Epic Wizard Face-Off: Chrestomanci vs Howl

Fantasy Month Finale

We’ve almost reached the very end of another Fantasy Month, my friends. I am saddened to see it go, but also excited about what is coming next.

Today, I’m going to reminisce about two fantastical wizards… but first, I wanted to let you know about a massive Spring Sale I’m running starting today and going through March 13th!

Need something to read for Spring?

Starting today, Second Son is available for FREE in the Kindle Store through the end of February.

King’s Warrior will be FREE starting on Friday and running through March 1st

And Yorien’s Hand, Minstrel’s Call, and An Echo of the Fae will be available for 99 cents on February 27, March 6, and February 28, respectively. These three books are on COUNTDOWN DEALS, so they will move up in price periodically until they are back at normal prices, so don’t delay! Clicking the button below will take you to my author page on amazon where you can see ALL my books!

On to our regularly scheduled programming…

Anyone here a fan of Diana Wynne Jones?

As I was thinking up posts for #FantasyMonth, I realized that this topic would fit well in the “fandom” category, as well as lead into a fun event that happens every year called “March Magics.”

Created by WeBeReading, March Magics is a month-long celebration of all things Diana Wynne Jones and Terry Pratchett. Sadly, I have never really participated because I kind of forget about it and get so burned out by the end of February that I just can’t muster the energy for another thing so quickly on its heels. (Also, until last year, I had only ever read one book by Terry Pratchett and… was mostly confused by it). But this year, with February being more laid-back, and having become a massive fan of the City Watch characters in the past year, I think I might just see about participating for the first time this year! I invite you all to join me!

Anyway, it’s just around the corner now, you can find out more about this year’s theme below.

I discovered Diana Wynne Jones when I was… oh… probably ten or eleven years old. Specifically, I discovered Charmed Life, a delightful story about a brother and sister (Cat and Gwendolyn Chant) who get taken in by a powerful (if seemingly absent-minded) wizard named Chrestomanci and his family.

Everyone believes that Gwendolyn is super powerful magically, and Cat is really just sort of along for the ride. However, when Gwendolyn doesn’t get her way, some interesting things begin to happen… and perhaps not all is as it has seemed….

I must have gotten this book out of the library so often I began to wear it out. I read this story over and over. Then I moved on to The Lives of Christopher Chant and Witch Week. And I read these three books over and over and over again.

Those were all the DWJ books my library had. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I learned there was a huge DWJ fandom that mostly revolved around something called “Howl’s Moving Castle” … but, ecstatic to learn that one of my favorite authors had written another book (yes, some of you may laugh at me now) I went to the library and got it out. Then I found “Castle in the Sky” and “The Pinhoe Egg” and “The Magicians of Caprona” and “Conrad’s Fate” and soon discovered that this author had been EXTREMELY prolific (she wrote over 40 novels and that’s not counting short stories and essays!) … far more so than I had ever realized with my library’s tiny collection of all of 3 of her novels.

Honestly, Diana Wynne Jones was JK Rowling before JK Rowling even thought about picking up a pen. And I love Harry Potter… but DWJ has a very special place in my heart.

Howl

Howl definitely gets more attention and love from the DWJ fans I’ve interacted with. I’m not sure why he’s the better-known of the franchises, considering the fact that he’s only really a main character in a single book (technically he appears in all three books of the trilogy, but he’s not really the main point of books 2 and 3). But there’s something about Howl.

The funny thing about this to me is that Howl is kind of a detestable character. He has very few virtues, if we’re totally honest. He’s arrogant and lazy and he throws temper-tantrums when he doesn’t get his way. He is kind of a coward, and will only do things that he is supposed to do if he works himself into them sideways. As Sophie accuses him of being, he is a “slitherer-outer.” Always trying to get out of doing things he should do.

To his credit, he is an extremely powerful wizard and he truly does have a heart for helping people. At least, when he can be bothered to do so. It’s like a part of him does want to help… but a part of him is just too lazy and selfish to care.

Certainly he’s an entertaining character to read about… characters with massive flaws can be quite enjoyable to read. It can be fun to get so frustrated with a character that you want to grab him by the shoulders and shake some sense into him, because you’re convinced that they are capable of being better. And when he meets his match for stubbornness in Sophie I do think that he gets what he deserves and that she helps make him a better person.

I am definitely a part of the Howl’s Moving Castle fandom. But I’m not sure I’d want Howl to be the one coming to my rescue.

Chrestomanci

If we’re going to rank fandoms, I am far more deeply rooted in the Chrestomanci fandom. He is my wizard. This may have something to do with the fact that I met Chrestomanci when I was 10 and Howl when I was almost 30… so Chrestomanci had a much bigger impact on me and I read those books when I was in the age-range of the target audience… that might have something to do with it.

But I also think it’s because of personal preference when it comes to characters.

Chrestomanci is just eminently more likable than Howl. He is every bit as powerful. I’m not sure who would win in a magical battle. I am half-convinced it would be a draw. But Chrestomanci is everything Howl is not. He is solid and dependable. He is kind. He goes out of his way to help people. And while he may often act just as mysterious as Howl… he isn’t so infuriating about it.

Chrestomanci often gives off a bit of an absent-minded-professor sort of air… but as you get to know him better, you begin to learn that this is just for show. He is brilliant and extremely observant… but he doesn’t always want people to know just how much he knows. He has a humility that Howl could learn a lot from.

And beyond all of that, Chrestomanci’s family is just about the sweetest, most adorable thing ever. His wife and two children are fantastic, and I love them to pieces.

So while I love them both, and have read both series numerous times already and will re-read them both in the future, Chrestomanci wins this “versus” for me quite handily. Of the two wizards, Chrestomanci will always be the one I’d rather have rescue me if I got into a magical bind.

Have you read any of Diana Wynne Jones’ books? Which one is your favorite? Are you excited for March Magics? Have you read any Terry Pratchett books? Are you overwhelmed by the sheer number of books both of these authors have read and don’t know where to start? I have recommendations if you need help navigating!

Which wizard do you prefer, Howl or Chrestomanci?