I got really confused by this story, mostly because I'm very indoctrinated by the cultural conceptions of this story and I don't even remember the last time I read it. Needless to say, not all of the imagery in the story is the same as what we have come to associate with it via Hollywood. 
 The style of the story is very on the blunt side. It took me a little while to ease into the narrative and it always seemed to me that every problem they encountered was resolved very quickly: even the Wicked Witch of the West only last one chapter! For some reason I expected much more of a fight from her, but again this is just one of those associations instilled in me by popular culture. 
 Despite this, it is clear why this is a story that transcends time.