In his short career as an author, James Frey, author of the best seller A Million Little Pieces, has received much media attention, until recently all of it laudatory. Oprah Winfrey selected his work for her book club and praised it as, “a gut-wrenching memoir that is raw, and it’s so real.” But Mr. Frey now stands accused of fabricating important aspects of his book. He claimed to have committed numerous felonies and spent three months in jail, only to later admit those events did not happen. As it turns out, he spent no time in jail and was not even charged with many of the serious crimes he claims to have committed.

For weeks the broadcast and print media was filled with stories concerning the authenticity of Frey’s book. Although marketed as non-fiction it became clear that most of the events were exaggerations or outright falsehoods. Everyone from Oprah, and Larry King Live, to The New York Times was debating how many lies are allowed in a memoir. After insisting that his story was accurate, Frey finally admitted what many of us have known since we first read his book; that it is one long lie.

As someone who has spent years employed in the field of addiction recovery, I can say with complete confidence that Mr. Frey is certainly not the first drug addict to exaggerate, and make things up in order to make his life appear more interesting. Early in recovery, alcoholics and other drug addicts exaggerate aspects of their lives that they think will make them more impressive to the other patients, and minimize parts of their lives about which they feel ashamed. Thus the riddle, “How can you tell if an addict in early recovery is lying?” and the answer, “His lips are moving.” A common response for those early in recovery after one addict brags about his alleged adventures is to “one up” him with an even more outlandish story; “You call THAT a binge? I’ve spilled more booze on my tie in one night of drinking than you drank your whole life!” In treatment settings such behavior is called “junkie pride.” The only difference between Mr. Frey and other drug addicts is that he has made millions of dollars on his trash talk.

It is apparent that Mr. Frey’s recovery program does not include an honesty component. According to a statement issued by publisher Random House, Mr. Frey’s book is a memoir, “a personal history whose aim is to illuminate, by way of example, events and issues of broader social consequence. By definition, it is highly personal. In the case of Mr. Frey, we decided ‘A Million Little Pieces’ was his story, told in his own way, and he represented to us that his version of events was true to his recollections.” Call it what you will, creative non-fiction, inventing facts, never letting the truth get in the way of a good story, but I will refer to it as lies. Mr. Frey claims that his description events in the treatment center are merely a differing interpretation of what took place, a difference of opinion. I say they are outright falsehoods. In the book Mr. Frey wrote, “Lying became part of my life. I lied if I needed to lie to get something or get out of something.” Like any junkie who is caught lying, Mr. Frey continues to minimize, and rationalize his behavior. When he went on Larry King Live, with his mother, to defend the “essential truths,” of his book, he insisted that less than a dozen of the pages are in question, as if a certain amount of lying is acceptable, so long as the majority of what he claimed was true. If he wants to write about essential truth let him write poetry or acknowledge his book is basically a novel with some parallels to his real life.

Not only has he been defending his actions, but he also had a powerful ally who rushed to his aid; Oprah Winfrey telephoned in her support while Frey was on Larry King Live. Despite her doubts about facts in the book, she said, “the underlying message of redemption” still “resonated” with her.  In other words, since Mr. Frey’s lies portray a happy ending and are written well enough to emotionally move the reader then somehow no harm is done. Others defended Mr. Frey saying his writing gives insight on addiction to those who have not lived lives of violence, crime, addiction, and desperation. But of course, Mr. Frey is not writing from actual experience. If readers want authentic personal stories for insight and inspiration there are plenty of books written by those who have honestly lived through such events.

So what is the big deal; an addict lied in order to make his history seem more exciting. The problem is that this addict found someone to publish his lies. He slandered the treatment field and in particular, an honorable treatment program; and gave a false impression of what takes place during the treatment process. These falsehoods, presented as the truth, make it less likely that suffering addicts will seek treatment.

Normally I don’t care how much of a so-called memoir is fact and how much is included to spice up the story. I don’t care that Mr. Frey exaggerated his contact with the criminal justice system. But when Mr. Frey lied about what takes place in drug treatment, he puts the lives of others at risk. According to a nationwide survey nearly 17.6 million Americans (nearly one in 12 adults) is an alcoholic or actively abusing alcohol. This research also found that one in 10 American adults have substance abuse problems (drugs other than alcohol or both). Add to this the millions of family members, friends, and co-workers that are seriously affected by the behavior of those with addiction problems and you have a significant number of troubled citizens. All too many of these tormented souls will die from overdoses, medical complications, AIDS, accidents, or suicide.

Although treatment is available, there are many barriers to obtaining it, such as funding, denial, stigma, and misinformation about the treatment process. Mr. Frey apparently didn’t consider how his distorted tale of recovery would affect the lives of those who need drug treatment. His nightmarish stories of brutal treatment at the hands of treatment staff only add to the list of reasons an addict may hesitate to enter a rehab program. Who wants to volunteer to be neglected and abused? Who wants to go to a place where the staff ignores their patients, violates laws of confidentiality, and looks the other way when patients constantly violate the rules of the institution?

Besides misleading other addicts and their families as to what is involved in treatment, Frey supposedly repeatedly violated the treatment center’s rules about fraternizing with female patients by sneaking out at night to be with a woman he called Lilly (which happens to be the name of one of the treatment units at Hazelden). According to Frey’s account, when confronted by the staff with the rule violation she left treatment against staff advice, relapsed into drug use, and committed suicide. This outcome is the reason treatment centers have rules against patients forming romantic relationships.

Unfortunately Mr. Frey’s negative influence will not soon go away. He has written the screenplay for A Million Little Pieces and has claimed the film will be co-produced by Brad Pitt. Frey assured Winfrey that he wasn’t concerned about what actor would be chosen to portray him, “Whoever they’re gonna choose I’ll be happy with.” But ironically he was concerned that the movie accurately portray his lies, “I’m much more worried with the studio staying true to the story than I am about who they put in it,” he noted.

In the event that the movie is made, I encourage Frey to keep in mind the scene in A Million Little Pieces where he describes his outrage at the way writers for a television show have inaccurately depicted the process of addiction and recovery. However, I fully expect that when the film version of A Million Little Pieces is made it will not only reproduce Frey’s lies, but further exaggerate them. I sincerely hope that the American public and the media will show their displeasure and completely ignore the film when it is released.

When she was still defending Frey, Winfrey spoke of the redemption of James Frey. Perhaps Winfrey isn’t aware of the definition of redemption — the saving or improving of someone who has declined into apparently irreversible decline. Frey entered treatment as a defiant self-centered arrogant braggart, remained that way throughout his stay, and continues to be that way to this day. There has been no redemption in Frey’s melodrama. Throughout it, he focused on how he had been wronged, but not on how he has wronged others by his addictive behavior.

Frey has made millions of dollars lying to the book buying public, Winfrey and her viewers; besmirched the name of a world-renowned treatment center; inaccurately portrayed the recovery process; and contributed to the relapse and death of another addict. How can he ever forgive himself? Perhaps Frey does not feel any guilt and is laughing all the way to the bank.

In 12 Step-based recovery programs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, members are encouraged to make amends to those they have harmed. Although Mr. Frey repeatedly wrote he has no use for any aspect of the 12 Step program, I still hope someday that he sees fit to take some of his ill-gotten gains and donate it to drug treatment programs, particularly the one he slandered in his book.

Frey admitted he made “mistakes,” but it remains to be seen if he puts his money where his mouth is and makes direct amends to those he has harmed. Winfrey was bold enough to admit she was wrong, perhaps she too will see fit to make amends for her part in this fiasco by helping suffering addicts obtain treatment, something that would change more lives than giving away free cars to her studio audience.

Dr. Mic Hunter is currently licensed as both a psychologist and a marriage and family therapist. He has also been licensed in the past as an alcohol and drug counselor. He is the author and editor of several books including Abused Boys: The Neglected Victims Of Sexual Abuse.

This article is published in Counselor,The Magazine for Addiction Professionals, April 2006, v.7, n.2, pp.64-65.

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