I read Howl's Moving Castle when I was ten years old and absolutely loved it. A few years later, I picked up the sequel, Castle in the Air, and even bought the last book in the trilogy, House of Many Ways. But by then I thought myself "too old" for kid's fantasy and went on to read more "mature" novels. Spoiler alert: it was Percy Jackson and no, I don't know why twelve-year-old me thought Rick Riordan was acceptable but Diana Wynne Jones wasn't. Then, in 2021 she returned to my life through the movie adaptation of Howl's Moving Castle (which, btw, if you haven't seen it yet, you should) and my obsession with Calcifer began (I now have several art prints of him in my home), but Diana remained mostly forgotten.
At the end of 2023 I read Reflections: On the Magic of Writing, one of the best essay collections ever, and, surprise surprise, they were by the fantasy queen herself. You can read my review of the book HERE (INSERT LINK LATER), but to sum up, the essays made me look at her novels in a completely different light and the fantasy-loving kid in me came out of hiding. That's why, in 2024, I'll be undertaking a reading challenge that I've nicknamed The Diana Gauntlet.
Due to the number of books DWJ has written, I've narrowed my list to only twelve novels: the two series I'm most interested in, a short-story collection, and her medieval fiction satire guide as a bonus. In theory, I'll read one of them a month and start with Chrestomanci but it's (very) likely that I'll jump around the order, go a couple of months without reading anything by DWJ, and then read 3 or 4 books in the same month. I accepted a long time ago that I'm simply incapable of sticking to a rigid and structured TBR, I need that little sprinkle of chaos. And who knows, I might even make it an annual thing, Lord knows Diana has more than enough material for that.
If your heart so desires, feel free to join me on this magical excursion. Don't worry, there's no need to read all of them or read them in this order, as I've mentioned. I'm a being of chaos. With no further delay, here it is:
The Diana Gauntet (2024)
Chrestomanci Series (They'll be read in the order below, the one suggested by DWJ - which is different from the chronological order and the publishing order)
Charmed Life (1977)
The Lives of Christopher Chant (1988)
Witch Week (1982)
The Magicians of Caprona (1980)
Stealer of Souls (2000)
Conrad's Fate (2005)
The Pinhoe Egg (2006)
Mixed Magic: Four Tales of Chrestomanci (2000)
Howl's Moving Castle Trilogy
Howl's Moving Castle (1986)
Castle in the Air (1990)
House of Many Ways (2008)
Standalones
The Tough Guide to Fantasyland (1996)
Unexpected Magic: Collected Stories (2002)
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