Howl's Moving Castle

I've been bogged down by children's lit., but here's one I had to to share.
Laurence and I were enamored with Miyazaki's "Spirited Away", so we bought his version of Diana Wynne Jones' book, "Howl's Moving Castle." It's a fantasy novel (for the 'tween crowd) about a young girl living in a magical kingdom who is cursed by the wicked (of course!) Witch of the Waste and is turned into an old woman. The tale leads Sophie to the witch's nemesis, Howl, and his moving castle, controlled by a fire demon, Calcifer. (In the movie, the Billy Crystal plays Calcifer, very fun!) From there, the plot twists and turns with riddles and puzzles to a suprise ending. The book, as always, is better than the movie, but Hayao Miyazaki does the story justice and even adds his own plot twist. Both are fun and I would recommend both for kids (and grown-ups!) who like fantasy.