howls moving castle
- paigenherbooks
- Feb 25, 2022
- 4 min read
Rating: 5/5
Diana Wynne Jones, the author of Howls Moving Castle, deserves an award. This book has instantly become one of my favorites and one I will be defiantly reading to my future children or my future dogs. I loved every single second of reading this. I am a huge fan of the movie by the same title and was so surprised and happy to find out there was a book! Though the book has a different story line and lots of different characters, I loved it even more than the movie! Which is saying something because I ADORE the movie!
I went into the book thinking that it might be geared more towards children but while that may be the case, I think everyone would enjoy reading the adventure of spritely Sophie and the "heartless" Howl! I loved Sophie and Howl in the movie and I love them even more now. Being able to really dive into their characters and get to really know them between the pages was something that I was so so so happy about!
Sophie was so endearing! She was funny and sassy! She was the eldest (relatable) and was always doing everything she could to just stay out of everyones way and make them happy. Then she turns old and bam she decides to just leave. I loved this! Grandma Sophie was a lot more brave than regular Sophie, and it was so refreshing to see her stand up to Howl and give him a piece of her mind every chance that she could!
The Wizard Howell himself! UGH, I know that your not suppose to like Howl, the author even says that, but I love him. He is the one person I would leave my perfect boyfriend for (sorry Adrian). There is just something about him! Not only is he cute! But he's hard to deal with and mysterious. He's sassy and always thinks he's right, but deep down he has a good heart. One that shines through his green slime induced tantrums and his need for perfectly blonde hair. Howl and Sophie interacting was my favorite thing about this book. They were constantly arguing and there was always this tension! I didn't know if I was just inventing it there or if it was actually there but the end confirmed that it was and I was crying tears of joy!
But before I get too ahead of myself, lets talk some of the differences! So the story line of the book is vastly different than the movie, and I honestly prefer the book story more! So Sophie is the eldest out of three girls. Lettie and Martha are her sisters, with Fanny as her step mother. After her father passes, Fanny takes over the family hat shop and decides to send the girls off to do better. Lettie goes to a witch, and Martha goes to a bakery. Our lovely Sophie is going to inherit the hat shop! I really enjoyed getting to know Sophie more and watching her progress and grow as a character. While Sophie is going to visit her sister she runs into the heartless Wizard Howl, who eats young girls hearts! After a blush worthy encounter Sophie goes about her life, until the wicked Witch of the Waste comes and curses her! This leads to the adventure! Sophie, now about the age of 90 goes and waltzes into Howls moving castle. There she meets Micheal, who is not a young red headed boy but instead a grown boy around her age. Micheal was great! I think he fit it a lot better as a teenager around the dynamics of Howl and Calcifer, rather than being a school aged boy.
The story continues as they try to out run the Witch of the Wastes curse on Howl. This is where the differences really started to show. There was no world war two kind of plot line, nor was the Witch of the Waste abducted by some royal henchmen who wanted to control wizards. Instead the kings brother had gone missing and Howl was suppose to be finding him! I honestly enjoyed this so much more than the movie plot line. In the film adaption the Witch of the Waste was horrendously ugly and I hated how she became a part of the crew, I'm sorry haha (not really). I enjoyed how Howl was really spiteful and Sophie was equally sassy. Lots of suitors and random happenings going around! Then we find out Sophie is magical! I loved this! It made so much more sense and it added a new layer onto her character. She's has the ability to speak life into things, which I think is a very beautiful power to have.
Then the ending. The ending made me cry. It was so sweet and heartfelt and was finally giving me the romance I wanted! We figure out that all of Howl's courting and such was for Sophie. The day he bumped into her in the city, he had all that while been trying to find her, and when he did, lift the curse from her. He explains that it was all for her, and UGH it was so cute! Then they are talking after she has changed young again and it was the cutest exchange of words ever! I just felt so warm and cozy and IN LOVE after reading that! I know they aren't the perfect couple, but to me they really really are!
I also like how throughout her story, Jones throws so many metaphors and lessons into that make the book such a good read! From being able to find beauty within a person's personality, to never giving up on family. To what a real relationship looks like, to making friends with the most unlikely of people. I throughly loved this book from beginning and end and I honestly know that it has earned it's spot on my comfort reads list. Sophie and Howl will always welcome me back with open arms, with Micheal working on a new spell, and Calcifer begrudgingly making me eggs and toast.
I just loved it!
I highly suggest it to anyone and everyone!!
and as always my friends, happy reading :)
xoxo,
paige <3
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