thirty-six/fifty-two

I was halfway through My Friend Leonard when we had to leave. Now, normally I don't take library books on long trips, because I have very bad luck with that sort of thing, and this was an especially long trip with two small children in the car. However, I couldn't let go of this story, so I said a special book prayer and took it along. And finished it with no book-binding-melting issues, THANK GOD.

There's a good article here that explains the plot, gives highlights, etc. Basically, this book picks up where James Frey's A Million Little Pieces left off, and it follows Frey as he rejoins the world outside of rehab. It's also about the relationship between Frey and his friend and sort-of-father figure, Leonard, who's a member of an unnamed large sinister-sounding corporation (yes, it's exactly what you think). It's quite an interesting relationship. Leonard's generosity is so grand that at times it almost sounds like fiction -- like the enormous dinners he buys for Frey and a handful of his friends. But Leonard seems to live that sort of expansive life, so in the end it's believable and he comes off sounding like a pretty good guy, even with his questionable career.

Once again, it took some time to get used to Frey's writing style, but once I got into it, it stopped seeming like bad editing and became a rhythm. I did love this book, and I think I can safely declare myself a Frey fan (freynatic? ha ha.).

He has a new website, too, by the way. I especially enjoyed the links to bad reviews of AMLP. The site isn't the prettiest one in the world, but it is nice and informative, which is the main thing I look for in an author's site. Now I'm not saying that authors with good websites get more love from me, but . . . oh hell, yes, I am saying it. Unless the author is, like, from the nineteenth century, in which case I cut them a little slack.