I really disliked this story, especially after I kept pushing through to finish. I spent the entire time waiting for the other shoe to drop, the curtain to pull back, the mystery to reveal itself but no. It was exactly what it seemed to be on the surface. The rambling daydream fantasy of an adolescent boy. I could put up with the fact that there was an very loose structure, I guessed it was supposed to reflect the nature of dreams always skipping from one topic to the next. What I could deal with is the whole plot. It just reminded me of the kinds of daydreams I you have when you are a boy (or even when your grown up I suppose).
"I'm going to be sooo cool. I'll be able to talk to animals and I'll have two hot girls who both instantly want me and are passionately devoted to me. One will be the girl next door who I can depend on, the other will be all mysterious and magical. I'll remember everything I study and be super smart. All the teachers will be so amazed at how intelligent I am that they won't care if I skip class. I'll always have something smart to say and when someone is skeptical of me I'll win them over instantly. I'll always be able to end a discussion with a smart quotation or poem that leaves them in awe. Then I'll try out for the football team and be the best. But it won't be like I care about it or anything, because really it is beneath me. I'll just do it like I do everything, because I can without really needing to try. Then I'll be on the starting line, and immediately get picked by a college recruiter. The other guys will be jealous but I'll just beat them up with my amazing skills. They've got to start the fight though, otherwise it will seem like I'm picking in them. Most importantly I'll always be aloof and humble about my actions, I can't seem like I'm too proud of anything I've done. After all, I'm too cool to have motivations"
After seeing everything just fall into the main characters lap without him actually doing anything I kept wanting it to turn into a deconstruction of such fantasies. Sadly, it was not to be. He wins because it is his dream, not because of anything he does. There is no challenge, no threat, any monsters are simply constructions he creates to be defeated. There is no dilemma, only knots which are easily cut with his sword and he can always have it both ways. Sure we all have daydream fantasies about that but when you put it in the light of day it becomes obvious those gold coins are made of plastic.
In addition the main character had no personality, again he was "too cool" to really seem to care about or get excited about anything. His rambling responses to any question reminded me of my younger self, attempting to appear intelligent and insightful by responding with overly long explanations of my entire thought process.
Overall the story left me very dissatisfied. It kept building up this scenario that I thought could be explored a little more interestingly and was just played completely straight. I can't take this seriously as a coming of age story because it lacks any sort of conflict. The main character became smarter, stronger, and more attractive through no trails of his own. When he tells Ms. Grimes that he is still a boy he isn't just being humble despite the implied "Oh he is a strong man, but just doesn't know it yet because look how humble he is." He is still a boy living a boys fantasy.