(1) This "feud" is a nonissue. Reviewers for the NYT and the NYTBR have disagreed before, and why shouldn't they? They're different parts of the paper, written and edited by different people. (2) If you want to ignore this whole situation, why did you bring it up? (3) Are you calling James Frey a "literary poseur"? Because that seems a bit harsh. His first two books were, at least, well written, which is more than you can say for most bestsellers these days. I think people should read his memoirs and decide for themselves if the fabrications are a major issue or not. If you haven't read them, you're not really in a position to comment, in my opinion.

It fascinates me that because of the need to "categorize," and to categorize so we can market books and therefore make money, the fine line between fiction and memoir becomes further blurred. James Frey, like him or not, could be doing just fine with no black mark on his permanent record, if only his memoir was labeled: "novel." My own fiction often reads like "memoir," because as many writers do -- we put a lot of "us" into our words. But I would rather have a thinly veiled "novel" out there than a memoir that I have to defend for accuracy. Example in point, a story on my "thog" (blog for thinkers -- geoffschutt.blogspot.com/) today is entitled, "An Open Letter to My Ex-Wives." Fiction meets reality? Do I have three ex-wives? I just want to tell a compelling story that somehow touches people. I'm sure that whatever other faults he may have, Frey desires the same thing.

Sarah, I'm not sure if your last sentence was directed at me, or not, but for the record: I have read "A Million Little Pieces" and "My Friend Leonard." I brought up the situation because it seems to be engendering some fuss, and I couldn't resist chiming in in my own way. Mea culpa.