Castle in the Air

By: Diana Wynne Jones

Narrated by: Jenny Sterlin

Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

A companion to Howl's Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones' Castle in the Air was named an ALA Notable Book and an ALA Best Book for Young Adults.

In this sparkling tale, young merchant Abdullah purchases a magic carpet - and soon finds that the enchanted rug is none too agreeable. But despite the carpet's cranky demeanor, Abdullah must rely on its help to rescue a princess from a wicked djinn.

©1990 Diana Wynne Jones (P)2009 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"A bewitching romp, gratifying to mind, imagination, and funny bone." ( Kirkus Reviews)

Review

Very nice follow up to Howl's moving castle. What? A review REQUIRES 15 words minimum? How silly is that?

Omg love it!

Absolutely a beautiful story on its own and truly wonderful to hear more of Howls Moving Castle. Truly lovingly beautiful to finish thank you for writing more to their story.

A must read after Howl’s Moving Castle!

I loved this story! It was so fun to the world of Howl and the plot has a lot of great surprises at the end!

Great story!

this sequell was not as great as first book but equally well performed. would listen again. set in a neighboring country from the first book. almost a retelling of Aladdin. beautifully read.

fun and unique. great read/listen.

Guessed of course. but once you learn who is who and why the Jin cursed them to those characters it is interesting food for thought

intriguing for all ages. Highly recommend.

Totally unpredictable, A delightful, inventive tale that doesn`t dumb down language for any age reader. Both young & old, strong female characters, Learning experiences.. Multiple, fully developed lead characters. No foul language. No love story. Nothing X rated, Fantasy.

Pretty good

This was a good book just not what I was expecting, I thought it was going to be a continuation of howl’s moving castle, but it was still a good family friendly book.

Oh my!

I loved the first book with all my heart, so it worried me to read the 2nd.

So many readers before me, told me that it was good but said "oh, the mc's from the first book are not in it much."


First off (without spoilers) the book is too good on it's own to worry about who's in it- and I don't think the people who told me that were right on, because the parts with them in it are too good to be upset that it's not that long a part.

This book made my heart leap with joy. I only wish I could write like her. What a book!!

Great story with some problems

Lovely fun adventure story as always, however there is some pretty problematic stereotyping around race and fat shaming. You created a beautiful world with magic and djinns, why would you keep these things from this world in it?
I still enjoyed the story and it's continuation of the further adventures of Howl and Sophie.

Jones Works Her Magic

Abdullah, a carpet seller in Zanzib, purchases a flying carpet which transports him to the garden of a lovely girl, Flower-in-the-Night. They fall in love, but before Abdullah can elope with her, a djinn kidnaps Flower-in-the-Night. With the aid of his magic carpet, a genie in a bottle, and an old cat-fancying soldier, Abdullah sets off on an adventure to rescue his beloved.

Jones was a gifted storyteller, and this is a fun adventure. Her characters become real as the reader gets deeper into the story, and even the most bizarre situations make sense after Jones works her magic tying up the ends. Humorous and well-written, Castle in the Air is a satisfying read.

Note: This sequel to Howl's Moving Castle seems like a stand-alone novel at the beginning, but as it reaches the final third, the reader must be familiar with the characters from the previous book for the situations to make sense.

Jenny Sterlin gives a good performance as narrator, imbuing the characters with life.