Diana Wynne Jones: Castle in the Air (2012, HarperCollins Publishers)
English language
Published Jan. 14, 2012 by HarperCollins Publishers.
Having long indulged himself in daydreams more exciting than his mundane life as a carpet merchant, Abdullah unexpectedly purchases a magic carpet and his life changes dramatically as his daydreams come true and dangerous adventures become daily fare.
This should be a 4-star. I liked the characters, I liked the adventure, I liked the writing. But it was just so awkwardly Orientalist. White British lady writing this was...
This should be a 4-star. I liked the characters, I liked the adventure, I liked the writing. But it was just so awkwardly Orientalist. White British lady writing this was...
oh good god the casual racism.
This is a weird one to review and I don’t really know how many stars I should give it. Jones’ prose continues to be snappy and readable, but the benignly intended yet still offensive exotification of middle eastern culture was pretty off-putting. I actually quite like Abdullah as a character. He’s got an unreliable steak that made the narrative more engaging, but… yeah I don’t know, man.
It was nice to see Sophie and Howl again, but it begs the question of why the book couldn’t just be about them.
Although the beloved Sophie and Howl don't show up until late in the book, this book is just as good as the first one. With the same whimsical and humorous tone, and all new characters to fall in love with, this book flew by faster than Abdullah's carpet!
The sequel to Howl's Moving Castle (which was made into a movie by Studio Ghibli). An Arabian-esque fantasy wherein humble carpet merchant Abdullah gets involved with flying carpets, djinns, genies, and enchanted cats, not to mention Howl's flying castle as he tries to find the princess of his dreams.
A wacky take on the classic Arabian nights genre this is Jones at her best -- nothing is as it seems, and in the end there are several morals to be learned. However, the link between Castle in the Air and [b:Howl's Moving Castle|6294|Howl's Moving Castle|Diana Wynne Jones|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165560187s/6294.jpg|2001] is tenuous at best, and at worst Castle in the Air is cheapened by the association, as the feel is extremely different and the characters from Howl seem shoehorned in.
