One of the first stories I read as a child was Peter S. Beagle's The Last Unicorn.
The story has stuck with me since back when I was an adolescent.
I don't know what it is about this tale of fantasy, but it's infectious for some reason.
This was also my first exposure to an animated film done by a Japanese animation company known as Topcraft which had just hired a new guy to the anime industry named Hayao Miyazaki who later went on to form the now famous Studio Ghibli.
It's no wonder why this story and eventually film was so good:
If you've got kids or are just looking for a change of pace, then this story of pure fantasy is right for you.