Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Howl's Moving Castle
Book Review: A Magical Tale
Summary: 5 Stars
I have read Howls Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. It is the best book I've ever read in my entire life. It is a courageous adventure with Howl the wizard who slithers out of things. Calcifer the fire demon who was a shooting star. Sophie who was a young 17 year old but is now a 90 year old woman trying to brake a contact with the fire demon and Howl. Michael who is Howl's apprentice has fallen in love with Sophie's sister. In this tale they are all working together to help each other out. Diana Wynne Jones wrote great books and most of them are on my favorite list of books.Book Review: A Must-Read
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is absolutely fantastic! I read it after feeling depressed about having finished all of the author's Chrestomanci series, and it cheered me up. Sophie Hatter worked in her parents' hat shop in the small town of Market Chipping in a fantasy world. Her whole life revolved around her fears of the notorious Witch of the Waste and Wizard Howl, and her fear of failing because she is the eldest of three sisters. Then, the Witch of the Waste came into the hat shop and turned Sophie from a pretty young woman into an old lady. Feeling she had nothing to lose, Sophie goes to work as a cleaning lady in Howl's moving castle. There she meets Howl's apprentice, Michael, and his fire demon, Calcifer. Calcifer realizes that Sophie is under a spell, and offers to break it if she could break his contract with Howl. Sophie soon discovers that Howl, although vain and selfish, isn't evil, and is actually fighting against the Witch of the Waste. It all rolls together to make a wildly entertaining story. The plot, which basically defies classic fairy tale motif, is one of the most original, fresh stories out there. The characters are intelligent, funny, and uniquely memorable. Anybody who hasn't read this book yet should. It's highly reccomended for the advanced young reader craving a story that's more on their level of thinking and wondering than other books.Book Review: A charming tale of fantasy and adventure
Summary: 4 Stars
Like many others I first watched the animated movie of Howl's Moving Castle and was immediately inspired to seek out the book. Although the book is a bit different from the movie I did like both of them equally well.
Howl's Moving Castle is the story of Sophie the eldest daughter of a Hatter. Being the eldest, Sophie knows that she has no chance of seeking out any fortune for herself outside of inheriting the hat shop. One day the wicked Witch of the Waste comes into her shop and curses Sophie to become an old maid. Sophie seemingly accepts this fate rather well and decides to seek out her fortune although she believes it to be a doomed endeavor because of her oldest sibling status. Soon Sophie finds herself the cleaning lady of the infamous Wizard Howl in his moving castle. Sophie finds herself making a bargin with the fire demon who moves the castle for Howl, break the demon's contract with Howl, and the demon will remove the Witch of the Waste's curse upon Sophie. Thus Sophie embarks upon a series of adventures which reveal that many of her preconceived notions about the people around her may not be entirely accurate, including those about Wizard Howl and Sophie herself.
I found Howl's moving castle to be a delightful read. I am glad to have seen the movie first for although the movie's storyline was different from the book, the similarities were enough that I was able to follow the book with less confusion than I may have otherwise.
I believe that anyone who has enjoyed The Wizard of Oz stories, or anyone who enjoys fantasy in general, should definately read Howl's Moving Castle.
Book Review: A charming, wry fairy tale
Summary: 4 Stars
As satisfying as a fairy tale, but with a bit of an ironic take. The romance is satisfying yet deepened with the wisdom of an older character's insight.Book Review: A classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Exciting, funny, and poignant in turn, this book is consistently charming - and there's never a dull moment.Sophie Hatter lives in the town of Market Chipping. She is the eldest of three daughters, and feels that this circumstance is certain to result in a boring life for her. How wrong she was! A curse is placed on Sophie by the Witch of the Waste, changing her from an eighteen year old girl to an old lady. Feeling that she has nothing to lose now, Sophie slips away from her hat shop and heads off to seek her fortune. Outside Market Chipping, she encounters a dog, a scarecrow . . . and Howl's castle. Howl is a mysterious wizard whose castle drifts about the hills outside the town. He is much feared by the peeople of Market Chipping, not least because he is said to devour the hearts of young girls. Sophie enters the castle and meets Howl's fire demon, Calcifer. Calcifer recognises that Sophie is under a curse, and offers to lift it from her if she finds a way to break his contract with Howl. Sophie agrees, and stays in the castle as Howl's cleaning lady so she can hunt for the information she needs. Then Sophie meets Howl . . . and gets drawn deeper and deeper into the lives of Howl, Calcifer, and Michael, Howl's apprentice. Howl, too, is under a curse from the Witch of the Waste. Can he avoid the curse? And what will happen to him and the kingdom of Ingary if the Witch cannot be defeated?
The characters in Howl's Moving Castle are wonderful. Howl is vain and cowardly, a slob and a "slitherer-outer" - but as the book continues, we learn that he is far from being the evil wizard he would like everyone to believe he is. Much of the poignancy of the story comes from learning just why Howl is the way he is. Sophie is brave, determined, and kind, but capable of being very fierce. She is far from stupid, but she is rather naive at times. Her realisation of the freedom that being an old lady offers her is delightful. The lesser characters are all distinctive, and very enjoyable, particularly Calcifer.
I found the setting very well done, with enough detail to allow you to imagine it all satisfactorily, but never getting bogged down in description. The plot is a lot of fun, though it may be too subtle in some parts for younger readers to appreciate fully. It is highly imaginative, and moves along at a good pace. It is far from predictable, too; but by the end, everything is resolved satisfactorily. The problems of Sophie and her sisters, Howl, Calcifer, the dog, the scarecrow, and the kingdom, are all solved, and I felt really happy for the characters that they were.
If this book is not already considered a classic, it deserves to be - and it's just as much fun for adults as it is for children.