This is a brilliant book. The structure of working through each film chronologically, spelling out the history and development of each creative enterprise, within the narrative arc of the studio itself, then providing a review of the film, works well. It is a book about the history of Studio Ghibli, the people involved, the creative influences of each film, and the highlights and struggles of bringing creative work to fruition. It also touches on how these films came to the West from Japan.

However you cannot ignore the impact this film (and by rights Studio Ghibli) has had on popular culture and this book charts both the film that spawned them and the story that gave them life. After all how many iconic characters can we identify and yet know next to nothing about them or the story that they came from.Featuring 900 original illustrations, sketches, and imageboards from films such as Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, and The Wind Rises, the two-volume series offers a detailed look into the animation studio’s production processes, from planning to completion. Until now, many of the images have only been seen within the context of the museum itself, such as excerpts from its 2017 exhibition Delicious! Animating Memorable Meals and 2013’s The Lens at Work in The Ghibli Forest.

There’s also artwork from exclusive exhibitions on films like Ponyo and Spirited Away, as well as an interview with film producer Toshio Suzuki, who’s considered to be Miyazaki’s right-hand man. This book not only charts the film (reading the notes there references to the fact that sections where not even storyboarded they just developed as they progressed - now how many films could make a claim like that). But the book also discusses the technicalities of some of the scenes and how the effects were achieved- after all we are talking about flat images - something that live action filming often would take for granted. I'm inclined to agree. My 13 year old self is pretty darned happy that both the book and the film exist. Tales from EarthseaWhile the movie had its troubles, winning the Bunshun Raspberry Award for worst movie of 2006 and driving a wedge between father and son during its production, the books are truly wonderful, often cited by other authors as their favourite books. If you would like to enter the world of Earthsea, I would recommend starting with The Wizard of Earthsea. It has been enchanting readers since 1968 with its tale of young wizard Sparrowhawk and how he must face down the evils his own ambition for power calls up. If you only read one of the books in this article, read this one. Then you can go on and read the rest of the Cycle. You can begin to see some of the elements that the movie drew on. Honestly, you could probably skip the movie and just get on with enjoying these wonderful books as well as the other works of Ursula K. Le Guin. Arrietty If you want to know what happens to Arrietty and her family after the dramatic end of the film, the four sequel books will satisfy your curiosity. They are The Borrowers Afield, The Borrowers Afloat, The Borrowers Aloft, and The Borrowers Avenged. All the stories have also been published in a collected edition. When Marnie Was There For any fan of Studio Ghibli you will eventually come across certain titles - both for the fame and for their beauty. My Neighbour Totoro is probably at the top or at least very close to it (of course it is subjective and very personal). Keep in mind, again, this is a children's book. I encountered it at exactly the right age. Older readers coming to it might not get as much out of it as I did, but I still think it holds up and has a lot of interesting things to say about age and self confidence. There are some really wonderful books behind the Ghibli films, and reading them can give insight into the underpinnings of some of your favourite movies. I will try to keep this article as spoiler free as possible. However, if you haven't seen any of the movies, then I suggest you rush out and do so. After that (or before if that's more your taste), rush out and read the books! Grave of the Fireflies

Kiki's Delivery Service won the 23rd Noma Award for Juvenile Literature, the 34th Shogakukan Award for Children's Literature, and holds a place on the IBBY Honour List for 1986. It is also certainly Eiko Kadono's best well known book outside of Japan, thanks to the film adaptation. The movie adaption is perhaps the one with the most drastic changes on this list. Some characters who were good become evil. Some who were evil become good. Some who were men become women. Howl's main motivation is completely different. However, the author Diana Wynne Jones had a positive reaction to the film, which was specially screened for her before release. Speaking to the Telegraph, she said, "It was wonderful. "I don't think I've ever met anyone before who thinks like I do. He saw my books from the inside out." Despite the changes, she believed that Miyazaki shared her vision. At the premier screening in the UK she said, This approach has its problems. Anyone who has read books created from a series of newspaper columns or radio pieces will recognise them immediately. There is a huge disjoin between each chapter, and the result is very bitty. Also, if you master that challenge, maybe you'd like to try the sequels. Eiko Kadono has written 5 more books in the Kiki series. These are キキと 新 （ あたら ）しい 魔法 （ まほう ） (Kiki and Her New Magic), キキともうひとりの 魔女 （ まじょ ） (Kiki and the Other Witch), キキの 恋 （ こい ） (Kiki's Love), 魔法 （ まほう ）の 止 （ と ）まり 木 （ ぎ ） (Perch of Magic), and それぞれの 旅立 （ たびだ ）ち (Each and Every Departure). The most recent was published in 2009 and it appears to be the last in the Kiki series.After its publication Nosaka received many offers to turn the book into a movie. He declined them all, claiming that it would be impossible to recreate the blasted landscape of Japan during the war and that he doubted child actors would be able to portray the necessary emotions convincingly. However, when an anime was suggested and Nosaka was shown provisional storyboards, he agreed to it, saying that it was not possible to film the novel any other way. I think the title says it all and it more than lived up to its promise. Getting a layered, detailed and revered insight into the Ghibli oeuvre was a journey worth taking. It faithfully covers Ghibli's best, mediocre and downright painful with a tart and honest approach. Isao Takahata was the director of Studio Ghibli's Grave of the Fireflies. Unlike most animation directors, he had not been an animator before becoming a director. His works are among Ghibli's least known films outside of Japan, including Only Yesterday, Pom Poko, and My Neighbors the Yamadas. Within Japan, though, the movie of Grave of the Fireflies was associated with fan favourite Totoro, as they were originally released together as a double feature. Tales from Earthsea was the first feature film directed by Gorō Miyazaki, son of animator Hayao Miyazaki. It was loosly based on the Earthsea series by Ursula K. Le Guin. The English name of the adaptation shares the name of a short story collection by Le Guin, but the movie actually draws on plot elements from many different books in the series. In Japanese the film is called ゲド 戦記 （ せんき ）, literally Ged's War Chronicles. The movie stays fairly close to the plot of the first book, although it does draw in a character from the second book in the series. The biggest change is certainly the setting, moving the action from 1950s England to modern Tokyo. The change only has one downside in my opinion. The names of the Borrowers are also borrowed from English words, such as Pod and Homily. In a Japanese setting, these names make little sense. However, looking past that, I think this is a fine adaptation that captures the spirit of the book. I was particularly impressed by the sound design, which gave a wonderful feeling of being small in a huge world.