Jeff Somers is the author of
Lifers,
the Avery Cates series from Orbit Books,
Chum from Tyrus Books, and the Ustari Cycle from Pocket/Gallery, including
We Are Not Good People. At the B&N Reads blog he tagged
five hoax memoirs still worth reading, including:
A Million Little Pieces, by James Frey
The most famous hoax memoir of recent history, Frey’s hugely successful book started off life as a novel he couldn’t sell. The story of Frey’s supposed battles with addiction, time spent in rehab and jail, and his relationship with a girlfriend who eventually killed herself—it’s all fodder for a powerful story. Frey clearly had serious problems, and although he’s admitted to changing and exaggerating huge portions of the book (journalists have tried repeatedly to find any evidence for some of the most outlandish sections without success), the parts that illustrates the way addiction takes over and then destroys lives ring powerfully true. Frey didn’t suffer overmuch for his crimes; aside from a bit of public humiliation and a legendary Oprah shaming, his book still sells, and he still writes and runs his own publishing company.
Read about
another entry on the list.
A Million Little Pieces is among
Lauren Passell's seven books that seemed too good to be true...and were, and
Benjamin Radford's top five faked memoirs.
--Marshal Zeringue
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