Review: Howl's Moving Castle

by: Diane Wynne Jones

Description: Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the Wizard Howl's castle. To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there's far more to Howl—and herself—than first meets the eye.

Review: Howl's Moving Castle is an amazing fantasy story. After finishing A Monster Calls, I was looking for something light and fantastical. This turned out to be exactly what I was looking for. I think one of my favorite aspects of this book is that the author creates a world that is equal parts fantastic and realistic. One this I loved about this story was that even though there is a lot of different scenery, the author doesn't spend a ton of time describing the outside world. She puts all the focus on the castle and I fell in love with the castle fairly quickly. Another great aspect are the characters! Howl, Michael, Calcifer and Sophie are a great group. I fell in love with Howl even though he comes across as selfish at first. Sophie is a character that I root for through the whole book. When she is working in the hat shop I wanted her to get out and be adventurous because I knew she could do so much more! The curse gives Sophie a new life with Howl, Michael and Calcifer who are all fantastic. The humor in this book is quarky, but I think it is a big part of why I loved the book so much I loved this book and I would love to read it all over again soon.

Rating: 4/5