Middle Grade March An Author With Three Names

 

...the movie was better. I gave the book version of Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones 3 stars.

Honestly one of the main reasons I even read the book was just to compare it to the movie. I can say now this is a rare case where the movie is way better than the book.

 But here are some things I actually did like about the book:

• Sophie's sisters play a bigger role in the story
• We actually get some context as to why Sophie ran away from the hat shop without telling anyone (her stepmother was exploiting her as a worker)
• We get to see Michael/Markl's backstory on how he came to live with Howl. (Michael is his name in the book, his name is Markl in the movie)
• We get to see Howl's family, and they live in Wales
  

Now here's everything I didn't like which is why I gave it a low rating:

• I could not stand Sophie and Howl's relationship in this book, it was sooo toxic! 
• Howl is such a bossy manchild and Sophie is really grumpy and cynical. 
• They also realize they love each other out of jealousy, not because they really get to know each other well.
• Honestly, most of the characters were pretty unlikeable or not interesting, except for Michael/Markl.
  
• The book compared to the movie had waaaay too many characters and subplots, and it got hard to follow after a while.
• I felt that the plot dragged too much in the second half. 
• Towards the end the story got way too dark and morbid when we find out the true plans of the Witch of the Waste.  
  

If you're a fan of the movie I recommend skipping the book. The movie is way more whimsical and sweet, the plot is a lot simpler, the characters are more likable, and the story doesn't get as dark (well, there is the war in the background, but even that was barely touched up upon).

But again, this is all just my personal opinion.