I don't actually remember how old I was when I read the book, but it was during high school. I don't in fact hold the book in high regard, and I didn't suggest that to be the case.

You seem to have terribly misread my opinion here. I am not indicating that Magician is one of the Best Fantasy Novels there is. Far from the fact actually. I have merely said that Magician is a good book to read for those interested in 'checking' out the genre. It's indicative. It is better than a lot of its contemporaries, which isn't saying much. It is an easy story to read, with good story telling and capable writing.

I do not rate Jordan's work that highly. The man was able to cast a truly remarkable vision and create a very vast world and history. I find his characters to be stiff, conventional, and comprised mostly of cliche actions and sayings. His writing was only rarely concise... history sections and action scenes primarily. His characterization of women and most characters just outside the main PoVs is laughable. I enjoy the series for the grandness of it, but I haven't been able to make myself read the last couple books.

Of course, I don't rate Magician highly enough to reread it either. It was a very good book for the genre when it came out in the early 1980s, but much has surpassed it since. I do believe that Magician was a direct influence on writers that were to follow