Howl's Moving Castle

"Howl's Moving Castle" by Diana Wynne Jones

For those of you who didn't even know that "Howl's Moving Castle" was a book but loved the movie, I think you'll like the book. For those who have never heard of either one, you should read and watch the movie. It doesn't matter which one you find first because they are vastly different, and not different in a bad way. They both have their pros and cons but they both make for an entertaining story.

Sophie is the oldest of three sisters and therefore can't do anything with her life except take over the hat shop that her family owns. She blames all of her mistakes on the fact that she is the oldest by saying "It all comes from being the eldest" and what's funny is that she ends up trying to help but messes up all the time--sad but funny.

She has a curse put on her by the evil Witch of the Waste which makes her turn her from her young, teenage self to a 90 year old woman. Quickly she escapes the city in order to seek her fortune--which goes very awry because "it all comes from being the eldest." Sophie runs into the heartless Wizard Howl and his moving castle and ends up joining the little family when she makes a contract with the Fire Demon Calsifer--if she can break his spell, he will break hers. This leads to much mayhem and lots of laughs as they try to find the King's brother and Royal Wizard who have gone missing.

I greatly enjoyed the book and love the movie. I was also pleasantly surprised to find out that this is the first book in a series of three that Diana Wynne Jones has written with Sophie, Howl, and the other characters in the book. Sophie is an amazing character that quickly grows on you and even though Howl is "heartless" he is very kind. It was also a joy to find out that Sophie is a witch herself and does her own witchcraft--this doesn't really happen in the movie.

Super fun book and I will probably read it to my kids when they get old enough. ;)