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A Million Little Newsposts
Posted by Slowplum
on
1/10/2006 10:34:00 AM
While it saddens me a little to see it blared all over the net about James Frey's discrepancies in his "100% true" memoir, it doesn't really surprise me. Half the fun of writing is embellisment and the other half is gripping your audience with bone-crunching, blood-gushing, vomit-forming (etc) stories.
I'm dying to see if Oprah recants her decision or at the very least, asks him to return to the show so she can grill him like a shrimp-kebab. While I'm not a huge Oprah fan, I would definitely watch that one.
Regardless of all the bru-ha-ha about this, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I recommended it to many people. I stand by that recommendation. It really is a good book. It truly does take the reader along for the ride. Would my enjoyment of said book be any less? Not really. But then, I don't tend to group books like most, with labels such as "fiction", "non-fiction", "science fiction", whatever. When I initially started to read it, did I know it was a memoir? I will be honest with you, I did not. Am I surprised that the criminal aspect of his book is mostly exaggerated? Not really. Do I believe he fabricated his addiction as well? No. Being in a family with addicts, having dated an addict, having been in situations where I'm surrounded by them, there is too much ringing true for that to be in dispute. Do I believe that he probably embellished memories of his time there? More than likely. Especially the beginning of the detoxification, I mean how can you remember all that in such detail when your life is glazed over by it?
Nowhere in the Smoking Gun article is there anything disputing the addiction as well. Mind you I also tend to rate the Smoking Gun with an online version of The National Enquirer: a really good read, mostly pulp, and feeding on negative publicity. Is some of it true? More than likely. Is all of it true? Cautionary words: It's the internet. So probably not.
To recap: Frey's book? Very good. All lies? Possibly, but not likely. Do I care? Nope.
I'm dying to see if Oprah recants her decision or at the very least, asks him to return to the show so she can grill him like a shrimp-kebab. While I'm not a huge Oprah fan, I would definitely watch that one.
Regardless of all the bru-ha-ha about this, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I recommended it to many people. I stand by that recommendation. It really is a good book. It truly does take the reader along for the ride. Would my enjoyment of said book be any less? Not really. But then, I don't tend to group books like most, with labels such as "fiction", "non-fiction", "science fiction", whatever. When I initially started to read it, did I know it was a memoir? I will be honest with you, I did not. Am I surprised that the criminal aspect of his book is mostly exaggerated? Not really. Do I believe he fabricated his addiction as well? No. Being in a family with addicts, having dated an addict, having been in situations where I'm surrounded by them, there is too much ringing true for that to be in dispute. Do I believe that he probably embellished memories of his time there? More than likely. Especially the beginning of the detoxification, I mean how can you remember all that in such detail when your life is glazed over by it?
Nowhere in the Smoking Gun article is there anything disputing the addiction as well. Mind you I also tend to rate the Smoking Gun with an online version of The National Enquirer: a really good read, mostly pulp, and feeding on negative publicity. Is some of it true? More than likely. Is all of it true? Cautionary words: It's the internet. So probably not.
To recap: Frey's book? Very good. All lies? Possibly, but not likely. Do I care? Nope.