Sophie is caught between a powerful witch and wizard who are terrorizing the magical land of Ingary. Living a humdrum life as a hatter till the malicious Witch of the Waste casts a spell turning her into an old woman, Sophie seeks refuge as cleaning woman to Wizard Howl (although he's rumored to eat the hearts of young girls) in his castle, which moves at will about the countryside. Actually, Howl is a brash young man whose only vice is womanizing. He is a gifted wizard but the despair of his inept apprentice and of Calcifer, a humorously petulant fire demon, because of such human faults as messiness and spending too long in the bath. As in her memorable Archer's Goon, Jones has a plethora of characters who are seldom what they seem and an intricate plot which may dazzle with its complexity or delight by the hilarious common-sense consequences of its preposterous premises. Sophie is a dauntless heroine; when she regains her youth and wins Howl, the odds are this is only the beginning of a tempestuous romance. Great fun.
Pub Date: April 14, 1986
ISBN: 0061478784
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: April 30, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1986
Bright and quirky; offers an affectionate portrayal of adolescent change.
A teenage witch learns and grows in this first English translation of the second entry in the popular Japanese series that inspired the Studio Ghibli movie Kiki’s Delivery Service.
Kiki the witch is now 14, wiser from lessons learned in her first year as a delivery girl but still seeking a fuller sense of her role in the seaside town of Koriko. Jiji, her black cat, continues to perch beside her as she soars high on her broom, making his snarky comments. After a visit home, Kiki returns to her room above Osono’s bakery; the cheerful baker is now the mother of a toddler. The episodic story structure, which is well-suited for read-alouds, loosely follows the arc of a year in Kiki’s life. The distinctive, detailed storytelling contains depth and humor and is punctuated with lyrics of curious songs. A number of Kiki’s errands involve elderly customers seeking to revisit idyllic memories, but she also unwittingly aids someone who has a questionable quest. Kiki experiences gentle struggles—her broom gets damaged, she admires a floral dress and wonders why witches wear black, and she experiments with going beyond the bounds of her daily routine to make witch medicine. Kiki’s character is refreshingly childlike and nuanced: She possesses at once a playful heart, a burgeoning awareness of her personal power, and a mind that can see the complexities of adulthood without entirely comprehending how to parse them.
Bright and quirky; offers an affectionate portrayal of adolescent change. (Fantasy. 7-12)Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2026
ISBN: 9798217227105
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
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