Seems one of Oprah’s favorite authors, James Frey, is in a little trouble. His wildly successful book “A Million Little Pieces” contains enough, emmm, embellished passages that his publisher is now offering refunds to anyone who bought it directly from them.
This comes after the ever vigilant The Smoking Gun published an online expose of the author’s account of his drug and crime filled life. They found numerous inaccuracies in the tale of his exploits as well as a remarkable lack of official documentation in regards to his run-ins with the law.
Frey’s answered the charges on his website by saying, “I stand by my book, and my life, and I won’t dignify this bullshit with any sort of further response”. He appears on Larry King tonight where, I’m sure, he’ll receive lots of softball questions.
The book is still listed the featured selection on Oprah’s Book Club and she doesn’t appear to have anything to say in regards to this controversy.
Update: Oprah called into King’s progam last night and defended Frey (well sort of).
“I am disappointed by this controversy surrounding ‘A Million Little Pieces,’ because I rely on the publishers to define the category that a book falls within, and also the authenticity of the work,” Winfrey said.
“But the underlying message of redemption in James Frey’s memoir still resonates with me, and I know it resonates with millions of other people who have read this book.”
“What is relevant is that he was a drug addict who spent years in turmoil from the time he was 10 years old drinking and tormenting himself and his parents, and stepped out of that history to be the man that he is today and to take that message to save other people and allow them to save themselves.”
“To me, it seems to be much ado about nothing,” she added.
Yes, she still stands behind the book’s message but she leaves the impression that she would not have chosen it for her book club selection if she had known about the fabrications.
