The Trouble With Memoirs

An author is accused of making up key parts of his best-selling life story. Does truth really matter?

Did James Frey, on the night of Oct. 24, 1992, pull up outside a bar in Granville, Ohio, in a white Mercury? Was he both drunk and high on crack at the time? Did he jump the curb, bump a cop with said Mercury and then get dragged out of the car screaming by the police, who proceeded to beat him up?

Did he then go to rehab, write a book about it, inspire millions of readers and make a ton of money?

A lot of the stories Frey tells in his 2003 memoir, A Million Little Pieces, are currently in dispute,...

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