"A Million Little Pieces" - James Frey

I read this and found it to be very pretentious. And I think I'm in a very small minority with this opinion! I did manage to slog through it and finish it, but it was tough going there for a while. My IRL book group is doing it for January -- another member had read it and said she liked it. I love it when we disagree on our books -- leads to good discussions. Anyway, I found James' attitude to be very holier-than-thou. Yeah, sure, you're an addict. Poor you. Just don't give me all this sturm und drang about your sorry life. Those of you who have dealt with addictions in your own life or families, please don't misunderstand me. I very much understand the toll addiction can take on an individual and on his/her loved ones. I just didn't think this book did a good job with it. And specifically because I was saying 'oh, poor you' as I was reading it just points out that he didn't write in a manner that made me have sympathy for him or his family. The scene in the dentist's is completely implausible and unrealistic. Not to mention the fact that not many people would get their jail sentence reduced to practically nil because he happens to be in rehab with a judge and a mobster. His choice to write with little punctuation and stream of consciousness didn't have the impact with me I think it was supposed to. I think he meant it to 'illustrate' how he managed to get through his days in one long blur of actions that, in his state, ran into one another. I think a more narrative style would have worked better. The part I enjoyed most was his post-script where he tells what happens to the people he met in rehab. I thought that was very poignant and touching. Will be very curious to see what others say as more people read it.

-Amy.