Saturday, March 23, 2019

Howl's Moving Castle Group Read for #DWJMarch / #MarchMagics


I hope a few of you were able to read / reread HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE this week. There's always something new to discover in this tale of magic, misdirection, and secrets! It was published in 1986 and definitely has some 80s-ness to it (mostly the text-based computer games) but it is also timeless in its themes of lust, heartbreak, family, and loyalty.


As I was reading, I kept trying to think of a discussion topic for this post but it turned out to be quite hard! Sometimes I got distracted by considering how a horse-disguise cloak would actually work and forgot what brilliant idea I had. Other times, I just felt a topic was too drab for such a vivid story.


What I eventually found my mind returning to was the fact that Diana includes so many *different* types and methods of magic in this story.

First, there is the fire-demon-assisted magic of Howl and The Witch of the Waste. They both seem to have endless powers, with the only limitation being energy. They can transform themselves and other objects, create elaborate illusions, connect different worlds, and execute curses. Most of this seems to be able do be done on a whim, with only a small amount needing actual words or rituals.

Second, there is the "grade-school" magic of Michael. He can follow directions to create simple potions and powders that help with everyday problems. Some of them might even be so simple as to be considered placebos. He never does anything on his own though so this implies that there is no "power" required for this magic.

Third, there is the honey magic of Mrs. Fairfax (and Lettie/Martha). Her specialties seem to be gentle transformations and simple manipulations of nature. Again, this seems to be follow-the-directions magic.

Fourth, there is the verbal magic of Sophie which is obviously a talent as she didn't even know she was doing it at first. She can talk life into inanimate objects, transform matter, control minds and actions, and clean houses. Okay, so that last one is just a series of mundane chores -- but if I could make it happen in my house it would be magic!

I'm not quite sure where Mrs. Pentstemmon's magic would fall in this. She has the ability to detect spells and talent and she is said to be a great teacher but we never get a look at her practical methods. She has no demon so it could be that hers is just an advanced version of Michael's magic. But I have a feeling that she's also able to do things at will, just perhaps less spectacular things than those done  with demon-assistance. I am assuming that Wizard Suliman would be in this same category.

And then there is the question of whether Martha practices another sort of magic. She says it is just that people like her because she likes them but it definitely feels like at least a bit of enchantment with how manic everyone in the bakery is about her. It could be a minor form of Sophie's belief-driven magic.

The point of all this being ... many authors create a single system of magic where various characters are just more or less advanced and/or talented at operating within the system. But, in this book at least, DWJ seems to have created new magics every time she needed them. She has at least four different ways of using magic and nothing seems to be out of bounds for what magic can do. This makes the world of HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE both fascinating and a bit frightening!


So, tell me ... what did you think about while reading HMC this time through? Is this one of your favorite DWJs? Have you read the sequels?

Telling this post to write itself didn't work,
K

Postscript: Let us keep Diana in our hearts and minds on Tuesday, 26 March, as the 8th anniversary of her passing arrives. What a treasure we lost on that day.

16 comments:

  1. I didn't get around to rereading this yet but I love your thoughts about the different kinds of magic! I will think of that next time I read. I did reread House of Many Ways to try to remember why I disliked it, and I succeeded. (One word: Lubbocks. Too creepy for words.) HMC will remain one of my favorite books ever and I am looking forward to the Folio edition, although I wish they had chosen a different illustrator. Thanks again for this event that keeps us fans in touch!

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    1. That's really interesting about the Lubbock because it seems Diana found him a bit terrifying too but he sort of forced his way into the story and changed it! That kind of character is definitely right on the edge of my tolerance level for scary.
      And yes, I was a bit disappointed by the illustrator choice too. It was too influenced by the movie and I wanted this version to be more true to the descriptions in the book. You definitely see the change in the covers when the movie comes out and, though I love Miyazaki's film, it's not the same as the mental pictures when you read.

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    2. Interesting that you see Marie-Alice Harrel's illustrations as being influenced by the movie, because I didn't see that. Her pictures aren't the way I imagine either the castle or the characters, but I do love the expression on Sophie's face when she's talking to Mrs. Penstemmon.

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    3. I seem to have gotten confused on which artist won. There was one that was very influenced by the movie and I thought she was the winner. Marie-Alice's drawings are definitely different from my imaginings too!

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  2. I'm posting a review of my HMC reread on Tuesday so won't say too much now, but I did so enjoy your thoughts on degrees of magic in it. I shall be mentioning closet allusions to The Wizard of Oz, whether Sophie appeals to male readers as much as Howl appears to appeal to female fans, and, of course, the Welsh dimension (in a nod to the Wales Readathon or Dewithon).

    I will however here say how much I revelled in this reread, not only the familiar stuff (which the Ghibli film I thought was close to) but also the finale which like many DWJ endings defied absolute logic and yet was quite satisfying.

    Thanks again for suggesting this title, Kristen, perfect in so many ways. I should follow through with the two sequels but, as with Lory, I'm a bit squeamish about the Lubbocks...

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    1. I look forward to it, Chris! And yes, I almost talked about the ending today. I mean, there were two pages of literally every character summing up their whole plots in just a sentence or two, even talking over each other. Could there be anything more DWJ than that?!

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    2. And Howl and Sophie are ignoring everyone! That was a masterful scene; not many writers could have pulled it off.

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    3. Yes! It's so very visual even though it's just a string of broken dialogue. It's great!

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  3. I do love how many kinds of magic there are in this book -- and I think DWJ does that fairly consistently throughout her books? I remember in Witch Week, there's a whole thread about how different people have different kinds of magic, that can be as individual as a fingerprint. It's a neat idea, as if magic is like writing -- you can always tell a DWJ book when you read one!

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    1. True. I was just rereading Year of the Griffin and thinking that it's the same non-system system in there too. Anything can be magic and almost anyone can do some sort if they try.

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  4. That's a great point about magic. DWJ breaks the writer rule that you have to have a consistent magic system with understandable rules, but she convinces us to accept it all. I think she has Sophie's power: she says things and they just happen! (I always feel when I read her books that she's been to these places and seen the magic working; she's just describing what she saw, so don't expect her to explain it to us!)

    My review is here, if anyone is interested. I have pictures! https://kaippersbach.blogspot.com/2019/03/why-do-i-like-howls-moving-castle-so.html

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    1. I think that it's like Jenny said above, she is consistent with her inconsistency over all of her books so we know that this is DWJ's system and we love it even if it IS a big mess. :) And yes, it makes it feel much more likely that magic could be hiding somewhere here in our world because it seems to be lurking everywhere!

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  5. I'm putting mine up tomorrow. :)

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  6. Here's mine: https://howlingfrog.blogspot.com/2019/03/howls-moving-castle.html

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  7. Going to come back to this post once I finish my reread! I'm loving it SO much this sixth time, as per usual! <3

    Also did a general post-ish thing about my reading last week which I MEANT to put up on March 1st. XD https://thepagedreamer.wordpress.com/2019/03/21/book-ishness-march-magics-2019/

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  8. My review of my reread: https://wp.me/s2oNj1-ingary

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