A Million Little Pieces is James Frey's autobiographical account of his six weeks in an addictions treatment centre. Controversy surrounds this book as readers and critics wonder if the story is real or fictional. I didn't even know of the scandal until after I read the book, when I read the reviews on GoodReads.
In my opinion, it doesn't matter whether it's true-to-life or not. All that matters is if the story was worth reading, and this book definitely met that criteria for me.
Frey's unique writing style drew me in. One could feel although they were in James' mind as his consciousness with his descriptive and graphic narrative. Some parts were difficult to read, but I still found it an interesting read.
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5 comments:
When I first heard about this book I really wanted to read it, but then when I heard that he had made up some parts and exaggerated others I decided not to read it. Lately, however, I've thought I might still like to read it, just keeping in mind that it's not all a true story. He has since written another book that is fiction. It will be interesting to see if he can redeem himself after the controversy surrounding "A Million Little Pieces".
I would definately still like to read this book despite the fact that he wasn't telling the whole truth. It would have been a lot easier if he had just said it was fiction.
I so enjoy your book reviews! This sounds like a good book... true to life or not. Even the newspaper doesn't tell the whole truth, so why does it even matter?
I've added this to my "books I want to read" list :)
Thanks for the review, Ter! I remember when Oprah introduced this author and the book...then had him back on the show to explain the controversy. My sense was that the poor guy was misguided by the publisher. In fact, as I recall, the publisher was fired....
As a result of your review, I think I will buy this book.
James Frey owes you!
I totally agree with you on this one ... whether it was 100% true or not, I thought it was a good read. I actually felt sick at points because of how he described things.
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