Howl’s Moving Castle
By Diana Wynne Jones
Wednesday, January 18, 2023 @ Wednesday, January 18, 2023
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What if castles could suddenly appear? Or move altogether? What if a witch could turn you into an old lady? Or a dog?
Join Sophie Hatter, the eldest of three sisters, as her world is turned upside down. After an encounter with the Witch of the Waste, Sophie is transformed into an old lady. Does this transformation give Sophie the freedom she’s always longed for? When she seeks shelter in the Wizard Howl’s magical moving castle, she learns that he has his own demons to face. Sophie finds herself pulled into a twisty adventure—and along the way, learns that you can’t always trust first impressions!
When you join this Book Club, together we’ll read the classic, Howl’s Moving Castle—and follow Sophie as she tries to untangle the enchantment surrounding her. You and your Literary Guide, Ms. Schuett, will analyze the characters, themes, and conflict within the story—and have so much fun diving into this whimsical world!
What Makes this Club Special…
It’s a Classic
Howl’s Moving Castle is an international bestseller and is the source material for the Academy Award-nominated Studio Ghibli film by the same name. Though it is the source material, the book and movie are quite different from one another.
Your Guide is a teacher with wonderful experience that helps your child learn to love reading and learning!
Your Guide, Ms. Schuett, is an experienced teacher with a terminal degree (Master of Fine Arts) in storytelling. When you sign up for this Book Club, you get a professional, highly skilled Guide who helps your student develop a love for reading while learning how to dig deeper into all of the different parts of writing and creating a story.
Your Guide
Ms. Anna Schuett is a professional writer and podcaster with Bachelor of Arts (BA) in English degree from Concordia University (with an emphasis in Creative Writing) and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, Genre Fiction (MFA, terminal degree) from Western Colorado University.
While studying for her MFA, Ms. Schuett was an elementary school Para-Educator and Librarian/Technology Assistant. Spending a great amount of time with students who struggled with their studies, Ms. Schuett found a love for helping students learn and grow.
Ms. Schuett works as an I.T. Coordinator for Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapy clinics across the state of Nebraska. Because of a love of working with students and books, Ms. Schuett has started a second master’s program to earn her MS in Library and Information Science.
Born, raised, and living in Nebraska, USA, Ms. Schuett enjoys reading, quilting, baking, and writing epic fantasy novels—all with a cup of coffee or tea within arm’s reach. You can reach Ms. Schuett at akschuett91@gmail.com.
About the Book
- Buy from Bookshop.org
- ISBN-10: 0061478784
- ISBN-13: 978-0061478789
(From Amazon)
This entrancing classic fantasy novel is filled with surprises at every turn. An international bestseller, this much-loved book is the source for the Academy Award nominee for Best Animated Feature.
Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the Wizard Howl’s castle.
To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there’s far more to Howl—and herself—than first meets the eye.
In this giant jigsaw puzzle of a fantasy, people and things are never quite what they seem. Destinies are intertwined, identities exchanged, lovers confused. The Witch has placed a spell on Howl. Does the clue to breaking it lie in a famous poem? And what will happen to Sophie Hatter when she enters Howl’s castle?
All fans of classic fantasy books deserve the pleasure of reading those by Diana Wynne Jones, whose acclaim included the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement. As Neil Gaiman stated, she was “quite simply the best writer for children of her generation.”
Age Range: 8 – 14 years old
Parental Guidance
Some of the themes and situations in the story may be challenging for some readers.
- Suitors: Sophie is the eldest of her sisters at 18, but all three of them are being pursued by suitors of varying ages. This is not overt, but something to be aware of.
- Aging: Sophie is turned into a 90-year-old woman, so we’ll discuss what it must be like to be a young woman in an old body.
- Alcohol: Howl does become drunk, but the ill-effects the next morning serve as a kind of warning.
- Language: There is mild cursing (i.e. damn).
- Magic: This is a fantasy world with mention of black magic, witches, and a fire demon.
We will discuss these topics with care. There may also be some challenging vocabulary that we discuss together in the Club; readers are encouraged to bring up vocabulary words for discussion in our time together.
Reading Schedule
As you read through the sections each week, simply follow the prompts as they pop up – and together, we’ll discuss the concepts from the reading and the work we did on the prompts as you become a great writer. If you come to a writing prompt that you really don’t like, feel free to skip it, no worries! We’ll discuss how to write for topics “we’re not excited about” and then come up with ideas right there in class together.
- Week 1: Discussion – Chapters 1-4
- Week 2: Discussion – Chapters 5-8
- Week 3: Discussion – Chapters 9-12
- Week 4: Discussion – Chapters 13-15
- Week 5: Discussion – Chapters 16-18
- Week 6: Discussion – Chapters 19-21
How To Begin
It’s easy! Follow these steps to get started…
- Sign up and get in (before it’s full!) — Use the blue button at the bottom of this page to save your spot.
- Receive your information — Within 48 hours of signing up, you’ll get an email with your Club’s details. Save this email, bookmark the zoom link, and add the club dates to your calendar.
- Prepare for your first meeting — Get the book from your own favorite source, or buy your book(s) directly from your Book Club pages. Read the assigned chapters ahead of time, and download and print the supplies list for crafts (young readers), activity pages for during the Club time (older readers), or the handout to guide the discussion (older students).
For more information, visit the How It Works page.
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