The Casual Vacancy

The Casual Vacancy
by J.K. Rowling
Coletha Albert‘s review Oct 03, 2021  · 
It was amazing!
This title is nothing like Harry Potter. The main character is a girl and she would love to live in Harry’s cupboard and forced to wear Dudley’s old clothes. If she was sorted into a house at Hogwarts, I don’t think it would be possible.

None of the Hogwarts pupils ever endured what this title character endured. Per Wikipedia:

Krystal Weedon, a resident of ‘The Fields’ who dates Fats Wall. She suffers a traumatic childhood, raised by her heroin-addicted mother, frequently acting as sole caregiver to younger brother Robbie, and suffering rape at the hands of her mother’s drug dealer.

This is not a child’s book. Hopefully, no teacher will be giving this title as a reading assignment to her English students.

By comparison, I read a book about drugs where the drug addicts saw themselves in hell and growing additional heads, etc… The Casual Vacancy does not trip down that rabbit hole but it’s still quite a brutal tale without a “happy ending”. I had hoped for a series to perhaps follow the mother’s story after losing her children, etc. Maybe a book that would follow the other characters…there are many.

I had to read this book twice then get the audio book just to understand it all. I really think The Casual Vacancy WAS actually 8 books abridged into one. Sweet Jesus! It is dense and there are no filler.

Good bless J.K. Rowling, I know it ain’t easy any slice of life you are served. I wish her well!