This is a great example of a book that is not timeless. I enjoyed most of the plot, it seemed very dreamlike and full of childhood fascinations. But, I couldn't help thinking about reading this to children as a bedtime story. You would have to stop and explain so much simply because modern life is much different to when this play was first written. Violence and racism are abundant in this story. I would have given this four stars because it would be unfair to judge this book so harshly for being out-of-date when it was written so long ago, but the ending dragged on and on in a very unnecessary way.