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The Casual Vacancy is worlds away from Hogwarts and Harry Potter. It's a dark comedy of manners, set in a small town in the aftermath of a local politician's death. Rowling says her experiences with poverty informed her gritty portrayal of English life.

It's been more than a month since the government began accepting requests for its Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, a new policy for young people brought to the U.S. illegally as children. It means that for two years they can avoid deportation and get a work permit.

Months after his sudden removal from his post in Afghanistan, Army Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair has been charged with multiple violations of the military's Uniform Code, ranging from wrongful sexual conduct to several rules violations.

Under a preliminary settlement filed in district court, the sum includes $730,000 to the named plaintiffs and others who were arrested or pepper-sprayed on Nov. 18, 2011, at the University of California, Davis. A federal judge must approve the agreement, and parties have the right to appeal.

Frustration over the NFL's not-ready-for-primetime replacement referees has inspired web designer Erik Johnson to present Google's search page as if it were run by replacement engineers and coders. The result looks a lot like the standard Google page, but it doesn't do exactly what you'd expect.

A battle is under way in Iowa over whether a state Supreme Court justice can keep his job. Critics have launched an all-out campaign to throw him off the bench because of his ruling three years ago clearing the way for same-sex marriage. The judge's supporters are fighting back, in a fashion.

The principal chief of the Cherokee Nation is calling on Massachusetts senator to apologize for a video that allegedly shows members of his staff imitating "stereotypical 'war whoops chants.'" Brown has said he doesn't condone the actions.

SoloPower is on its way to receiving a loan of $197 million from the Energy Department — the same kind given to now-bankrupt Solyndra. But SoloPower has to meet a number of benchmarks before tapping into the fund, and one step toward that is the opening of a new plant in Oregon on Thursday.

Critics say the ads, created by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, are condescending and could have a negative effect on people who are overweight. But the company stands by the ads, saying the obesity problem is so big, they needed to take dramatic action.

Even as Pennsylvania's controversial new voter ID law faces court challenges, nonprofits and other groups are busy helping the state's voters, especially the poor and elderly, weave their way through a sometimes complicated bureaucratic process to get a photo ID before the election.