Title and Author: Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Plot Overview: Sophie Hatter knows she’s not cut out to be a heroine or have adventures: in the fairy-tale land of Ingary, the eldest sister is never destined for greatness. Instead, she is resigned to inherit her father and stepmother’s provincial hatshop while he sisters are apprenticed to sorceresses and popular merchants. When the Witch of the Waste, who has been threatening Ingary, invades the shop and curses Sophie into an old crone, Sophie must flee town. She takes refuge in the terrifying moving castle of the Wizard Howl, hoping he can remove her curse or that she can make a deal with his demon Calcifer to do so. As she lives in the castle, Sophie learns about who Howl and Calcifer really are—and that she and her siblings might be more magically entangled than she originally suspects.

Critique: While the premise might seem like a massive fairy tale cliché—unlikely, snarky heroine; mysterious, brooding wizard—Howl’s Moving Castle manages to turn all those on their head. Howl is a drama queen. Sophie invades the castle and appoints herself Howl’s cleaning lady with terrifying ferociousness. The final sorcerer’s battle is intense without being over-the-top. At the same time, the magical world of Ingary and the Moving Castle is beautifully described, with a magical system that’s complex and enchanting (no pun intended).

I’d argue that one of the most compelling aspects of the book is that it goes into detail and immerses the reader in the world, but the pacing can be slow. There’s not much of an overarching plot; instead, most of the conflicts are represented in episodic format. If you’re not a fan of world- and character-based stories, you might be disappointed.

Cover Critique: The cover is a little bit simple, but it definitely shows the “aesthetic” of the world: soft fairy tales, reimagined. It’s a picture of the titular castle, with Sophie attempting to enter.

Additional Comments: There is a very good Howl’s Moving Castle by Studio Ghibli (Hayao Miyazaki). It really captures the feel of the book and of Ingary, and the animation is beautiful! The plot is definitely cut down a lot from the novel, though, and in my opinion is not as well developed or explained. If you like the aesthetic of Ghibli movies, you’d probably enjoy Diana Wynne Jones’ book. If you’ve already seen the movie adaptation (as I did), it’s extremely satisfying to read the book, understand the explanations, and find the differences. And once you’ve read the book, it can be relaxing to watch Miyazaki’s (beautiful!) take on it.