A Million Little Pieces
May 2004 · Anchor
4.6star
121 reviewsreport
eBook
448
Pages
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About this eBook
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A gripping memoir about the nature of addiction and the meaning of recovery from a bold and talented literary voice. “Anyone who has ever felt broken and wished for a better life will find inspiration in Frey’s story.” —People
“A great story.... You can't help but cheer his victory.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review
By the time he entered a drug and alcohol treatment facility, James Frey had taken his addictions to near-deadly extremes. He had so thoroughly ravaged his body that the facility’s doctors were shocked he was still alive. The ensuing torments of detoxification and withdrawal, and the never-ending urge to use chemicals, are captured with a vitality and directness that recalls the seminal eye-opening power of William Burroughs’s Junky.
But A Million Little Pieces refuses to fit any mold of drug literature. Inside the clinic, James is surrounded by patients as troubled as he is—including a judge, a mobster, a one-time world-champion boxer, and a fragile former prostitute to whom he is not allowed to speak—but their friendship and advice strikes James as stronger and truer than the clinic’s droning dogma of How to Recover. James refuses to consider himself a victim of anything but his own bad decisions, and insists on accepting sole accountability for the person he has been and the person he may become—which runs directly counter to his counselors' recipes for recovery.
James has to fight to find his own way to confront the consequences of the life he has lived so far, and to determine what future, if any, he holds. It is this fight, told with the charismatic energy and power of One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, that is at the heart of A Million Little Pieces: the fight between one young man’s will and the ever-tempting chemical trip to oblivion, the fight to survive on his own terms, for reasons close to his own heart. "
“A great story.... You can't help but cheer his victory.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review
By the time he entered a drug and alcohol treatment facility, James Frey had taken his addictions to near-deadly extremes. He had so thoroughly ravaged his body that the facility’s doctors were shocked he was still alive. The ensuing torments of detoxification and withdrawal, and the never-ending urge to use chemicals, are captured with a vitality and directness that recalls the seminal eye-opening power of William Burroughs’s Junky.
But A Million Little Pieces refuses to fit any mold of drug literature. Inside the clinic, James is surrounded by patients as troubled as he is—including a judge, a mobster, a one-time world-champion boxer, and a fragile former prostitute to whom he is not allowed to speak—but their friendship and advice strikes James as stronger and truer than the clinic’s droning dogma of How to Recover. James refuses to consider himself a victim of anything but his own bad decisions, and insists on accepting sole accountability for the person he has been and the person he may become—which runs directly counter to his counselors' recipes for recovery.
James has to fight to find his own way to confront the consequences of the life he has lived so far, and to determine what future, if any, he holds. It is this fight, told with the charismatic energy and power of One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, that is at the heart of A Million Little Pieces: the fight between one young man’s will and the ever-tempting chemical trip to oblivion, the fight to survive on his own terms, for reasons close to his own heart. "
Ratings and reviews
4.6
121 reviews
Meaghan Buck
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25 June 2023
One of the best books ever written that's a true story! Thank you for having the courage to share your journey with us and thank you for making a positive impact in my life! I love your other book, "My Friend Leonard " a lot too!! Stay blessed 🙏❤️
Tamika Kirksey
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4 June 2019
When I first started reading I was interested in the horror and the sorrow of the author going thru drug withdraws and the pain of stretches and root canal. Yesh!Then after awhile it became annoying because he kept repeating himself. Also as much as he claims he doesn't believe in anything, Higher power or not, he believed in Lau-Tzu. My opinion That's something. This book isn't even true but the reason I give it a 3 is that I do like the lay out. None of " " and bold letters. To me it's like he is speaking to nobody but somebody. I also like the beginning, the relationship he has develop with Lilly, Leonard, and Miles that make me want to read more.
1 person found this review helpful
A Google user
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5 March 2019
I love this book many times as it's my former life in a nutshell. But! Author was exposed for completely making this entire book up and never had any addiction issues...(Figures) I believe it was Oprah who opened Pandora's box and reported it it was fiction. If I remember correctly, this book was in Oprah's Book Club and,.of course, she personally chooses books for her club. And this man tarnished Oprah's reputation.....tisk tisk It's an obvious lawsuit from the company that published him as well as her Heiness, Ms Oprah I would absolutely insist that any current or former drug/alcohol addict READ IT ASAP! Even though now proven fiction it's still an amazing non edited ugliness of addiction and diagnosed behavioral issues. Im still amazed that I was like this not so long ago. YOU WON'T B DISSAPOINTED IN THE LEAST. POWERFUL AND EMOTIONAL
9 people found this review helpful
About the author
JAMES FREY is originally from Cleveland. He is the bestselling author of A Million Little Pieces and My Friend Leonard. He lives in New York.
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