Ooh, I really liked this book. It took me back in time, twice! Actually three times, because it felt like something I should have read back when I was younger - and I could have, had I know it existed, because it was published in 1958. Even so, the story is a very entertaining and charming tale, even today, over half a century later. 
 I would call this a very charming, cozy, likeable story, a very nice change of pace from the current YA fare if you happen to need a cleansing of the palate, so to speak.