3.5 stars.

This rating is benefiting from nostalgia, as I love the movie. It is the rare case where the movie is better than the book. The bones of the story were there, but it just perpetually felt like something was missing. The characters had good detail and development, the plot moved in a way that made sense, and the writing was easy to fall into. Pacing did feel like a bit of a problem, as some pieces moved along too quickly so that it felt like the story was skimming the surface despite some good, descriptive writing. This was particularly true of the ending. The aunts were odd side characters throughout the narrative, but suddenly appeared and that event felt rushed and underdeveloped. The ending wrapped up very quickly and didn't have as much of a magical feel as I wanted. There was also some unnecessary crudeness in the writing that felt out of place and pulled me out of the story. I'm not a prude and don't mind language and sexual connotation if it makes sense for the plot, but these pieces just felt gratuitous. An okay read, but I'd rather watch the movie any day.