booksandcats
Written on Mar 9, 2022
Now an animated movie from Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki, the oscar-winning director of Spirited Away
A new look for one of Diana Wynne Jones’ funniest and most popular novels.
In the land of Ingary, where seven league boots and cloaks of invisibility do exist, Sophie Hatter catches the unwelcome attention of the Witch of the Waste and is put under a spell.
Deciding she has nothing more to lose, she makes her way to the moving castle that hovers on the hills above Market Chipping. But the castle belongs to the dreaded Wizard Howl whose appetite, they say, is satisfied only by the souls of young girls… There she meets Michael, Howl’s apprentice, and Calcifer the Fire Demon, with whom she agrees a pact.
But Sophie isn’t the only one under a curse – her entanglements with Calcifer, Howl, and Michael, and her quest to break her curse is both gripping – and howlingly funny!
- ISBN13 9780006755234
- Publish Date 2 October 2000 (first published 14 April 1986)
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 3 April 2009
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher HarperCollins Publishers Inc
- Imprint HarperCollins
- Format Paperback
- Pages 304
- Language English
- URL http://harpercollins.co.uk
Reviews
funstm
Written on Mar 2, 2021
Along the way she meets the Wizard Howl, his apprentice Michael and his fire demon, Calcifer who live in a Moving Castle and are on the run from the Witch of the Waste as well. When Sophie sees the state of their castle, she takes on the position of housekeeper, all the while looking for how she can break the spell.
I really liked Sophie. She was hilarious. She was cranky and fierce and it was perfect. I loved the way she bosses Michael and Howl and Calcifer around. I enjoyed the magical elements of the story, the seven league boots and the idea of a whole moving castle that has one door that opens to many different places. Howl was vain and petty and spoiled but he was also sweet and kind at times and it was hilarious watching him try to outstubborn Sophie. I liked the friendship between them but I can't really say I understood the romance between them. Or the perception of the romance between them by everyone else. It wasn't particularly romantic in my opinion.
I liked Calcifer and how he kept getting bullied into laying down his head so Sophie or Howl could cook over him. And I liked all the other characters Michael and Martha and Lettie.
An enjoyable fantasy story with imaginative world-building and an interesting cast of characters. 4 stars.
nannah
Written on Aug 26, 2020
Ah, good ol’ Howl’s Moving Castle. To be honest, I haven’t read this for a long time, and I remember feeling lukewarm about it then, but I’m glad I had time for a re-read. Some stories age well.
Book content warnings:
- decapitation (not shown on page)
Representation:
-
Though adventure and destiny are for the youngest children, Sophie Hatter -- eldest of three -- gets thrown into an adventure involving the dreadful Witch of the Waste and the evil, heart-eating Wizard Howl.
After being cursed to become an old woman by the Witch, Sophie seeks Howl’s help, and discovers through his fire demon that Howl himself is cursed by the Witch and has a contract he needs to break. Sophie makes a deal: she’ll break his contract, and the fire demon, Calcifer, will break her curse. As Sophie stays on in the castle and prepares to face the Witch, she (unfortunately) finds that there’s more to Howl than she first thought and is perhaps growing fond of him.
Ah, Howl’s Moving Castle, you have nearly everything: brilliant and complex characters, romance, the element of time running out, the found family trope, and a wonderful setting. Okay, so it might be my love for the Ghibli movie talking as well, but the book does stand on its own (I really tried to read as objectively as possible). But it’s really hard to ignore the book’s charm; it reads like a fairytale almost, with a fun modern wit.
The one thing I’d mention is that right after the climax, the book ends. There’s no breathing room. I know it’s deliberate (Howl and Sophie unwilling to look away as the other characters scramble for their attention) , and it creates a very sort of satisfying finality, but I don’t get a chance to settle before it’s all over. I also wish there were more from Howl -- we get everything from Sophie’s PoV: when she fell in love with Howl, when she started seeing everyone in the castle as her family, etc., but you only get teeny tiny glimpses of what Howl’s feeling through other characters’ dialogue. The dialogue at the end could’ve been where things could clear up, but it went by so fast!
This is a very personal opinion though! Howl is a character of mystery anyway, so other people could love this about him (when he truly fell in love re: the tiny glimpses, etc.). Who knows?
As for true flaws I really can’t find much. It’s just a really well-written and well-constructed book. There’s a reason it’s such a loved classic. Now that I have a better appreciation for it, I’ll definitely be going back to read it again and again.
thepunktheory
Written on Apr 18, 2020
It is so much how much alike yet completely different book and movie are! I usually being with my thoughts on the novel but since I am more familiar with the film and only picked the book after revisiting that for the umpteenth time, today I'll start with the adaptation.
If you followed my Studio Ghibli review series last year (to be continued this April), you already know that I love the film and consider it to be among the Studio's top productions. Let's recap real quick why that is the case.
First of all, the movie looks simply stunning. It's not just a story about magic, the pictures are so well made, magic is almost dripping from your screen. The colors, the details, everything is vibrant and enchanting.
On top of that, we get quirky and funny characters. Some with a penchant for sarcasm, others who are a bit overdramatic. Nevertheless, I love all of them and wouldn't change a single thing about them.
While this may not be Studio Ghibli's best production story-wise, there is so much going for it that you are more than inclined to forgive little imperfections.
So, the book. I had never been aware that this movie was based on a novel. However, while browsing Tumblr recently somebody pointed out not only the book but some specific details about Howl that made me drop everything and pick the book up straight away: apparently androgynous, lithe movie Howl is originally a Welsh rugby player.
It soon turned out that this is not the only difference. Howl's past (and future) pan out rather differently in the book. And let me tell you, that's a rather interesting story! Also, while in the movie a big war is basically the backdrop of the story, it is barely mentioned in the book. Moreover, Howl has no involvement in it. So, you can already tell that this has to pan out rather differently.
While the film chose to focus on magic all the way, the novel brings in some more real-world elements, especially in connection with Howl. I'm trying hard not to include any spoilers, so forgive me for being vague here.
However, the two takes on the story being so different is not a bad thing!
I found both versions to be intricate, interesting, exciting, and simply wonderful. As I mentioned before, it amazed me that although starting from a similar point and sharing the same characters as well as a big chunk of the story, book and movie went in such unique directions that both worked extremely well.
Each of the takes on the story is enjoyable and wouldn't change a thing about them. They have different foci but it's beneficial to the respective roads taken.
Nessa Luna
Written on Jul 29, 2018
Briana @ Pages Unbound
Written on Jul 25, 2015
nitzan_schwarz
Written on Jan 1, 2012
Read on 2012, didn't have a Goodreads account yet so I don't know the exact date
This is one of my favorite books of all time. I saw the movie, years ago, and I liked it. By some turn of events, I found out last year that it was based on a book—so how could I resist the temptation of reading it?
I couldn't put the book down. In one day, I gulped the entire story, moving on to the next installment of the series. I must say that the book and the movie are so entirely different that I treat them as two separate things which happen to have the same name. I mean, aside for Howl, Sophie and Calcifer, everything else is different. Even Sophie's family situation and the villains are different! But this just might be as well, because it allows me to love both the movie and the book, though the book is better (in my opinion, anyways).
SO
I fell in love with the characters (C'mon, Howl's sexy and you know it) and all their flaws to the point of forcing anyone who would listen to read the book (I literally shoved it into their hands and didn't accept no for an answer). The world Diana Wynne created is incredible. The fact it was entangled with our own world just added to its beauty.
Now, let me tell you, I'm a sucker for romance. Honestly. So I was very surprised at how much I loved the romance in this book, which is anything but traditional and obvious. It was there, don't get me wrong, but most of the time it was subtle and behind the scenes. There weren't any big love scenes. But that just added to the revelation at the end. You don't understand just how much Howl loves Sophie until the last chapters, and suddenly - everything makes sense. Every action he took, every time you were pissed with him... you suddenly understand it was all for her. All for Sophie. It was amazing, for me. When the two finally profess their love for one another, it isn't done in a normal way either, and yet it is just so sweet in its own way… Ahh, just thinking about it and I get all giddy and mushy… I just love those two too much.
The book is magical. The story talks about magic, but that's not it. The book itself, the story written in it… it's magic, and I enjoyed every second of it!
tellemonstar
Written on Jan 1, 2004