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Jan 19, 2012

Cara rated it:

Honestly what made me want to read this book was the movie. I really thought the movie was good (I like most of Hayo Miyazaki's films) and I surely wasn't disappointed in the book. As always much of the book wasn't put into the movie, but it was understandable.

To really understand the book it should be read twice, but since I watched the movie I wasn't as shocked at things. Defintely read the book first. The author did an impeccable job of piecing things together to get a wham-bam of More...

11 comments like (35 people liked it)

Apr 15, 2011

Emma rated it:

Before Hayao Miyazaki made "Howl's Moving Castle" into a feature length animated film in 2006 (2004 if you saw it in Japan), it was a book written by Diana Wynne Jones in 1986. Due to the inherent difficulties of creating an animated film, Miyazaki greatly abridged and adjusted the plot of the novel for his movie. I happened to enjoy both film and novel but after reading the book I realized that the plot is extremely different in the novel--enough that the book and movie become complet More...

2 comments like (25 people liked it)

Feb 28, 2009

Robin rated it:

This was a charming story. I've never read Diana Wynne Jones before and enjoyed it quite a bit. It reminded me a lot of Neil Gaiman's Stardust (although I did not like that one nearly as much). The character of Sophie Hatter was well done - I liked her wit and her "take no prisioners" attitude.

The supporting case was also good. I particularly liked Calcifier and his interactions with Sophie. As to Howl himself, there was no doubt in my mind his "true self" and More...

21 comments like (22 people liked it)

Jun 08, 2011

Sherri rated it:

How often are we our own problem? How often do our own beliefs -- about ourselves, about our world, and about what our lives will be -- stand like a wall between us and what we really want?

This is the essential conundrum facing Sophie, the protagonist in Howl's Moving Castle. She's a young woman living in a world where fairy tales and magic are a part of everyday life, and she has very firm -- and very self-defeating -- ideas about all of it. The eldest of three sisters, helping her More...

5 comments like (15 people liked it)

Apr 22, 2011

Becky rated it:

This was a very fun, charming story. It really seems so simply written, yet read more than one line and you are a part of the action, not just watching it.

I really enjoyed Sophie, and feel like she is very human -- prone to snap judgments and bad decisions and she tends to underestimate herself. Howl is a very fun character, a bit of a "player" until his heart is stolen (literally).

I would like to check out the other books in the series, but this one does stand

6 comments like (8 people liked it)

Jan 29, 2012

Nafiza rated it:

I watched the movie first. In fact, it was entirely accidentally that my cousin and I, in the midst of this loud, busy family reunion, came across the movie version and were completely sucked into the tale of Sophie, Howl and Calcifier. So when the movie was done and I sat back with a sigh and some sadness that another good thing had come to an end, I thought of reading the book to prolong the loveliness. Because everyone knows that books are always better, right?

In this case, the bo More...

17 comments like (5 people liked it)

Dec 13, 2011

Seak (Bryce L.) rated it:

I watched the movie, Howl's Moving Castle, directed by Hayao Miyazaki, when I was going through my anime phase, not to mention I'm pretty much always going through a Christian Bale phase. I loved it, of course, it was so odd and just plain weird, exactly why I enjoy anime so much.

This was quite a while ago, and it wasn't until just recently that I started reading reviews of the book by Diana Wynne Jones, so I ordered it right away. And, because my "to read" pile More...

0 comments like (20 people liked it)

Jan 20, 2009

Kathryn rated it:

3.5 STARS

I'm not sure why I didn't get more "into" this book. Perhaps it was that we read it over the holidays so chapters were squeezed in between busy days and tired nights. This is my first Wynne Jones book and I thought her style was fine, if nothing especially striking--but I was just not that captivated by the plot. I kept waiting for things to "pick up"--where was the excitement? Interest? But, no... it tended to plod, IMO. Even so, Howl was a rich an More...

12 comments like (7 people liked it)

Mar 27, 2011

Erica (daydreamer) rated it:

March 26 2011. I just found out Diana Wynne Jones died today. The day I start reading my first book of hers. I don't know much about this author, I'm unfamiliar with her works, but I can feel people's loss, the fans of her writing. And I can still thank her for becoming the well known and loved writer she apparently was. She contribruted to the literary world that I love, and any author who can do this and write amazing fantasical novels earns my respect.

My review
3/27/11
More...

6 comments like (14 people liked it)

Jan 22, 2011

Valerie rated it:

I'll admit that I read this book after watching the movie and I love them both, though they are both very different. I own the book, now all I have to do it find the movie. The first time I read this book I was confused at a few parts but the second time around I got it which let me appreciate the book even more. It was fun to be able to look for the hints all along the way.

Sophie is turned into an old woman by the witch of the waste. This sets Sophie on her journey and finds hersel More...

2 comments like (4 people liked it)

Feb 11, 2011

Mariel rated it:

I'd started writing this review yesterday. I had to quit because I was busy having one of my anxiety fits about using cliches, not saying what I really mean, unclear sentences, my bad grammar, blah blah. I worry about it so much that it is hard to write anything.

Howl's Moving Castle is one of those books that I wish I'd not read so I could read it again. That's a cliche, it's true, but it is true. A lot has been written about Howl's on goodreads so I'll try and say something beyond More...

4 comments like (13 people liked it)

Mar 25, 2010

Qt rated it:

3 1/2 stars. I wavered between three and four throughout the book. I did enjoy it a lot; I really liked the humor and the author's style of writing, and there seemed to be a lot of interesting magic and characters in the book's world. On the downside, I never really felt like I *knew* the characters. Also, I didn't always really know what was going on and often found it confusing. It seemed like things could have been explained or filled in a little more. (On the other hand, I am easily confused More...

5 comments like (6 people liked it)

Jun 20, 2011

Chandra rated it:

Sophie Hatter is the oldest of three daughters living in the magical realm of Ingary. Because she is oldest Sophie assumes she is destined to a life of drudgery and monotony. As her two young sisters are sent off to pursue their more exciting fates, Sophie is left to run her father’s hat shop. Life is indeed dull until one day the Witch of the Waste appears and turns Sophie into an old woman. Feeling that things really can’t get much worse Sophie decides to strike out on her own and soon fi More...

15 comments like (4 people liked it)

Jul 13, 2011

Erin rated it:

A very solid 4-star. The characters were vibrant and loveable, the world was easy to immerse myself in, and the humor was spot-on. The only problem I had was that I got a little confused at the end. I have a feeling that this is one of those books I'd have to read more than once to fully grasp.

I loved the fantasy setting Jones created. Sophie is the main character, the eldest of three children. So of course she knows that seeking her fortune would be pointless, because the oldest chi More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Oct 10, 2010

Ninja Sock Puppet rated it:

(Bonus points for catching all twelve inappropriate pop culture references.)

I fell into a google hole this weekend while Ceridwen was away booknerding on the West Coast (Midwest, REPRESENT!, what?) and learned all about Scientology. L. Ron Hubbard was a literary genius--not content with simply writing mediocre science fiction, the man actually got people to believe it was all real. See, the entire space opera subgenre of sci-fi isn't simply stories, it's channeling actual events from More...

15 comments like (22 people liked it)

Jan 30, 2012

Amelia, the pragmatic idealist rated it:

Howl's Moving Castle is one of those strange books that I love, without knowing why exactly I love it. Even after I finished my second reading, I still can't quite put my finger on what it is that Howl has that is so memorable, but it's something all right.

I originally read this book back in the fall of 2009. I liked it, thought it was pretty cute, but it wasn't my favorite read of the year or anything. Flash-forward to this year: quite by accident I happened across Hayao Miyazaki's More...

3 comments like (4 people liked it)

May 04, 2008

Cassie rated it:

This is definitely one of those books that I enjoy more and more every time I read it. I always have a memory of how rushed the ending is, and I still think it’s pretty rushed, but I think I understood the book quite a bit more this time. The book builds to a climax, but the actual final battle barely seems to take up many pages and then we have a few pages to wrap up all the plots, via the narrator pointing out various things the audience didn’t know yet.

The complexity of Jones’s w More...

1 comment like (6 people liked it)

Jul 27, 2008

Shannon rated it:

This is a great story, full of wit and charm and adventure. It's a fantasy tale about Sophie who is turned into an old woman by the Witch of the Waste. Leaving her family's hat shop behind, she heads into the hills where Wizard Howl's moving castle has been wandering for a few weeks. She finds a way into the "castle" despite the stories that Howl eats young girl's hearts - she's no longer young, and so no longer afraid.

Howl is young and incredibly vain - he spends two hour More...

0 comments like (7 people liked it)

Jul 04, 2009

Nic rated it:

This is my favorite book in the world. I read it for the first time when I was probably eight years old and still thought that Wales was a made-up country based on modern England. The most recent time I read it was last week (August 2007), and my old copy is almost falling apart.

At any rate. To actual points regarding the book. A young woman named Sophie is afraid to live life because she knows that, as the eldest of three daughters, she is condemned by tradition to fail and be o More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Oct 19, 2008

Fiona rated it:

This is probably one of Diana Wynne Jones' best books in my opinion and I love it up there with Dogsbody.

Floating castles, talking fires, bouncing scarecrows? They could only be the wonderful creations of DWJ.

I think what the author does best is create very real and very identifiable characters that somehow - you always feel you have always known. It's sort of magical how she does it, because many books may spend a few chapters establishing characters. With DWJ they just More...

1 comment like (4 people liked it)

Oct 14, 2010

Kasia rated it:

I was hoping for an epic fantasy here, got something a little different. Oh, it's a fantasy alright. A rather complex one, but I would not say exactly epic. The Howl's Castle lets you think it's going to be a grand LOTR type of a deal. The setup is simply sweet. But once you get past that. Once the heroine is inside the castle, once she meets Howl, everything slows down. What looked like a thrilling adventure, becomes this mystery story with weird clues spread on top of a thin, languid and somew More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 29, 2011

Penny-anna rated it:

This is one of my absolute favorite books. Partly because of the wonderful quirkiness, and the way she plays around with fairy tales, which I love. Sophie is destined to never do anything interesting on account of being the oldest; the villain is named 'The Wicked With of the Waste', which sounds, when one is reading about the book, rather silly, but makes perfect sense when you realise that 'The Waste' is an actual place.

Mostly, though, I love it because I love the way Diana Wynne Jon More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 22, 2011

Ivon rated it:

Karena tidak bisa mendapatkan kasetnya (produced by Studio Ghibli), ak 'tak sengaja' menodong buku ini dari seorang teman.

Dan, aku puas, dan kalau ada sekuelnya, aku tidak keberatan untuk mengambil dan membacanya juga :D

Premis:

Sophie adalah anak sulung dari tiga bersaudara, di negeri yang menganggap peruntungan masa depan bagi anak sulung tidaklah bagus. Maka ia terbiasa didikte orang tuanya, oleh saudari-saudarinya, dan pasrah mode on saja waktu disuruh mewa More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 01, 2011

Kaethe rated it:

I'm going to go out on a limb here and theorize why everyone who reads this books wants to marry Howl: it's to get the castle. Although I suppose being the one he *really* loves would feel good, given his previously continual pursuit of others. I wouldn't trust him to stay in love, but I'm old and cynical.

I, too, love the castle. Such a practical house. But if someone is going to spend two hours in the only bathroom, it had better be me.

Library copy

17 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jun 11, 2011

Kim rated it:

A great adaptation of my favourite Ghibli film

Ok I know the book came first but I can't help think of it that way since I've seen the movie many times before I read the book. I like the differences between the two, each having it's own focus and main plot points.

The only issue I have with the book is the ending. It was a little quick and wasn't exactly the clearest but overall the book was great.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Nov 20, 2011

Isabelle rated it:

So far, this book seems a little boring, but I'm going to give it a chance because the blurb seems really good. Also, there are way too many details so far, but I learned that the two younger daughters are working in the neighborhood and living there, and the oldest girl is staying with their step mom. (Actually, she's th step mom of the two older girls becuase both of their parents died, the older girl's mom and the dad of all the girls.)

November 15th 2011 Response:
I thought that More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 16, 2009

Allison (The Allure of Books) rated it:

In a word: charming. When the story started, I got the cheesy fairy tale vibe and wasn't sure how much I would be able to get into it...a few hours later I was finished, and realized it was one of the loveliest stories I have read in ages.

6 comments like (5 people liked it)

Jan 18, 2012

I r h rated it:

Cuando tienes el libro entre tus manos, con la impresionante imagen del Castillo Ambulante según Miyazaki (después hablaré de la maravillosa película), cuando ya te has sumergido en su hisitoria, lo único que puedes sentir es la magia que transmite. Sí, magia. La única palabra que puede llegar a definir el libro: la magia que sientes que está, que recorre las páginas, que se crea al leer. El libro destila ternura por los cuatro costados, y además tiene toques que le aportan sencillez, diversión, More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 02, 2010

Eden rated it:

Sophie Hatter, the eldest of three daughters, lives in the town of Chipping Market which is in the kingdom of Ingary. Sophie is very good with the needle, she makes beautiful hats and dresses. Sophie works in the Hat Shop with her two sisters, Lettie and Martha, and her stepmother, Fanny.

Eventually when Sophie's two sisters move out and find their own careers, she accepts the fact that being the eldest means you will have a very uninteresting life and she will not be able to seek her More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 12, 2008

Samantha rated it:

Howl's Moving Castle

by Diana Wynne Jones
212 pages

HMC was first published in 1986 and it is the story of a young woman named Sophie, the eldest of three sisters who is destined for failure due to her birth rank, who gets caught up in a battle of witches and wizards. The time and place are difficult to discern until much later in the story. Howl is a wizard who is rumored to eat the hearts of young girls, but when Sophie is cursed by the Witch of the Waste she turns t More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)