finding out if the main character succeeds. Also, the
location of Pagford did not charm me in the least (maybe that's
because I'm not familiar with village life?) What is it with these
“famous” novels and me? Another book I had to put down was Zadie
Smith's acclaimed White Teeth. And
I think this has offered me the solution to my lack of interest- both
books were just too gritty and real. When I read a novel I seek
escapism- if I want real life then all I have to do is open my front
door.
A
bookseller said to me, when I mentioned that I was struggling to get
through this book, “There are millions of great novels out there-
if you're not enjoying the one you're reading, then just put it down
and pick up something else.” So that's exactly what I did. Maybe
one of you can give me your opinion of this book?
