NEWS: 2.35 Million Little Pieces

CULTURE: 2.35 Million Little Pieces

Alleged memoirist James Frey is costing his book publishing company millions of dollars. Random House, which published Frey’s discredited drug autobiography A Million Little Pieces, has agreed to refund readers who bought the book before Jan. 26, 2006, when Frey admitted he invented key passages in the book.

In a weird, literary version of a consumer recall, Random House said owners of the hardcover edition of the book should tear out page 163 and send it in to receive up to $23.95. Owners of the paperback can send in their covers to receive up to $14.95.

According to a brief statement on Random House’s website, the refund is being offered to settle a class action lawsuit. As of this time of writing, Oprah Winfrey, who endorsed the book on her television show, then chastised Frey once the allegations about the lies.

While it’s nice to see whiny shitbag Frey is being dragged through the mud with such vigor, it’s too bad that readers are being such crybabies about being lied to in a memoir. As the truly great memoirist Jim Knipfel pointed out a while ago, every modern published work of personal non-fiction probably deviates from the truth at some point.

Frey set himself up for a fall, writing a terrible book that only works if the reader views the events as true and pities the author. He made up ridiculous lies so that people would feel sorry for him — as the eXile’s designated Frey hater John Dolan said, the book manipulates frightened readers into caring about the question of “will little Jimmy stay straight-n-sober, or will he return to the drugs, the drugs, O the terrible drugs.”

Hopefully at least one disappointed, sensitive reader will blow the refund money on booze or pills or something. At least there’d be some lyrical irony there — meaning some literary worth was finally injected into the whole preceding.

How many people will now go and buy this book from the bookstore, only to find that page missing?


*goes to bookstore with scissors*

I enjoyed the book, thanks.

Who actually paid cover price for this book? It was being sold at a discount from the minute the Oprah-approved edition was released. This is ridiculous.

If you enjoyed the book...you enjoyed the book.

it was a good book. who gives a shit if it was really all true or not.

Even I didn't think of that. You are a crafty one, all right.

i didn't buy this piece of shit, but if anyone wants to donate their page 163 to me, i'll make sure the proceeds go to vodka.

Um, I assume it involves a dated receipt.

What happens on pg. 163?

I was thinking libraries, but bookstores would be better.

Snape dies.

you bitch!

Unmutilated copies will be worth money in a few years

you love me.







but seriously, like folks have been saying, it's a book and if you enjoyed it, fantastic, regardless of whether it's true or not...frankly, i think Oprah should be the one chastised for her actions of praising the guy and then stabbing him in the back...it's just a fucking story...i know that there was some fallout around the whole J.T. LeRoy saga, but I don't recall people demanding their money back after they found out (and personally, THIDAAT was a very moving book, regardless if it's made up or not)...if I were an author, I would rail against Oprah and her book club if my work were included, like Dave Eggers did

I want my money back for my copy of Jean-Claude Van Damme's "Bloodsport." It stated that it was based on "true events in the life of Frank W. Dux," when in fact Frank is a lying asshole who wants attention.

This threatens to make my fragile psyche crumble unless I get a refund for the $2 I paid for it from the discount bin at Wal-Mart.

/sarcasm off

The structure of that sentence eludes me.

preceding?

It was a powerful book. Fuck the naysayers.

Since most of the power lay in Frey's contempt for the bullshitters in recovery, I think most of that power is lost when it turns out he's the biggest bullshitter in the bunch.

That said, it's ridiculous to recall a memoir for being untruthful.

Now if he turns around and sells the movie rights about the torment he went through over this the man's a genius.

Just embellish a little and....

Really, that book wasn't so bad.

I don't understand why they don't just move it over to the Fiction section and save themselves millions of dollars. Or why they didn't when all the controversy started to begin with.

I was working in a bookstore when all that went down and I had to put all these stupid fliers in the books from Random House and James Frey (it was basically an apology to the reader).

I've never felt so bad for libel lawyers before. Maybe I was just uniformed.

..., then took it back, said she was sorry, and Frey and she had hot forbidden sex.

Maybe?

Write about that, liar-man!

if he was writing about some dumb childhood thing it would be different.

the whole point of recovery is facing the actual truth...therefore this book completely sucks ass and is worthless.

dry by augusten burroughs is a much better and much more honest book about the same stuff. try that one.