Imagine yourself stepping into a strange magical world of parallel realities, fire demons, curses, and wizards and you will experience the startling journey taken by Sophie Hatter in Diane Wynne Jones’ Howl’s Moving Castle. Jones spins the fantastical tale of a young woman who is taken away from her monotonous existence and thrust into a world a foreign world in which she must learn who she really is. In her day-to-day life, Sophie is the eldest of three daughters and is therefore out of luck. Because of her unfortunate position, she has no delusions about what her life will amount to for, as everyone knows, as the eldest of three “you are the one who will fail first, and worst, if the three of you set out to seek your fortune” (1). Because of this, Sophie accepts her family’s expectations that she will work as an apprentice in her late father’s hat shop while her sisters seek better fortunes for themselves.
Sophie settles in to her new duties until one fateful day. On that portentous day, the feared Witch of the Waste enters her shop and with a burst of misplaced jealousy and anger curses Sophie; no longer a plain young woman, Sophie becomes a plain old woman. Resigned to her fate—a fate that mirrors her expected lack of fortune—Sophie leaves her home town of Market Chipping in search of a new life. On her way she comes upon the feared Moving Castle that belongs to the mysterious Wizard Howl—a magical man accused of eating the heart’s of young and beautiful women. Instead of the cruel wizard she expected to find in Howl, she discovers a vain, shallow, and lazy man who uses his charm to capture the hearts of women before he dumps them. Together with Howl’s apprentice Michael, Calcifer the fire demon, and the magical castle, Sophie works to find all that has gone missing in the kingdoms around her: a prince, a wizard, and a heart, all while defeating the Witch of the Waste once and for all.
Jones creates a world that is magical and accessible to readers; a parallel world to our own. She sets this up in the beginning of her novel by disclaiming readers of the wonder found within the land of Ingary, a place “where such things as seven-league boots and cloaks of invisibility really exist” (1). In this magical place, fisherman can buy potions to ensure that they have a fair wind and a safe journey and the royal family keeps their own royal wizard. The world is put in contrast to our own and, in fact, Howl himself is from our own world; he is a man who has unlocked the secrets of magic, enabling him to travel between our two worlds.
Sophie herself is an engaging character who learns her own throughout the course of the book. At the beginning of the novel she is a quiet, unassuming figure who works dutifully in her family’s hat shop; she spends most of her time talking to the hats she created. Strangely, it is through her transformation into an old woman that she comes into her own; suddenly, she is unafraid to speak her mind and take action where she sees fit. Sophie also discovers her own magical power; “It brings life to things, such as that stick in your hand, which you have evidently talked to, to the extent that is has become what the layman would call a magic wand” (181). In fact, every inanimate object that Sophie talks to does her bidding—to a hat she says, “You have a heart of gold and someone in a high position will see it and fall in love with you,” when the hat is purchased by plain Jane Farrier the dashing Count of Catterack instantly falls in love with her (10). Sophie eventually realizes her own strength and self-worth, breaking her curse in the process.
Jones is able to create a world full of characters who have characteristics common to all people. Because of these carefully crafted elements of the story, readers are able to connect to the story in a way that pulls them into the text. The dynamic qualities of every aspect of the novel make it a treasure to read and uncover; for, in a parallel world where anything can and does happen, who wouldn’t want to be the average girl to put the heart back into a handsome Casanova, capturing his heart as your own in the process?
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