House of Many Ways

Book Title: House of Many Ways

Author: Diana Wynne Jones

Series: Howl #3

Date Started: January 12th 2024

Date Completed: January 18th 2024

Genres: Fantasy, Adventure

Quality Rating: Four Stars

Enjoyment Rating: Three Star

Final Rating: Three Stars

Review:

My personal goal for this year is to finish a bunch of book (and TV) series before I start any more, including some that have been waiting since childhood. Diana Wynne Jones' classics were of course introduced to me by the Ghibli adaptation of Howl's Moving Castle, though you can see her works' influence across so many more films than just that (the little magical dog Waif must have influenced Heen in Miyazaki's Howl).

Overall, this is a fun trilogy, with an innovative way of exploring a whole world and its characters by moving the narrative perspective to different strangers falling into Sophie and Howl's path. And Wynne Jones is so good at writing flawed protagonists that have tactile learning journeys throughout the story. We all know Howl's vanity and Sophie's short temper, but Charmain has to learn how to be an adult herself even in perhaps less dire circumstances.

There is a certain whimsical nature often missing from contemporary children's books in these older stories. Whether it's from a time without such cheap technology (though the first book does indeed include an 80s TV). The fantasy may be less 'high' but more self-assured in introducing new elements and worldbuilding without pages of explanation. Maybe that's saying something about modern storytelling sensibilities, but it is often nice to dip back into this style every now and then.

As always, the mystery resolves itself rather sweetly, though it did feel like Charmain had less to do with it than the previous heroes of the series. I think I certainly enjoyed it less than I imagine a younger reader would find it. But, as Neil Gaiman says, Dianna Wynne Jones is simply the best at writing magic, and it's nice to have her iconic trilogy off my reading list.