This was one of the books my husband chose for us to read aloud to our baby when we were getting him settled down at night. (He wasn't quite old enough to pay attention to picture books, plus we were needing to read for fairly long stretches.) My husband loved it when he was a kid, but this was my first reading of it. I really enjoyed it! 
 Some of the characters and situations felt derivative, but I imagine that could be because the series influenced writers of fantasy adventures that came after it. The characters were cartoony, but in the perfect way for a middle grade audience. Some of the dialogue was quite amusing, too, which made reading it aloud fun. (Gurgi made us smile. We'll admit it.) By the end, I found myself wishing I'd discovered this book when I was 11 or 12 years old. 
 We look forward to reading it again with our kiddo when he gets older.