Title: Castle in the Air
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ (4/4)
Quote: "The djinn had stolen away Flower-in-the-Night, whom Abdullah loved more than his own soul, just at the moment when she was about to run into his arms, and there seemed nothing he could do. He wept."
Editorial Review: Abdullah was a young and not very prosperous carpet dealer. His father, who had been disappointed in him, had left him only enough money to open a modest booth in the Bazaar. When he was not selling carpets, Abdullah spent his time daydreaming. In his dreams he was not the son of his father, but the long-lost son of a prince. There was also a princess who had been betrothed to him at birth. He was content with his life and his daydreams until, one day, a stranger sold him a magic carpet.
In this stunning sequel to Howl's Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones has again created a large-scale, fast-paced fantasy in which people and things are never quite what they seem. There are good and bad djinns, a genie in a bottle, wizards, witches, cats and dogs (but are they cats and dogs?), and a mysterious floating castle filled with kidnapped princesses, as well as two puzzling prophecies. The story speeds along with tantalizing twists and turns until the prophecies are fulfilled, true identities are revealed, and all is resolved in a totally satisfying, breathtaking, surprise-filled ending. (From Amazon)
Summary: Abdullah was a daydreaming carpet seller, whose relatively normal and boring life was interrupted by a seller who sold him a magic carpet. After that, things got a bit out of hand as one by one, it seemed that his daydreams were coming true. Setting out on a journey to rescue his princess, he meets and sees with his own eyes the magical world that he lives in. There are several characters that reoccur from the previous book, but even without reading it, the main storyline is still enjoyable.
This book is witty, entertaining, and charming.
