Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

I was a late convert to Miyazaki films, as so of course I was also then a late to the game on finding Howl’s Moving Castle. I knew it had been a book, but I watched the film first and fell in love. The internet told me that the book was more “real” and very different from the film, so I put it on my TBR excited to fall back into a story that I loved. Then I saw the FairyLoot edition release and decided that I had to have the pretty book, and I’m so glad I did. 

I finally picked this up because another book I was reading (the Southern Book Clubs Guide to Slaying Vampires—which will be the next review) got… intense and dark in ways I was not expecting. I needed a palate cleanser before bed, and thinking I’d read a few chapters and go to sleep I picked up Howl. The Fairyloot edition is all pinks and pastels and candy-floss vibes, which the story isn’t quite but it is also such a delight that it scratched that itch. I proceeded to finish the entire thing before going to sleep. 

What I think I love about this is that the characters and the story is just so practical, which when set in a world of magic and whimsy just comes off as hilarious and charming. Due to the movie, it felt so familiar, but I loved getting to see more about the world as a whole and I adored getting so much more face-time with the characters (new and old). Sophie and her sisters made me giggle, Michael and Howl being teenage/twenty-something boys was just as funny. 

To me the contrast of the movie having more whimsy with stronger outside forces (the war) versus the standard day-to-day life with the pressure of maybe the King giving you a quest, offering you job, and navigating the nuances of interpersonal relationships on a deeper level highlighted the differences of how different formats appeal to the different sides of our brain and how we consume media. 

I will some day read the rest of the series because now I’m invested, I want to see how their relationship keeps moving forward. Oh sweet obtuse Sophie, he’s been pining for you, now let’s see this couple bicker and do fun things. Additionally, it was exactly what I needed as a palate cleanser from the body horror and unsettling vibes. If you’ve ever watched a horror movie and then decided you needed Disney before bed to sleep? That’s exactly how Howl’s was for me but more quirky and real. 

I understand I’m late to the show, but if there are others like me who’ve always wanted to read it I still stand by this endearing tale.  

Looking to find Howl’s Moving Castle? Here you go:

Bookshop.org  ~ Libro.fm ~ Goodreads ~ Storygraph

As a side note, some of the links to Bookshop.org or Libro.fm will either provide me or an indie bookshop I support a portion of the affiliate sales, at no higher cost to you, if you use them to buy a book I recommend!