I am a huge Harry Potter fan, so I approached J.K. Rowling’s
first non-Harry novel with some trepidation. Though I greatly admired her
talent in spinning a complex story, I was unsure of how this talent would
translate to an adult novel, rather than a fantasy series.
I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. Rowling’s
novel The Casual Vacancy was my first
book I read after the HSC and, when I finished it, I wished I hadn’t.
The Casual Vacancy
is about the town of Pagford, and the lead-up to the establishment of a new
town council member after the death of the previous member. Rowling establishes
at least a dozen key characters, which can make the book very confusing at
times, however she also brings the skills from Harry Potter that allowed her to
create an entire universe to effectively do the same thing, though on a much
smaller level. Pagford’s cast of characters is well-developed, and their
complex struggles and relationships revealed gradually as the book progresses.
The main strength of the novel is this characterisation.
While Harry Potter was a very plot-driven series, The Casual Vacancy is absolutely character-driven, and
fascinatingly so. Rowling explores not only small-town dynamics, but also the
undeniable truth that all people are inherently different. No two characters
are the same, from uncouth, passionate Krystal to troubled, isolated Gavin, and
many others. Other strengths lie in the novel’s timely relevance – the internet
is a key feature of the novel, especially social networking – and the clever
divisions of the book into sections. Rowling’s characteristic third-person
limited style appears as in Harry Potter, but this time she narrows in on
separate characters for a section at a time, before switching. This allows for
an in-depth development of each character.
The book’s main weakness is its length, and its complexity. Though in general
it is a fairly easy read, it does require a lot of concentration and thinking
to keep track of all the plots. However, I still highly recommend this novel
and I can reassure Harry Potter fans that their idol is still a great writer,
even when stripped of her boy-wizard.
The fact that there wasn't a speck of Rowling's style in the dark-humored literary volume dearly anticipated by many, suggests one of having done an exceptional job at being an author. And to know that the fiction itself didn't disappoint; being put mildly, I absolutely adored every instance, character, scene and the final outcome gathered. Hats off to you, Jo.
ReplyDeleteMy first badge of gratitude: our dear Flipkart. I received my order ON the date of release, which was more than I'd dared to expect.
Well, it might not be easy to lay down precise words to summarize all of which one can garner out of the terrific and colossal novel; ranged with a deep scrutiny into the life of not one but many characters. There's a deep insight into their lives and minds, which is an incredulous achievement in itself. To portray that many people with unperturbed justice....
And to top all of that, you know you've fallen in love with it WHILST reading, when you're dreading that it'll after all, come to an end.
One can only serve it with much deserved credit by reading it with absolute cognition. I can't begin to spell out how much I've been inspired and in so many ways. It's not Harry Potter, it's an entirely different bittersweet piece of art. Just read it.
Meerabai, such good insights!! I think you're very right about the fact that this was so different to HP demonstrating that Rowling is such a great author.
Delete