I grew up with this book and always found it refreshing to see how someone's real character could be improved even if his outside seemed strongly bad. And, that a person's redemption could take place in his own life (ie. without the necessity of perishing, or being eaten first). Its charming and 'Yellow submarine'-stylish 1968 Dolittle plus the endearing portraits of the familiar push-me-pull-you and other characters combine with swashbuckled pirates in colorful scenery, and a non-preachy happy ending, to make the story a good bedtime reading for small children. I am pleased to pass this book's tattered pages on to our next generation. I hope that someday a publisher will decide to reprint this story: in doing so it would be choosing most wisely.