A Million Pieces is James Frey's account of his time in rehab for his drug and alcohol addiction. At age twenty-three, James has been an adict for a decade. After waking up on a plane all beat up, James is taken to a treatment center. He originally wants to leave, but is convinced to stay by Leonard, a friend. James meets Lilly and, even though male-female relationships are off limits, the two fall in love. James' parents come to visit and they grow closer than ever once the whole story of James' addiction is out in the open. Even though James is sentenced to jail, his family gathers around him and supports him. In the latest section I read, James' parents have just left the center. Suddenly, Lilly calls James from her floor and informs him that she just found out her grandma has cancer and will die within six months. Lilly's grandma is the only one who believed in Lilly and treater her like a person, so the news devastates Lilly. James agrees to meet her in the woods, where they are caught together. James and Lilly are given a chance to continue at the center but are forbidden to see eachother. Upon hearing this, Lilly walks out. Taking a huge risk, James leaves to find her. James finds a crack dealer and learns that Lilly is in an abandon building where people go to smoke. He takes a huge risk and goes to get Lilly. He is so tempted to use the drugs so close to him in the building, but his love for Lilly is stronger. When he finds her, she is high. James takes her back with him to the clinic where she is put back in detoxification.
James' incredible actions keep me hooked on the story, but his true skill in writing comes from his ability to make the emotions and needs of people around him so evident. For example, the telephone is so much more than a phone. James describes communications as normal and, "In here, everything resembling normalcy is coveted. The phone is always busy because men want to be in contact with the normal outside world. Letters are eagerly awaited and opened because they are physical contact with it," (Frey 332). This really made me think about how much I take for granted. I can go out with friends. I can walk through my neighborhood. I can have pain killers when I have surgery (which James has to go without when he gets a double root canal). I think going without these things, like the men and women in rehab, would be very difficult because it is just my normal way of life. Through the examples of the phone and letters, I feel the desperate want something "normal".
When James is in the building to retrieve Lilly, he walks past many people smoking crack before he finds her. When he steps in one room to look for Lilly, "The smell of crack, like bittersweet peppermint gasoline, drifts through the room. The smell taunts me and it enrages me I would love to taste that smell, but I want Lilly more than the great and terrible rock," (Frey 353). To me, this part in the book is a confirmation to me that James is able to get better. The reader sees that drugs do not rule James' life like they used to. His priorities have been arranged, and love comes before addiction. It also shows how strong James' love for Lilly is. If he is willing to pass up crack, his drug of choice, for her, he must really love her. This just really makes me feel like James can get better. He was tested, and did not choose the drugs. Even though this is a huge step for James, I wonder how he will do when Lilly or another priority isn't there to stop him from drinking or doing drugs. I hope he is strong enough, but recovery is a long, difficult journey.
James has really improved from someone who only cared about his next high, to a man who would risk everything for the woman he loves. James Frey continues to draw me into the story with a totally different view of addiction. I can only see it as an outsider from a more scientific point of view, but James writes about the emotions and struggles that come with rehab. I am very interested to see how the James does with his recovery.
Source
Frey, James. A Million Little Pieces. New York: Anchor, 2005.*A Million Little Pieces should be underlined, but BlogSpot won't let me
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Wow Hannah! What a great description of your book. I truly want to read it! When you write about James falling in love with Lilly I can see how there is hope for him. From what i know about drugs, addiction is not something you can just give up, addicts need to find something worth living life. When James found Lilly i knew he would be able to give up his old ways, or at least try his best, in order to have what he wanted most out of life, which is LIlly. I need to read to see if he can keep up his progress!
Post a Comment