well dang james frey continues to show me that he can write a captivating story.

something i love about frey’s books is they feel like real stories of real people (they probably are). the characters are easy to connect to. the story feels like watching a reality show unfold.

i love how frey gives just enough information about the location (new bethlehem) to provide meaningful context to the story without making it boring.

also loved that i can see parts of frey in some of the characters (charlie).

i read bright shiny morning when it was released years ago while i lived on the east coast. i was moved by the story. i was devastated by the story. i was attached to the characters in the story. but i had no context for life in/around LA. i moved to LA years later and re-read the book and i couldn’t help but feel like james wrote about several people that he had experienced or known. and that’s how i feel about this book.

several times while reading, i had to actively remind myself that these were characters and not my friends. i couldn’t stop thinking about the book.

james’ writing style has always been something that captivated me, so i deeply loved this book because his style and voice is once again so prevalent throughout.

and not to mention... the ending slaps.

(6/5 stars)