After reading some of the reviews on this book, I can't help but agree that this book is full of the typical fantasy cliches.  Despite that, this book will probably always be one of my favorites because this was one of the first fantasy novels I ever read.  Having read only a couple other books in that category which were along a different line, I found this book to be extremely engaging.  I absolutely loved it.  Since then, with the exception of The Lord of the Rings, I have yet to read a fantasy novel that has enthralled me as much as The Green Rider.