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A review by dullshimmer
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
5.0
Having heard great things about Studio Ghibli, I began to watch many of their films. One such film was Howl's Moving Castle. As my wife and I were watching that movie, I happened to notice one important bit in the credits, it was based off of a book by Diana Wynne Jones by the same name.
Due to the fact that most books are better than the movies, with only a few exceptions in my mind, I put this on my list of books to eventually check out and here we are. For those of you who have followed the same path that I have, I must warn you the book is very very different than the movie.
Sure there are basic parts that are the same, but much of the general plot is very different. The movie has more of an overarching war narrative that just doesn't really exist in the book. What both do have in common is a large focus on the two main characters Sophie and Howl. Instead of the war background of the movie, the main threat here is represented by the Witch of the Waste who has cursed both Sophie and Howl. Which I feel helps bolster that focus on their character arcs.
I just really enjoyed this story. It's a whimsical tale full of twists and turns and a good dose of humor. An unexpected bonus is that this is part of a series of books that Diana Wynne Jones wrote. While I understand that the series is only loosely connected, I'm still very much looking forward to continuing the series and see what other kinds of magical mayhem and whimsy can be found in those tales.
Due to the fact that most books are better than the movies, with only a few exceptions in my mind, I put this on my list of books to eventually check out and here we are. For those of you who have followed the same path that I have, I must warn you the book is very very different than the movie.
Sure there are basic parts that are the same, but much of the general plot is very different. The movie has more of an overarching war narrative that just doesn't really exist in the book. What both do have in common is a large focus on the two main characters Sophie and Howl. Instead of the war background of the movie, the main threat here is represented by the Witch of the Waste who has cursed both Sophie and Howl. Which I feel helps bolster that focus on their character arcs.
I just really enjoyed this story. It's a whimsical tale full of twists and turns and a good dose of humor. An unexpected bonus is that this is part of a series of books that Diana Wynne Jones wrote. While I understand that the series is only loosely connected, I'm still very much looking forward to continuing the series and see what other kinds of magical mayhem and whimsy can be found in those tales.