HOWL’S
MOVING CASTLE: Foreshadowing in unexpected places
In
the land of Ingary, it is believed that the eldest of three children is doomed
to fail, so Sophie Hatter, the eldest among the three daughters of a shop
owner, isn’t expecting much in life. But when she unwittingly attracts the
attention of a wicked witch, she finds herself in a terrible curse that transforms
her into an old woman. She is forced to set out to find a way to break the
curse, and soon enough, she finds herself in the ever-moving castle in the
hills. Howl, the owner of the moving castle, could just be the one who could
dismiss the spell. But it’s not that simple. After all, Sophie Hatter is doomed
to fail because she is the eldest of three.
The
premise might be childish -- it’s a children’s book after all -- but believe
me, the story could still be entertaining for adults. The primary reason for
this is how Diana Wynne Jones, the author, plays with the story’s plot
elements. Plot points that seem random turn out to be important. Who would have
guessed that the scarecrow would play such an important part? Who would have
guessed that the random guy with the Witch of the Waste would be such an
important person?
The
whole book is so full of seemingly ordinary sequences that will be revealed
later on to be extraordinary. I must admit that I dropped the book a couple of
times because I was too stunned of the revelations. Further in the book, I
started giving particular attention to every detail, thinking that they could
be important later on, and I did the right thing.
In
the end, all the plot elements fit together harmoniously. It’s obvious that the
story is very planned-out. I’d go as far to say that Diana Wynne Jones is a master
storyteller for doing such an amazing job of weaving the story.
Another
proof of Diana Wynne Jones’s talent is her exploitation of the limited
perspective. The book follows Sophie Hatter, but her story is interweaved with more
stories -- not subplots, but full plots -- that affect her even though the
reader doesn’t have a full account of what those stories are . The perfect
examples of this are the King’s issue with his brother and everything about
Wizard Suliman. These stories still appear to be solid even though the reader
only has a glimpse of them. And how they affect current events make them more
intriguing.
But
Howl’s Moving Castle is not perfect. First, there are instances where the
writing is very wordy. The author really likes the words ‘quite’ and ‘seemed’
among many others. But I really enjoy her writing style, particularly in the
chapters that are dialogue-based. The narrative-based chapters are a bit weaker
in my opinion.
As
for the characters, I admit that they have very distinct characteristics and
personalities, and that makes most of them trigger an impression. But I think
they’re not that complicated to deserve psychological analyses and whatnots.
Howl’s vanity and his tendency to slither out are interesting, but they’re not that
worthy of discussion. Sophie, Calcifer, and other characters’ complications are
the same case. But that’s fine. The mere fact that they have something going on
inside them is enough to keep things interesting.
Overall,
Howl’s Moving Castle is a must-read, especially for the fans of children and
young adult books. It’s out of the current trend of romance and dystopian
futures, but in my honest opinion this is one of the best in the genre. Its
core entertainment value is Diana Wynne Jones’s masterful weaving of plot elements,
that will surely put you on the edge of your seat.
Additional Note: I've also reviewed the anime adaptation of Howl's Moving Castle. You can find it here.
Additional Note: I've also reviewed the anime adaptation of Howl's Moving Castle. You can find it here.
Related posts:
No comments:
Post a Comment