A Million Little Pieces by James Frey Main characters: James, Leonard, Lilly, Miles, Hank Setting: A drug and alcohol rehab facility Main theme: How a person copes drug and alcohol addiction while in an institutionChapter 1-5 Summary: The book opens with the narrator, James, waking up on a plane. He is bleeding, four teeth are missing and his nose is broken. He doesn't know how he got these injuries or where he's going. They tell him that a concerned friend of his contacted them and that his injuries were the result of a fall from a fire escape. James has no memory of this. James' parents and brother take him to a rehabilitation clinic. James has three roommates: Larry, Warren and John. James believes it is best if no one gets too close to him, since he sees himself as a destructive and harmful force with little to contribute to anyone's life. He believes that believing in AA is simply trading one addiction for another. He begins his journey in rehab, always thinking at any moment that he will leave because rehab is "not for him". Not a good start given how much he needs some kind of help. Chapter 6-10 Summary: James' brother Bob and two friends, Julie and Kirk, come to visit him at the clinic. They bring him gifts: cigarettes, chocolate, clothes and books. They watch some football together and then take a walk in the woods, where they meet Lilly and her grandmother. Bob, Julie and Kirk urge James to try to improve and give him a list of people who have asked about him. Lilly is a girl James meets at the clinic, though he has little to no contact with her, aside from fleeting visits that occur here and there. The next day James' new job is to make coffee for the group, a clear sign that he has made progress and climbed higher up the clinic's ladder. James' psychological test results reveal that he is highly intelligent, angry, and has low self-esteem. Joanne (his therapist) tries to convince him to accept the Twelve Step program, which is solely responsible for the facility's success rate, but James refuses. Chapter 11-15 Summary: Joanne and James talk about the Twelve Step program. James still refuses to follow. He lets it be known that he doesn't like churches and priests.