My Friend Leonard (Paperback)

~ (Author) "On my first day in jail, a three hundred pound man named Porterhouse hit me in the back of the head with a metal tray..." (more)
Key Phrases: friend leonard, New York, Michigan Avenue, Las Vegas (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In the bold and heartbreaking My Friend Leonard, James Frey picks up the story of his extraordinary life pretty much where things left off in his breakout bestseller and Amazon.com Best Book of 2003, A Million Little Pieces, the fierce, in-your-face memoir about Frey's kamikaze run of self-destruction and his days in rehab. Fresh from a stint in jail from pre-rehab-related charges ("On my first day in jail, a three hundred pound man named Porterhouse hit me in the back of the head with a metal tray."), clean-living Frey returns to Chicago and gets sucker-punched with a cruel blow that will leave readers ducking for cover in anticipation of the blinding bender that's sure to come. But then the titular Leonard, the larger-than-life Vegas mobster ("West Coast Director of a large Italian finance firm") whom James befriended in rehab, steps into the story and serves equal parts unlikely life coach, guardian angel, and father figure for the grief-stricken author, adopting him as his "son" and schooling him in the fine art of "living boldly":

Be not bold, be f-cking BOLD. Every time you meet someone, make a f-cking impression. Make them think you're the hottest shit in the world. Make them think they're gonna lose their job if they don't give you one. Look 'em in the eye, and never look away. Be confident and calm, be f-cking bold.

Hurricane Leonard storms into James's life, showering his young charge with multi-course feasts at steakhouses and Italian restaurants, courtside seats at Bulls' games, Cuban cigars, and an elaborate Super Bowl party in Los Angeles, all the while doling out wisdom on life and love and motivating James to stick to his burgeoning writing career. James even has a brief stint as an employee of Leonard's, though occupational hazards--like having a nine millimeter shoved in his face--prove too much for the novice bag man (though he does make enough to invest his earnings in a Picasso drawing). When Leonard drops out of sight for an extended period, his absence leaves readers aching to hear the familiar refrain of "My Son!" just one more time.

Frey sticks to the taut, staccato style that shot through A Million Little Pieces with such raw electricity. Surprisingly, the tone feels equally at home with this book's focus on friendship and extreme loyalty, and works to intensify the always-looming, adrenaline-rush threat of violence and the lure of the Fury that courses like a riptide throughout the book. Ultimately, it's a sense of hope, and humor even, that prevails and makes My Friend Leonard a stand-alone success. Despite his shady pedigree, you'll long to have a friend like Leonard just a phone call away. --Brad Thomas Parsons

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James Frey's List of Books You Should Read

Paris Spleen

Tropic of Cancer

The Great Santini

See more recommendations from James Frey

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Amazon.com's Significant Seven
James Frey graciously agreed to answer the questions we like to ask every author: the Amazon.com Significant Seven.

Q: What book has had the most significant impact on your life?
A: Tao te Ching by Lao Tsu. Completely changed how I think, behave, live my life. Nothing else comes close.
Q: You are stranded on a desert island with only one book, one CD, and one DVD--what are they?
A: The book would be the Tao te Ching, the CD would be some compilation of love songs from the 70’s and 80’s, and the DVD would be highlights from the history of the Cleveland Browns.

Q: What is the worst lie you've ever told?
A: No way I can answer that.

Q: Describe the perfect writing environment.
A: I've been working at the same desk since I started writing. It's old and beaten-up and black. The rest of my workroom is empty, except for some crazy sh-- on the wall in front of me: pictures of people I admire, reproductions of artwork I dig, sayings that motivate me, things like--bare your soul, be bold, page a day motherfu--er page a day. I listen to music while I work, have a pile of nicotine gum and a couple cans of diet coke. My dogs are usually a couple feet away from me. I've always worked this way, probably always will.

Q: If you could write your own epitaph, what would it say?
A: "Loved, lost, laughed, left."

Q: Who is the one person living or dead that you would like to have dinner with?
A: Winston Churchill

Q: If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
A: Immortality.

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--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Frey achieves another stylistic coup as he develops a narrative thread begun in 2003's A Million Little Pieces. He chronicles his journey out of the terrifying darkness of addiction, and the friend he meets along the way, Leonard. A gangster, raconteur and mentor, Leonard was introduced in Pieces as one of Frey's new rehab friends. Here, he pushes Frey out into the world, pampering him one moment, giving him tough love the next. As in Pieces, Frey's style throughout is loose, untraditional yet perfectly crafted: "[Leonard] offered me his hand and said good, I'm fucked up too, and I like fucked-up people, let's sit and eat and see if we can be friends. I took his hand and I shook it and we sat down and we ate together and we became friends." There's something mesmerizing about the endless tumble of words, the nonstop spilling out of Frey's troubles and triumphs. In the hands of a less capable writer, all of this cool, tight narration might numb the reader and distance the experience. Instead, this book packs a full-body emotional wallop. Frey's eye is keen for detail: the inside of a county lockup; the flat, gray Chicago winter; an out-of-control Super Bowl party in Los Angeles; the grind of living day to day—all come alive in his sparse, powerful prose. At its core, this is an examination of a friendship. Frey's extraordinary relationship with Leonard is alive, a flesh-and-blood bond forged in the agony of rehab and sustained through honesty and trust. Agent, Kassie Evashevski at Brillstein/Grey Entertainment. (June) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

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Product Details Paperback: 416 pages Publisher: Riverhead Trade (May 2006) Language: English ISBN-10: 1594481954 ISBN-13: 978-1594481956 Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 1 inches Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (390 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #27,802 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books) Popular in these categories: (What's this?) #39 in  Books > Health, Mind & Body > Recovery > Drug Dependency #41 in  Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Specific Groups > Criminals #61 in  Books > Health, Mind & Body > Recovery > Substance Abuse

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First Sentence:
On my first day in jail, a three hundred pound man named Porterhouse hit me in the back of the head with a metal tray. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
friend leonard

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Michigan Avenue, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Pageant of the Masters, Four Seasons, Local Option, Paul Bowles, Sons of Cholo, Gene Hackman, Lake Michigan, Laurel Canyon, New Mexico, Super Bowl

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 3 books:

• A Million Little Pieces by James Frey in Back Matter
• The Sheltering Sky (P.S.) by Paul Bowles on page 256
• Under the Influence by University Press of America on page 33

 

1 book cites this book:

• The Worst Person in the World: And 202 Strong Contenders by Keith Olbermann on page 14

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	78% buy the item featured on this page: My Friend Leonard 3.8 out of 5 stars (390) $10.20
	12% buy A Million Little Pieces 3.5 out of 5 stars (1,846) $10.85
	7% buy Bright Shiny Morning (P.S.) 3.8 out of 5 stars (162) $6.23
	1% buy My Friend Leonard

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Customer Reviews

390 Reviews 5 star:  (218) 4 star:  (56) 3 star:  (21) 2 star:  (21) 1 star:  (74)           Average Customer Review 3.8 out of 5 stars (390 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 24 of 28 people found the following review helpful: 2.0 out of 5 stars Unfortunately, this book makes the first book less believable., December 2, 2005 By  Jason Smith "clockwatchers" (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    This review is from: My Friend Leonard (Hardcover) Like many others, I found out about James Frey through Oprah and her book club. I read A Million Little Pieces quickly and intensely. I didn't question it at the time. I just wanted to finish it and see what happened to all the interesting characters. I immediately bought the follow-up and had it delivered with the 2 day option. I couldn't wait for the book to arrive. Then, I started thinking more about AMLP and wondering how true some of the parts might be, like the part where they have the boxing match and the authorities leave and they are allowed to bet and eat as much as they want from a catered company. I started to realize there might be some over-elaboration from Frey. Maybe he made some of it up, maybe a lot more than some of it. Then MFL arrives and I read it quickly. It lends itself to being read quickly because it is so repetitive. I agree with other reviews that say his style works much better as an addict than as a person who is distanced from that addiction. This style becomes difficult and tedious. I tire of it I take a break from reading I care less about what happens to the characters get a cold tasty cola. Skip a few pages. The writing becomes a parody of itself at times. It worked before but it doesn't in this book. In the "real world" Leonard becomes a much less believable character to me. Snapper is one dimensional at best. I lose interest in his loves he can't get it up with his beautiful new girlfriend he won't tell her why he still misses Lilly cries buys flowers cries. We hug. We seperate. We order steak, creamed spinach and a nice cold tasty cola. OK, you get it. I'm disappointed I hoped for better I feel like it was made up makes the first book less believable stop now stop stop. 10 of 10 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars My Friend Leonard, April 2, 2006 By  L. M. Boilard (Jacksonville, FL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    This review is from: My Friend Leonard (Hardcover) OK! I don't know how much of this book is actually non fiction, but what a heartwarming and at times extremely sad story. It seems to take up where AMLP left off. James is just out of (jail?), and on top of recovering from drugs and booze has a terrible trama in his life and in walks Leonard to help him through it. I loved the Leonard character, although he is supposed to be some kind of gangster, James brings out a funny and soft side of him. I just couldn't get enough of Leonard. Some parts of the book tend to drag a little, my favoriate parts were when James is with Leonard and his friend Chopper. Leonard's fatherly booming voice greeting James with "MY SON, MY SON!" is addictive. I read my favorite parts over and over again. Even if parts of this book are not true, it is a very moving story. 42 of 52 people found the following review helpful: 1.0 out of 5 stars Frey ripped off Eddie Little, February 5, 2006 By  A reader (Michigan) - See all my reviews This review is from: My Friend Leonard (Hardcover) If you want to learn how James Frey's story for "My Friend Leonard" originated, don't look to Frey's real life experiences. Much of the book was lifted from Eddie Little novels: "Another Day in Paradise" and "Steel Toes." In these books, you will find the inspiration for Lilly, Leonard and James himself (re: Rosie, Mel and Bobby). Read these books for yourself, and you'll see that James not only lied, but he plagiarized. And Frey's newest publisher, Penguin, should have figured this out by now since they also published Eddie Little's books. (Eddie Little can't speak up for himself, because he's deceased.)		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 3.0 out of 5 stars Less of the same If you are looking for more of the riveting, in your face, can't put it down experience of AMLP, this ain't it. Did get me pretty choked up a couple of times. Read more Published 28 days ago by Bill O. 5.0 out of 5 stars awesome I was very happy with the prompt service. The book came to my front door in no time at all. I will be purchasing more in the near future. Keep up the good work :) Published 29 days ago by Mirjana Radosevic 4.0 out of 5 stars I KNOW THIS GUY!! The majority of my reading is confined to non-fiction. BUT,I was told about this book by my daughter, who was sure I would enjoy it. Read more Published 1 month ago by Ivan Fulop 5.0 out of 5 stars very fast shipping! The book was great and in great condition when I received it. Very speedy shipping! Published 1 month ago by Bethany B. Jordan 5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible Finish to A Million Little Pieces. If you were as enthralled as I was with A Million Little Pieces (James Frey) you can't help but to finish the story with My Friend Leonard. Read more Published 5 months ago by Martha Sellers 5.0 out of 5 stars James Frey I really enjoyed this book. Thanks for the excellent service. Sincerely, Pat Scott Published 8 months ago by Pat Scott 4.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable! I was really excited to read this book, I enjoyed James Frey's first book A Million Tiny Pieces very much. If you didn't read the first book I highly suggest reading it first. Read more Published 8 months ago by Ashley L. Martz 4.0 out of 5 stars If you can't read it for what it is, then don't comment on it Whether or not Frey plagiarized or made up his stories is irrelevant. Both My Friend Leonard and A Million Little Pieces are wonderfully written and interesting stories. Read more Published 9 months ago by Michael Lynch 2.0 out of 5 stars Not His Best Work I really enjoyed a Million Little Pieces. I read it before the controversy came out. I also enjoyed his latest book, A Bright and Shiny Morning. Read more Published 9 months ago by Zev 3.0 out of 5 stars My Friend leonard is OK, but not the quality of the first novel. I loved a "Million Little Pieces" in spite of the bad publicity it received. This sequel is OK, but not near as sensational...I could only give it a generous 3-star. Sorry, James. Published 10 months ago by R. Hodgson Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Customer Discussions

This product's forum Discussion Replies Latest Post "My Fake Friend Leonard" 1 April 2009 Giving the truth a bad name 0 July 2006 it's a book!! 0 May 2006 fraud 15 March 2006 "My Fake Friend Leonard" 0 January 2006 Welcome to the My Friend Leonard forum 2 January 2006 › See all 6 discussions...   [Start the discussion] Start a new discussion Topic: First post: Receive e-mail when new posts are made Prompts for sign-in   Guidelines Active discussions in related forums Discussion Replies Latest Post health Why I am obese? I'll tell you. 29 2 minutes ago health Is Spanking a lovable or harmful form of disipline? 8778 11 minutes ago biography WHAT T IS THE BEST BIOGRAPY YOU EVER READ? 280 3 hours ago memoir Have You Written a Memoir - Come Tell Us About It. 1345 9 hours ago memoir Memoirs of Women Misfits 10 13 hours ago alcoholism Argument/mood progression 2 12 days ago Search Customer Discussions Only search this product's forum

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Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Riverhead Trade (May 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594481954
• ISBN-13: 978-1594481956
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (390 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #27,802 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #39 in	Books > Health, Mind & Body > Recovery > Drug Dependency
  #41 in	Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Specific Groups > Criminals
  #61 in	Books > Health, Mind & Body > Recovery > Substance Abuse

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Unfortunately, this book makes the first book less believable., December 2, 2005

By	Jason Smith "clockwatchers" (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: My Friend Leonard (Hardcover)

Like many others, I found out about James Frey through Oprah and her book club. I read A Million Little Pieces quickly and intensely. I didn't question it at the time. I just wanted to finish it and see what happened to all the interesting characters. I immediately bought the follow-up and had it delivered with the 2 day option. I couldn't wait for the book to arrive. Then, I started thinking more about AMLP and wondering how true some of the parts might be, like the part where they have the boxing match and the authorities leave and they are allowed to bet and eat as much as they want from a catered company. I started to realize there might be some over-elaboration from Frey. Maybe he made some of it up, maybe a lot more than some of it.
Then MFL arrives and I read it quickly. It lends itself to being read quickly because it is so repetitive. I agree with other reviews that say his style works much better as an addict than as a person who is distanced from that addiction. This style becomes difficult and tedious. I tire of it I take a break from reading I care less about what happens to the characters get a cold tasty cola. Skip a few pages. The writing becomes a parody of itself at times. It worked before but it doesn't in this book. In the "real world" Leonard becomes a much less believable character to me. Snapper is one dimensional at best. I lose interest in his loves he can't get it up with his beautiful new girlfriend he won't tell her why he still misses Lilly cries buys flowers cries. We hug. We seperate. We order steak, creamed spinach and a nice cold tasty cola.
OK, you get it. I'm disappointed I hoped for better I feel like it was made up makes the first book less believable stop now stop stop.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars My Friend Leonard, April 2, 2006

By	L. M. Boilard (Jacksonville, FL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: My Friend Leonard (Hardcover)

OK! I don't know how much of this book is actually non fiction,
but what a heartwarming and at times extremely sad story. It seems to take up where AMLP left off.

James is just out of (jail?), and on top of recovering from drugs and booze has a terrible trama in his life and in walks Leonard to help him through it. I loved the Leonard character, although he is supposed to be some kind of gangster, James brings out a funny and soft side of him. I just couldn't get enough of Leonard. Some parts of the book tend to drag a little, my favoriate parts were when James is with Leonard and his friend Chopper. Leonard's fatherly booming voice greeting James with "MY SON, MY SON!" is addictive. I read my favorite parts over and over again.
Even if parts of this book are not true, it is a very moving story.

42 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Frey ripped off Eddie Little, February 5, 2006

By	A reader (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Friend Leonard (Hardcover)

If you want to learn how James Frey's story for "My Friend Leonard" originated, don't look to Frey's real life experiences. Much of the book was lifted from Eddie Little novels: "Another Day in Paradise" and "Steel Toes." In these books, you will find the inspiration for Lilly, Leonard and James himself (re: Rosie, Mel and Bobby). Read these books for yourself, and you'll see that James not only lied, but he plagiarized. And Frey's newest publisher, Penguin, should have figured this out by now since they also published Eddie Little's books. (Eddie Little can't speak up for himself, because he's deceased.)