Here’s another Wyrd & Wonder post! I wanted to join in the readalong but I didn’t get the book and when I got the book, I read it in one day because it was really fun. That I enjoyed the book was quite interesting too – I have distinct memories of DNF-ing the book the first time I read it years ago. Of course back then, I was still really into the Ghibli version of the movie and the fact that this book was slightly different was something that I wasn’t too fond of. But now that I’ve read and enjoyed DWJ’s other works, I came prepared to enjoy the book and I did!

If you’re not watched the movie, Howl’s Moving Castle is the story of Sophie Hatter. She works for her stepmother making hats, but one day, she encounters the Wicked Witch of the Waste and is turned into an old woman. Now emboldened, she sets up to seek her fortune and ends up at the magical but dirty castle of Howl, another notorious wizard renowned for eating girls’ hearts.

I was honestly quite surprised that the movie followed the book quite closely, given how different the Tales from Earthsea movie was from the books. While there are differences, I thought that the overall plot followed the movie rather closely.

Of course, I loved Sophie as a character. It’s interesting to see how freeing the curse of being an old woman is for her. At the start, Sophie is held back by tradition – she believes that as an eldest daughter, she’s doomed to fail if she seeks her fortune. Sophie seems to enjoy being cursed and acting like a bossy old woman; age becomes something liberating instead of confining, a pleasant change from the youth-focus of most fantasy novels. I also loved that Sophie’s sisters played a bigger role in the book; they are determined to go against the fairy tale tropes and I liked how that reinforced the unconventional-ness of Sophie being a heroine. Plus I love that they all care for one another!

Another thing I really enjoyed was how the book subverts expectations. Sophie and her sisters are probably the best examples of how atypical they are (their family dynamics are great, and I like how their relationship with their mother/stepmother turns out) but I was also surprised by where some of the doors in Howl’s castle led to. I won’t say much in case of spoilers but it reminded me of Charmed Life (also by DWJ).

This was honestly such a fun book and I see a lot of reread potential in it. There are some new revelations at the end that I think would cast a very different light on previous events and I would want to reread the book one day to see how my experience of the story would change.

I am actually quite happy that this is the first in a trilogy. The second book looks to be only tangentially connected from the synopsis, but I definitely want to see Sophie, Howl, and all their friends again if possible.