Well, I finished it today, and I don't think I could have stood it had it been longer.
It was beautifully told, and no, I don't think there was anything gratuitous about the abuse, and the boy did, indeed escape through his own cleverness. It had the same kind of half-melancholy ending that the book Star Dust had - more bittersweet than I tend to like. And parts of it reminded me of a Doctor Who episode.
but I think I won't read too much more Gaiman. For one thing, his writing style influences my own too much, and not in a good way.
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