Best Books

The Best Books To Read For Fans Of Studio Ghibli & Hayao Miyazaki

“What are the best books to read for fans of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli?” We looked at 155 of the top books, aggregating and ranking them so we could answer that very question!

The top 17 titles, all appearing on 2 or more “Best Studio Ghibli” book lists, are ranked below by how many lists they appear on. The remaining 125+ titles, as well as the lists we used are in alphabetical order at the bottom of the page.

Happy Scrolling!



Top 17 Books For Fans Of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli



17 .) A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

Lists It Appears On:

  • Lawrence Public Library
  • The Guardian

This is an extraordinarily moving novel about coming to terms with loss. The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do. But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting. He’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming…The monster in his back garden, though, this monster is something different. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor. It wants the truth. Costa Award winner Patrick Ness spins a tale from the final idea of much-loved Carnegie Medal winner Siobhan Dowd, whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself. Darkly mischievous and painfully funny, “A Monster Calls” is an extraordinarily moving novel of coming to terms with loss from two of our finest writers for young adults. This book is jacketed.

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16 .) A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1) by Ursula K. Le Guin

Lists It Appears On:

  • Crunchyroll
  • Goodreads

Originally published in 1968, Ursula K. Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earthsea marks the first of the six now beloved Earthsea titles. Ged was the greatest sorcerer in Earthsea, but in his youth he was the reckless Sparrowhawk. In his hunger for power and knowledge, he tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tumultuous tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death’s threshold to restore the balance.

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15 .) A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

Lists It Appears On:

  • Itcher
  • The Guardian

In 1962, Madeleine L’Engle debuted her novel A Wrinkle in Time, which would go on to win the 1963 Newbery Medal. Bridging science and fantasy, darkness and light, fear and friendship, the story became a classic of children’s literature and is beloved around the world.

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14 .) From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by Elaine Lobl Konigsburg

Lists It Appears On:

  • Book Riot
  • Crunchyroll

Claudia knew that she could never pull off the old-fashioned kind of running away…Therefore she decided that her leaving home would not just be running from somewhere but would be running to somewhere. To a large place, a comfortable place, an indoor place, and preferably a beautiful place. And that’s why she decided upon the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Claudia plans everything very carefully. But neither she nor her younger brother and chosen companion Jamie could possibly expect to find themselves involved in an intriguing art mystery. But that’s just what happens!

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13 .) Kiki’s Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono

Lists It Appears On:

  • Book Riot
  • Goodreads

“Kiki is a resourceful, spunky girl who follows her maternal tradition to be a witch. She possesses only one gift of witchcraft — the power to fly. Like all young witches, she sets out at age 12 to find a town of her own. With her ever-present companion Jiji — a cynical and faithful black cat — Kiki departs on her broomstick and arrives at a big town near the ocean. Though nervous at first, she soon sets up a business delivering packages.

Kiki meets all kinds of people and has many adventures. She befriends the thief who stole her broomstick and saves the town’s traditional New Year’s marathon with some courageous and timely flying.

Throughout, Kiki’s confidence and self-awareness grows as she learns to value her unique talents. And with Kiki’s help, the townspeople realize that everyone has some magic that gives them their own special character and vitality.”

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12 .) The Borrowers (The Borrowers, #1) by Mary Norton

Lists It Appears On:

  • Crunchyroll
  • Goodreads

The Borrowers—the Clock family: Homily, Pod, and their fourteen-year-old daughter, Arrietty, to be precise—are tiny people who live underneath the kitchen floor of an old English country manor. All their minuscule home furnishings, from postage stamp paintings to champagne cork chairs, are “borrowed” from the “human beans” who tromp around loudly above them. All is well until Pod is spotted upstairs by a human boy! Can the Clocks stay nested safely in their beloved hidden home, or will they be forced to flee? The British author Mary Norton won the Carnegie Medal for The Borrowers in 1952, the year it was first published in England. This repackaged paperback edition still has the delightful original black-and-white illustrations by Beth and Joe Krush inside. A charmer!

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11 .) The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Lists It Appears On:

  • Reddit
  • The Guardian

“Bod is an unusual boy who inhabits an unusual place—he’s the only living resident of a graveyard. Raised from infancy by the ghosts, werewolves, and other cemetery denizens, Bod has learned the antiquated customs of his guardians’ time as well as their ghostly teachings—such as the ability to Fade so mere mortals cannot see him.

Can a boy raised by ghosts face the wonders and terrors of the worlds of both the living and the dead?”

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10 .) The Hobbit by Tolkien

Lists It Appears On:

  • Book Riot
  • Crunchyroll

Written for J.R.R. Tolkien’s own children, The Hobbit met with instant critical acclaim when it was first published in 1937. Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum, and the spectacular world of Middle-earth recounts of the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent.

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9 .) The Moomins by Tove Jansson

Lists It Appears On:

  • Itcher
  • The Guardian

Tove Jansson is revered around the world as one of the foremost children’s authors of the twentieth century for her illustrated chapter books regarding the magical worlds of her creation, the Moomins. The Moomins saw life in many forms but debuted to its biggest audience ever on the pages of the world’s largest newspaper, the London Evening News, in 1954. The strip was syndicated in newspapers around the world with millions of readers in forty countries. Moomin Book One is the first volume of Drawn & Quarterly’s publishing plan to reprint the entire strip drawn by Jansson before she handed over the reins to her brother Lars in 1960. This is the first time the strip will be published in any form in North America and will deservedly place Jansson among the international cartooning greats of the last century.

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8 .) The Ocean At the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

Lists It Appears On:

  • The Guardian
  • The Guardian

“A brilliantly imaginative and poignant fairy tale from the modern master of wonder and terror, The Ocean at the End of the Lane is Neil Gaiman’s first new novel for adults since his #1 New York Times bestseller Anansi Boys.

This bewitching and harrowing tale of mystery and survival, and memory and magic, makes the impossible all too real…”

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7 .) The Secret Garden by Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett

Lists It Appears On:

  • Crunchyroll
  • The Guardian

THERE IS NO ONE LEFT When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen. It was true, too. She had a little thin face and a little thin body, thin light hair and a sour expression. Her hair was yellow, and her face was yellow because she had been born in India and had always been ill in one way or another. Her father had held a position under the English Government and had always been busy and ill himself, and her mother had been a great beauty who cared only to go to parties and amuse herself with gay people. She had not wanted a little girl at all, and when Mary was born she handed her over to the care of an Ayah, who was made to understand that if she wished to please the Mem Sahib she must keep the child out of sight as much as possible. ….

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6 .) The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

Lists It Appears On:

  • Book Riot
  • Crunchyroll

Meek little Mole, wilful Ratty, Badger the perennial bachelor, and petulant, boastful Toad: over one hundred years since their first appearance in 1908, they’ve become emblematic archetypes of eccentricity, folly and friendship. And their misadventures – in gypsy caravans, stolen sports cars, and their beloved Wild Wood – continue to capture readers’ imaginations and warm their hearts long after they grow up. Begun as a series of letters from Kenneth Grahame to his son, The Wind in the Willows is a timeless tale of animal cunning and human camaraderie.

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5 .) Tom’s Midnight Garden by Ann Philippa Pearce

Lists It Appears On:

  • Crunchyroll
  • Itcher

“When Tom’s brother gets sick, he’s shipped off to spend what he’s sure will be a boring summer with his aunt and uncle in the country. But then Tom hears the old grandfather clock in the hall chime thirteen times, and he’s transported back to an old garden where he meets a young, lonely girl named Hatty.

Tom returns to the garden every night to have adventures with Hatty, who mysteriously grows a little older with each visit. As the summer comes to an end, Tom realizes he wants to stay in the garden with Hatty forever.”

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4 .) Uprooted by Naomi Novik

Lists It Appears On:

  • Book Riot
  • Quirk Books

“Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted Wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life.

Her people rely on the cold, driven wizard known only as the Dragon to keep its powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as falling to the Wood.

The next choosing is fast approaching, and Agnieszka is afraid. She knows—everyone knows—that the Dragon will take Kasia: beautiful, graceful, brave Kasia, all the things Agnieszka isn’t, and her dearest friend in the world. And there is no way to save her.

But Agnieszka fears the wrong things. For when the Dragon comes, it is not Kasia he will choose.”

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3 .) When Marnie Was There by Joan G. Robinson

Lists It Appears On:

  • Crunchyroll
  • Goodreads

Anna hasn’t a friend in the world – until she meets Marnie among the sand dunes. But Marnie isn’t all she seems…An atmospheric ghost story about friendship, families and loneliness. Sent away from her foster home one long, hot summer to a sleepy Norfolk village by the sea, Anna dreams her days away among the sandhills and marshes. She never expected to meet a friend like Marnie, someone who doesn’t judge Anna for being ordinary and not-even-trying. But no sooner has Anna learned the loveliness of friendship than Marnie vanishes…

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2 .) Whisper of the Heart by Aoi Hiiragi

Lists It Appears On:

  • Goodreads
  • Quirk Books

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1 .) Howl’s Moving Castle (Howl’s Moving Castle, #1) by Diana Wynne Jones

Lists It Appears On:

  • Book Riot
  • Goodreads
  • Reddit

Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the Wizard Howl’s castle. To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there’s far more to Howl—and herself—than first meets the eye.

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The 125+ Additional Best Hayao Miyazaki Books



 

# Books Authors Lists
(Titles Appear On 1 List Each)
18 A Norwegian Farm Marie Hamsun Crunchyroll
19
A Series of Unfortunate Events
Reddit
20 A Well-Timed Enchantment Vivian Vande Velde
Quirk Books
21 Above World Jenn Reese
Lawrence Public Library
22 Akata Witch Nnedi Okorafor
Lawrence Public Library
23 Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland Lewis Carroll Crunchyroll
24 Alla vi barn i Bullerbyn Astrid Lindgren Crunchyroll
25 American Gods Reddit
26 Artemis Fowl Eoin Colfer
Lawrence Public Library
27 Baron: The Cat Returns Aoi Hiiragi Goodreads
28 Bird Crystal Chan
The Guardian
29 Black Dove, White Raven Elizabeth Wein
Lawrence Public Library
30 Borrowers Book Riot
31 Brave Story Book Riot
32 Breaking Sky Cori McCarthy
Lawrence Public Library
33 Bylo nas pet Karel Polacek Crunchyroll
34 Cakes in Space
The Guardian
35 Chronicles of Prydain
The Guardian
36 Chumon no Ooi Ryouriten Kenji Miyazawa Crunchyroll
37 City Neighbor: The Story of Jane Addams Clara Ingram Judson Crunchyroll
38 Coraline Neil Gaiman Itcher
39 Dealing With Dragons Patricia C. Wrede
Lawrence Public Library
40 Devatero pohádek Karel Čapek Crunchyroll
41 Donkey Oaty: Ass of La Mancha Kate O’Neil
The Guardian
42 Eagle of the Ninth Rosemary Sutcliff Crunchyroll
43 Endgame
The Guardian
44 Every Heart a Doorway Seanan McGuire
Quirk Books
45 Fangirl Rainbow Rowell
Quirk Books
46 Flambards Kathleen Wendy Peyton Crunchyroll
47 Flying Witch, Vol. 1 Chihiro Ishizuka Goodreads
48 Girl in Fairyland Reddit
49 Grave of the Fireflies Akiyuki Nosaka Goodreads
50 Half World Book Riot
51 Hans Brinker Mary Mapes Dodge Crunchyroll
52 Harry Potter
The Guardian
53 Heidi Johanna Spyri Crunchyroll
54 His Dark Materials
The Guardian
55 House of Many Ways Book Riot
56 Il Romanzo di Cipollino Gianni Rodari Crunchyroll
57 Ingo books
The Guardian
58 Inkheart
The Guardian
59 Island of the Blue Dolphins Scott O’Dell Itcher
60 Journey to the West Wú Chéng’ēn Crunchyroll
61 Kafka on the Shore Reddit
62 Kamisama Kiss Julietta Suzuki
Quirk Books
63 Kat, Incorrigible Book Riot
64 Les Princes du Vent Michel-Aime Baudouy Crunchyroll
65 Leviathan Scott Westerfeld
Lawrence Public Library
66 Little Lord Fauntleroy Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett Crunchyroll
67 Little, Big Reddit
68 Long Lankin Lindsey Barraclough
The Guardian
69
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
Reddit
70 Mortal Instruments
The Guardian
71
Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh
The Guardian
72 My Neighbor Totoro Tsugiko Kubo Goodreads
73 Nation Reddit
74 Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Vol. 1 (Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, #1) Hayao Miyazaki Goodreads
75 Ni no Kuni Magic Master Limited Book NiNoKuni Studio Ghibli Japan DS PS3 NEW !! Level 5 Goodreads
76 Northern Lights
The Guardian
77 Only Yesterday #1 Yuko Tone Goodreads
78 Phoenix
The Guardian
79 Princess Mononoke: The First Story Hayao Miyazaki Goodreads
80 Pure Julianna Baggott
The Guardian
81 Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe Crunchyroll
82 Ronia, the Robber’s Daughter Astrid Lindgren Goodreads
83 Sabriel Garth Nix
Quirk Books
84 Shadows on the Moon
The Guardian
85 Skulduggery Pleasant
The Guardian
86 Souvenirs entomologiques Jean-Henri Casimir Fabre Crunchyroll
87 Spirited Away, Volume 1 Hayao Miyazaki Goodreads
88 Stardust Reddit
89 Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio Pu Songling Crunchyroll
90 Swallows and Amazons Arthur Ransome Crunchyroll
91 Tales from Earthsea Reddit
92 The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle Crunchyroll
93 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Mark Twain Crunchyroll
94 The Ancient Magus’ Bride, Vol. 1 Kore Yamazaki Goodreads
95 The Art of My Neighbor Totoro Hayao Miyazaki Goodreads
96 The Art of Spirited Away Hayao Miyazaki Goodreads
97 The Bear and the Nightingale Katherine Arden
Quirk Books
98 The Book Thief Marcus Zusak Itcher
99 The Chronicles of Darkness Reddit
100 The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe C S Lewis Itcher
101 The City of Ember Jeanne DuPrau
Lawrence Public Library
102 The Faraway Tree
The Guardian
103 The Flying Classroom Erich Kästner Crunchyroll
104 The Forbidden Library
The Guardian
105 The Fox Woman Kij Johnson
Lawrence Public Library
106 The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland In A Ship of Her Own Making Catherynne M. Valente
Lawrence Public Library
107 The Girl Who Could Fly
The Guardian
108 The Girl with Ghost Eyes M.H. Boroson Goodreads
109 The Golem Reddit
110 The House That Beebo Built
The Guardian
111 The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms N.K. Jemisin
Quirk Books
112 The Indian in the Cupboard Lynne Reid Banks Itcher
113 The Kite Rider
The Guardian
114 The Last Leaves Falling
The Guardian
115 The Last Unicorn Reddit
116 The Last Wild Piers Torday
The Guardian
117 The Lion Boy trilogy Reddit
118 The Little Bookroom Eleanor Farjeon Crunchyroll
119 The Little Prince Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Crunchyroll
120 The Little White Horse Elizabeth Goudge Crunchyroll
121 The Long Winter Laura Ingalls Wilder Crunchyroll
122 The man who planted the welsh onions Kim Soun Crunchyroll
123 The Otterbury Incident Cecil Day-Lewis Crunchyroll
124 The Radium Woman Eleanor Doorly Crunchyroll
125 The Rose and the Ring William Makepeace Thackeray Crunchyroll
126 The Ship That Flew Hilda Lewis Crunchyroll
127 The Silver Skates Mary Mapes Dodge Crunchyroll
128 The Sleeper and The Spindle Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell
The Guardian
129 The Star of Kazan Eva Ibbotson
The Guardian
130 The Strange & Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender Lyndsey Walton
The Guardian
131 The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter Anonymous Goodreads
132 The Three Musketeers Alexandre Dumas Crunchyroll
133 The Treasure of the Nibelungs G.Schalk Crunchyroll
134 The Twenty-One Balloons William Pené du Bois
The Guardian
135 The Twistrose Key
The Guardian
136 The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle Hugh John Lofting Crunchyroll
137
The Weirdstone of Brisingamen
The Guardian
138 This One Summer Book Riot
139 Tiffany Aching Reddit
140 Time Stops For No Mouse
The Guardian
141 Tinder
The Guardian
142 Tistou les pouces verts Maurice Druon Crunchyroll
143 Toby Alone Timothée de Fombelle
The Guardian
144 Toui Mukashi no Fushigina Hanashi-Nihon Reiiki Tsutomu Minakami Crunchyroll
145 Treasure Island Robert Louis Stevenson Crunchyroll
146 Truckers Book Riot
147 Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Jules Verne Crunchyroll
148 Varjak Paw
The Guardian
149 Where the Wild Things Are Maurice Sendak
Quirk Books
150 Winnie-the-Pooh A. A. Milne Crunchyroll
151 Wolf Brother
The Guardian
152 Zero – Japans Legendary WWII Fighter: Combat and Development History of Japan’s Legendary Mitsubishi A6M Zero Fighter Robert C. Mikesh Goodreads
153 Двена́дцать ме́сяцев Samuil Marshak Crunchyroll
154 Иван-дурак Leo Tolstoy Crunchyroll
155 Конёк-горбунок Пётр Па́влович Ершо́в Crunchyroll


8 Best Studio Ghibli Book Sources/Lists



Source Article
Book Riot Books for Miyazaki Movie Fans
Crunchyroll Hayao Miyazaki’s 50 recommended books
Goodreads Books for Fans of Hayao Miyazaki, Studio Ghibli, Spirited Away, etc.
Itcher 7 Books like Studio Ghibli Movies: Finding That Magic
Lawrence Public Library Books For Miyazaki Fans
Quirk Books BOOK RECS BASED ON STUDIO GHIBLI MOVIES
Reddit Looking for books similar to Studio Ghibli-style movies.
The Guardian Which children’s books need to adapted by Studio Ghibli?

 

A.M. Anderson

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