Book - A Million Little Pieces - James Frey
Where I got it - Value Village
Why I never read it before - Shortly after I bought this book, an old lady in a book store told me that it was all fake. That James Frey had claimed it was a memoir but that it really wasn't, that he had made all of it up. After I heard this I lost my desire to read it.
My rating - 4/5
Review -
I really enjoyed this book a lot. I've done some research now that I've finished the book and I've learned that not all of it was fake. James was an addict and he was in rehab. His criminal record was almost completely fabricated to make the book more interesting. I suspect that other parts of the novel were exaggerated to make it more entertaining.
Besides that, it was great. I've always had a bit of a soft spot for books about people with messed up lives. When I was younger I loved this author who wrote books about teens who were dying. As I got older, that fascination began to develop into a love of books about people who are criminals and drug addicts.
I will say that this book is the most graphic 'drug addict' book I have ever read (and I have read quite a few). The word vomit must be in it 200 times. James throws up at least 40 times and describes it in great detail every time. There is lots of gross stuff in this book and if they ever make it into a movie, I'm not sure that I'll be able to watch it.
This book gives you the most messed up person you can imagine, a crack addict, alcoholic criminal who is wanted in three states, and walks you through his recovery (every brutal and disgusting step). I could not put this book down.
The characters seemed so real to me, their struggles were painful for me to read. I'd like to think that this is because they were real people, but even if they weren't, the book still makes you feel for them.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes this kind of novel. The only reason that I didn't give it 5/5 is because of the author's dishonesty.
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