A Million Little Pieces 1st (first) Edition by Frey, James published by Anchor (2005)

Sometime in the early 90's i was sitting in Harvard Square having coffee with author, Tim O'Brien. We were talking about his best seller, "The Things They Carried". I took a deep breath and asked him, "Is this book true?" He blew across the surface of his coffee and said to me, "None of that stuff happened," Then a sip. "But it's all true." Some of you are saying, "how can this be so?' but i ask you to indulge me- as i will again later- because Mr. O'Brien is considered one of today's finest American writer's. True can mean so very much and given the memoir- a true account of the authors own life- or portion thereof- from the authors perspective one can hardly expect the facts to be such as a primary and secondary source biography of Thomas Jefferson. Clinical fact and emotional fact are two different things. Let me show you: Think of one of the worst things that ever happened to you. For half of you this could well be your divorce. Some of you, the loss of a love one through death; some of you it could be the battler with a horrible disease. Regardless, pick it, stick with it and stay with me. If I asked you to write me a 5,000 word description of your last seven days living with your ex-spouse and then asked him/her to do the same, will you tell me that I will receive two identical documents? I should hope not, because were that the case, you could have saved the marriage, but the truth is that you won't tell the same story and neither of you will have lied. You've heard the cliché' "there are three sides to every story." People with guilt believe that this means the truth, his lies and her lies (or any facsimile there-of) where what this cliché' means is that there are the base facts; not at all affected by human emotion. Then his story will be peppered by his past emotions, experiences and the tone of her voice. Her story will be peppered with memories of comments her mother made, or body image issues or some scene from a movie she saw years ago. No emotion stands alone and our recollection of events are not sterile and without other influences. So when writing a memoir such as "A Million Little pieces' not only did Mr. Frey write with the Tim O'Brien philosophy but he wrote based on how he remembered things. Regardless, i was so moved by this book that when 'THE CONTROVERSY" first began I said, "I just don't care." And the, as a writer myself, I thought about the fifteen pages it would take for me to get to the truth about an event from myt childhood and how, after an hour of thinking, I was able to get to the very same truth by altering some of the events leading up to it I decided to do the latter. After all, if my goal is to get to the truth, does it matter what road I used to get there? some may say that it does, but if my point is to tell of how my grandmother was taken away by ambulance because she took an entire bottle of Seconal when I was in seventh grade does it matter that I had to behave bravely because I was babysitting for the first time and it was the daughter of the farm hand who had found my grandmother and how hard it was for me to control the lump in my throat because of the huge back story having to do with this farm hand or could I simply find another way to get to the lump in my throat without bringing in the entire story of the farm hand? I saved my readers fifteen pages and a lot of information that had little to no bearing on the plot and the importance of what I wanted to say came through just as beautifully. In fact, because I did not force my reader to read paragraph after paragraph of back story about the farm hands bizarre connection to my family the reader was STILL READING when it was time to get to the real truth. Mr. Frey, thank you for your brilliant and beautiful book. In regard to the controversial press let me offer this quote from Joyce Carol Oats: "The punishment for being a writer is literary critics." Hang in there, Mr. Frey. The rest of you: read the book to discover the controversy; read the book because it is remarkably well written; read the book because I've given you plenty of reasons to do so; read the book because in a world full of hate it's nice to find some beauty. Don't let someone other than yourself decide for you.

As an author myself, and a Flight attendant with lots of time to read...on layovers...I'm always looking for the next good book. One way I determine "the next good book" is to watch what my passengers bring on the airplane to read. Then I ask them if they like the book and to give me a short review. If more than one passenger is reading the same book - I note that and if several are reading the same book - I note that and think, wow, there must be something to this book. On my last flight most of the readers were reading the same book A MILLION LITTLE PIECES, by James Frey. And they were all deeply and profoundly touched by the book. And while they all RAVED about the book, their reviews all came with warnings. "The book is edgy, and sobering (no pun intended)". So, I decided to check the book out, but because I believe in the old pharse 'it's not what you say, it's the way that you say it...'I wanted to read a taste of Frey's writing before I spent my money, so I went to Amazon.com and searched inside the book. I was instantly hooked. Ordered it and then the book arrived and I can't put it down. But, like other amazon.com reviewers here - I HAD to occassionaly put the book down, and step back and breath and deal with the sad/hard/real/devistating things Frey has to say. I lOVED HIS FIRST PERSON TENSE WRITING! LOVED IT. And I praise the editor who left it in it's tense! I have never been in a Detox center, or known anyone who was addicted to anything stronger than food, or shopping - at least anyone who wanted to talk about their addiction. And unlike Frey, (who disdains Christianity) I have a deep abiding faith. But, I have to tell you that of all the books I've ever read about pain and overcoming a past which weighs us down - (which I am working to do)...of all the books I've ever read about difficult times and rising above those times, other than the Bible - Frey's book has helped me most! It has helped me realize that blaming others for times I was a victim is futile. It has helped me understand why my friend who weighs 300 lbs at 5'4" and has already had stomach reduction surgery and then overroad that surgery, really does mean it when she says she can't help it -- that she really believes she has no control over her weight. Frey's book has helped me see inside the mind of someone who is addicted. And I am grateful. I am so grateful, I want to say, a prayer, "Dear God, thank you for this book. And O God, let other's read it and be helped. And God, please let James Frey stay sober. And Jesus, even your own brother's didn't believe in you, so I know you understand when James Frey doesn't believe in you either. Amen. Love Marsha "

This is an amazing book, as a writer I don't care what the haters and Oprah says about it ... it is the best book I've ever read on the description of addiction...better even than Go Ask Alice. What was disappointing is that I ordered the book brand new, it came brand new...but thanks to delivery drivers ... um it was water damaged? Smh. Snow in Kentucky 🙄🤦🏻‍♀️🚫🧢 However, even with the damage it's still legible and... would get tear stained anyway lol. 💁🏻‍♀️💯 Otherwise great buy, amazing book that I gifted to my son. This is my 2nd copy!!! ✨️🫶🚫🧢

There is a tremendous amount of controversy about this book, but whether it's truth or fiction, I found it to be an incredibly fascinating, absorbing read - so much so that I read it all the way through without stopping. The story begins as a 23-year old James Frey (the author, now in his 30s) wakes up in an airplane. His 4 teeth have been knocked out, he has a hole in his cheek, and he has no idea where he's going. He has been addicted to alcohol and crack for many years, and he soon learns he had jumped from his friend's fire escape while blacked out. The friend got James on a plane headed for Chicago, where his parents pick him up and take him to a 6 week stint in rehab. The entire book is about those 6 weeks in rehab - the physical torture his body undergoes as he detoxes, the colorful characters who become his friends, the girl he meets who gives him hope for the future, and the painful family therapy he undergoes with his parents. James learns that if he continues to do drugs he will soon die, and he embarks on a path to sobriety - not through AA, which is what the people at rehab want him to do - but on his own terms. Frey writes in a stream of consciousness style, so there is little punctuation - it is almost as though you are right inside his head, experiencing his thoughts and actions as he does. I found his story completely absorbing. Even though he had done a lot of terrible things to other people in his life, I found myself rooting for him, happy to see that as the weeks progressed he got better, and started to heal emotionally. In the last week or two there have been allegations that parts of this story are made up, and I can see how some people were more captivated by the story when they thought it was completely true. That said, I believe anyone would enjoy this book, whether it's real or fantasy.

Yes, I've heard the hoorah about the Oprah thing. I've seen the Larry King thing too. I read the news stories, and heard Oprah whine about being lied to. SO WHAT!!! I've read the book. So maybe James embellished some parts, maybe he was only in jail for a few hours. Having been in jail myself, a few hours could have seemed like weeks and weeks. Maybe the part about Lily sounded better in the book than the way it ACTUALLY went down. Again, SO WHAT!! A life still ended!! The book stands on it's own. It has helped millions of people with their addictions and it has been a guiding light for me personally having just went through a very similar life and recovery. It is now my Alcoholic Bible and anytime I feel like falling off the wagon I just open that book to any random page, read it for awhile and the feeling goes away. James Frey and his books have become my sponsors and I can turn to them whenever I need them. I normally don't pull out the race card, but I can't help but wonder, if James were black, would Oprah have treated him so shamefully?? HMMMM? Maybe you should read this book with this warning....."Careful, some parts of this book have been slightly embellished to emphasize importance and sometimes just to make it a bit more interesting to read. As written, this could happen to you, too." James' second book "My Friend Leanord" is also one of the most interesting stories that I have ever read. I recommend it highly, as well. Whew! I've been dying to get that off my chest for a long time. Please read the book and see if you don't agree. Any parts that may have been embellished have absolutely no effect on the importance of this book. James, please don't give up writing and in the great words of Leonard, JUST HOLD ON. With Love and Light, Scott This is BlueJazz

I was looking for a book on Amazon that a friend recommend, got the name wrong and accidentall ordered this one. At first I thought it was good, obviously imitative of Raymond Chandler et al and written what I imagine ee cummings wrote poetry like, if I had the patience for poetry. Maybe more like Faux David Mamet Lite. Anyway, at first I was enjoying the book then about a fifth of the way in I noticed part just kept ringing hollow. I went back and read the cover and found what I considered a clue in the Bret blurb about it being a great "performance" piece. Exactly, Bret. Half way through my husband asked if the book was any good, I said still reading, without thinking, "No, the author is too manipulative". And I knew it was true as soon as I said it. At the end of the day, the book is just too phony. The judge character is so obviously based on a number of Morgan Freeman movie performances its silly. The Roy character being outed to the group by staff as having a "multiple personality disorder" was the first truly phony moment I can recall in the book. The "bloody club" scene with Roy was just weirdly out of place and embarassing stuck in there. Plus, patient confidentiality anyone??? The deus ex machina grungy guy from Chicago that just shows up and tells the main character his new love interest's entire sexual history in five minutes? One of my favorite annoying thing was how the main character over and over talks about his whole life experience as significant evidence for something - at 23? The character's arrogant over-confident belief in his own life conclusions and experiences, especially about AA and true addiction are just pathetically sad at times because you get the feeling the author actually believes this and is not being ironic. The main character finally just comes across as a spoiled bourgeois bully latch-key kid (that had a lot of his parents money at his disposal over time; "So I flew back to Paris and did some more crack and beat up a priest, blah blah, blah...") that abused a lot of drugs until he scared himself silly by breaking his teeth and cutting his face (check out the author's picture after reading about how ravaged his face was in his vaguely described accident) and then after a stay in dry out place he quit...and probably went right back to his parent-assisted bourgeois life map, convinced that his years of drug abuse were really addiction and he is one tuff dude. The real eye-rolling scene for me was the bar scene at the end where the main character goes in and orders the drink. Pretty much _just_ like the Woody Harrelson character in the movie Palmetto. Go you tuff guy you. One last annoying thing - how the main character constantly goes on about how beautiful the love interest and how he so unselfishly loves her sexlessly and despite all her flaws. Blah blah blah. So admirable. How bigof him. And he is such a catch. Ack. Then the killing off of that love interest character, just like in a comic book. Just kept making me think of the The Crow comic book. Overall, an interesting (and easy) to read book, but often annoying if you are over say 30 years old and know anything at all about real life drug/alchol addiction.

I have never read a book like this before and I did not know what to expect. I am raising a 16 year old grandson who is currently in rehab and I gave him the book and he read half of it the first day (today). He called me tonight to tell me that he could hear his own words coming out of the book and it sounded like him. I knew exactly what he meant and it broke my heart. But it is also the first time he has been that honest about his own addiction. God, thank you James! I read it in two days. I could not put it down, or get it out of my head. The experience was like putting my own body inside of James' skin, allowing his brain inside of my head and living the life he was telling. The writing was quick and racing and brilliant. I found my breathing getting short at times, I would exclaim "Oh God!" at some points and put my head back and close my eyes, but then continue reading because there was no way not to. When I finished the book, I just kept carrying it around until I received "My Friend Leonard," the follow up story to AMLP. It was wonderful and broke my heart, but it was a completely different experience than AMLP. This book is a read. Not a lecture, not a message (unless you want it to be), but a read. It is an experience and it is exhausting and exhilerating. And it haunts you and stays with you. It's been a few weeks since I've finished it and I can't get it out of my mind. There are some experiences that are unique and knock the breath out of you. A Million Little Pieces is like that. I hope he keeps writing and writing and that everyone gets to read AMLP, because no matter who you are, that experience is amazing!

James Frey's memoir of his six weeks in rehab gives an insider view of the challenges of recovery, a view I appreciated since I have a sibling who is a long-time alcoholic (and who lost everything in his service to his disease). This book gave me a greater appreciation for the very real and compelling difficulties of getting and staying clean. It's written "coldly", that is, without apologies or complaints (in general) and the story itself and its many characters make it a page-turner. I would have liked to understand them in more depth, however, something that Frey appears to have been unwilling to do. Action rather than introspection is the focus of the work; the reader will not hear the author explain much, if anything, on motives or perspectives on the action. This withholding both enhances and inhibits the book. In the end I felt that his withholding marred Frey's account and that is why I could not give his book five stars. Enduring through a horrific ordeal and remaining outside the grip of addiction are admirable, no question. I applaud Frey for being forthcoming about the surface details of his experience, including his confession of the crimes committed as an addict. Writing the story and yet failing to give a richer, deeper perspective, one wrought from honest and vulnerable introspection--a kind of recollection in traquility--made me leave the experience of reading his book with a sense that something crucial was missing. If you like to read a book just for story, this is a terrific account of the visceral experience of recovery. If you want to know what is in the mind of the addict on the road to recovery, what the psychological experience is like and what drives an individual toward the will to recover, you may find yourself somewhat disappointed.

This is a good read: a very engaging story that is written to keep you turning pages.

Got this in ebook form during a monthly amazon sale and I was a little skeptical on the content - I've been working with people struggling with addiction and I've read on the controversy around this story. I honestly didn't care that much about the controversy and immersed myself completely in the book. Sometimes it's a little painful to read for how detialed some things are, but I definitely think it's a useful book to understand the perspective of people struggling with addiction and the point of view of theire families too. Would recommend

The book gripped me from the very first paragraph. The brutal honesty and strength of James to get his life back on track is a testament to his strength. Brilliant from start to end!!

The Independent dubbed this as 'turbocharged' and I think it is a good overall summary. Like many of my book purchases, I procrastinate for a long time and then hit the purchase button in the hope that I will be swept away into the authors world and come out smiling. A Million Little Pieces did this for me. It is unique as I have never read anything similar. It is fast moving, hence the verdict of turbocharged and subsequently I was never bored at any point. The writing style reflects the story, as one might expect a drug addicted, alcoholic, criminal (he dubs himself as this several times over) to write. The are no speech marks and few commas, which to an English teacher would probably be considered a sin. There is plenty of obscene language and confrontation, yet somehow it is beautiful. We hear of so many stories of the guy or girl that had to climb the greasy pole to fulfill their ambition of being a millionaire or sport star, but in this story, it is about a drug addict trying to escape not only his vices, but his crazed mind. There are rumblings about James Frey fabricating much of what really happened to him, but don't let that ruin your reading pleasure. If you are looking for a book that has what I would define as an anti-hero for the main character, where love is found in unusual circumstances, friendships are made in crazy ways then read this book. In addition to this there are interesting perspectives on religion, the origins of why an addict might become that way and family reconciliation. Finally do yourself a big favour if you buy this, DO NOT READ pages 513 - 14; this will tell you the outcome of every character you get to know, love and hate during the course of the book.

I used to be a user so I could relate to what the author went through during his time at rehab. The struggle with overcoming an addiction is dark and real but easy when you surround yourself with good people.