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Howl's Moving Castle's Diana Wynne Jones Passes Away

The official fan site of British author Diana Wynne Jones announced that Jones passed away on March 26 after a long struggle with cancer. She was 76. Jones wrote over 40 books and plays for both children and adults, and director Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli adapted one of the books, Howl's Moving Castle, into an Oscar-nominated anime film in 2004.

Jones was born in London in August of 1934, and she began studying at St. Anne's College in the University of Oxford in 1953. She met her future husband, John A. Burrow, at Oxford, and the two married in 1956.

Jones published her first novel, Changeover, in 1970, and she followed that with her first children's novel, Wilkins' Tooth (Witch's Business in North America), in 1973. She published Howl's Moving Castle in 1986 and continued the story with Castle in the Air (1990) and House of Many Ways (2008). Her other books include the Dalemark Quartet, the Chrestomanci Cycle, and The Tough Guide to Fantasyland (1996). She received the World Fantasy Award for lifetime achievement in 2007.

Jones is survived by her husband and three sons.

Thanks to Ty for the news tip.

Source: SF Site

Update: More background information added.