REVIEWED BY DEXTER, 11, QLD
Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, HarperCollins GB, ISBN 9780007299263
Dexter’s review of this book was longlisted in the 2024 Young Reviewers’ Competition.
If you’re a fan of fantasy and suspense, this is the book for you. Howl’s Moving Castle is a 302-page novel about a girl called Sophie who lived a quiet life, when she gets cursed by the witch of the waste. She can’t tell anyone about her curse, so she goes to visit a dangerous man called Howl who is the only person who might be able to break the curse. The problem is Howl lives in a giant walking castle with no signs on how to get in and is known for being a very bad criminal.
The book has trickery, comedy, adventure and loveable characters. The main characters are Howl, a funny wizard who can sometimes turn into a birdlike creature. Then there’s the main character Sophie, who was a hat maker and now her main priority is to break a curse. Sophie also has a lot of character development through the book. Then there’s one more main character – Calcifer, a fire spirit who’s funny, sassy and is Howl’s pet, who powers the castle and is always trying to make bargains. He also has a very emotional and happy ending. Also, there’s one side character that is quite important, his name is Michael. He’s Howl’s apprentice wizard, and he appears lots throughout the book.
I would say Howl’s Moving Castle is a mature book for ages 10 and above. It’s beloved by many and is still my favourite book. I read it all in one day and would rate it 5 out of 5 stars. It has two sequels and even has a fully animated movie produced by the wonderful Studio Ghibli.
Read the first chapter of Howl’s Moving Castle at the publisher’s website.
Dexter’s review was longlisted in the Primary category of Alphabet Soup’s 2024 Young Reviewers’ Competition. The competition is now closed, but we publish book reviews by young writers all year round. To send us YOUR book review, read our submission guidelines. Happy reading!
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