million little pieces

Recently read a very interesting book called "million little pieces". One of the highly controversial memoirs of recent times; this book talks about james frey's addiction towards drugs and alcohol. The memoir starts of when james is taken to a famous rehab center (Britney comes to your mind rite?) in the US. It talks about his confrontation with himself in giving up the habit and undergoing reforms by constantly challenging and blaming himself for all his heinous deeds, instead of blaming the system and the circumstances. He believes in self control to overcome addiction rather than following the standard treatment prescribed by the rehab (indulgence in spiritual practice and social cause). In there, he falls for a vulnerable drug addict Lilly which gives him a new lease of life. He gets into trouble by breaking the rules of the rehab for the benefit of his gal fren. This book highlights the psyche of a drug addict and his take on various aspects of life like relationship, parental care, love life and friendship. The way he makes friends with other inmates in the rehab is very interestingly written. There he meets Leonard a father figure with criminal background. His next book deals with his life after rehab with leonard (yet to read it).

Now, why has it got into controversies? Oprah interviewed james in her show and added his memoir to her recommendations list. Later independent news agencies conducted an investigation to validate the facts and found out that some of it was fabricated and purely imaginative (which classifies the book to be fiction, instead of memoir). But james defended saying that most of it is true and only very small portion of it is imaginative. He said his intention was to increase the impact and make it a gripping story. He also apologized for cheating his readers. Overall it’s a good book and it tops my favorite titles as of now. This is a must read for all those wondering what actually happens in a rehab and what it takes to give up addictions. Will be back with another book soon.