Diana Wynne Jones

Introduction

Diana Wynne Jones

Would Harry Potter have existed without Diana Wynne Jones? Long before J. K. Rowling famously started her epic seven-book series on a stalled commuter train, Diana Wynne Jones was creating worlds of magic and wonder for young-adult audiences. Like Rowling’s work, some of Jones’s stories became multivolume cycles, allowing the author to further develop unique universes populated by wizards, castles, and magic. In addition to her own considerable contributions to fantasy literature, she has written critical essays about the genre, hoping to expand and challenge readers’ preconceived notions about what literature is. Her entire body of work, which includes critically acclaimed novels such as Howl’s Moving Castle and Castle in the Air, has inspired generations of readers and writers.

Essential Facts

1. As a student at Oxford, Wynne Jones had the opportunity to hear lectures by two of her literary influences: C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien.
2. One of Wynne Jones’s most impressive achievements is the Chrestomanci series, a multivolume cycle of magic-based fantasy novels.
3. Author Neil Gaiman is one of Wynne Jones’s friends and colleagues. The two have even dedicated some of their works to each other.
4. Wynne Jones has twice been runner-up for the Carnegie Medal, a prestigious children’s literature award in the United Kingdom.
5. Wynne Jones’s novel Howl’s Moving Castle was made into an animated film by Japanese auteur Haya Miyazaki.