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In the latest chapter of the hard-hitting investigation into how James Frey is a wussy drinker instead of a tough crackhead, Random House is offering refunds to anyone who bought the book directly from the publisher. Because a fake real book with a fake real root canal scene isn’t worth $14.95.
oh please,
this dude ain't got nuthin' on L Ron Hubbard.
Convincing enough people to believe your fiction to follow it as religion? Now that is mother fuckin' hoodwinked.
There's a really good piece by Christian Bauman on the fictionalised memoir fracas.
i loved _a million little pieces_ and, frankly, do not care if it is true or not, because it would have affected me the same way if i had found it in the fiction section.
but hot damn if i dont want a cupcake every time i see all those sprinkles.
As a fellow addict, I was a little disturbed by Frey's book, because it was so snide and condescending towards the whole 12-step thing. The whole time I was reading it, I was very concerned that other addicts out there who needed real help wouldn't go out and get it, because under the guidance of "A Million Little Pieces" they would discount 12-step programs and start thinking that blind will-power is the way to go, which unfortunately is just not going to work for the majority of people. But hey, I thought, this is a memoir, and he's just saying what worked for him.
But now that I know that the memoir was not, in fact, honest and straight-forward, I'm even more pissed off. He's presenting an argument against a good system (the 12-steps) which has helped alot of people, and has been the only thing that has helped some people, and he's using false evidence to back it up. I mean, that "rage" of his; was it, in reality, more like him feeling a little irritable? Did he really pull out his toe-nail in order to quell his anger, or was it simply symbolic of the sorts of things he would imagine doing during a cathartic pity-party for himself? And how bad was his real drinking problem, anyway?
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I wondered that too.
About the sprinkles, I mean.
Did anyone read this book? I did (yes, in response to the Oprah show, so what of it?), and I was immediately like "whuh?" about the opening. Really? They let you on a plane? Hmmm.
But then I was totally utterly hoodwinked until the part where he gets into it with the priest. It was such bullshit that I actually said to my wife, "I can't believe he thinks people are going to believe this shit!".
Some creative license is okay by me but this was ridiculous.