Books in brief
"Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing" by Matthew Perry; Flatiron Books (250 pages, $29.99)
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Could Matthew Perry be any more vulnerable? In his bestselling memoir, the former "Friends" star shares his battles with addiction in excruciating detail: stealing pills from strangers' homes, emptying endless bottles of vodka and arranging for drug dealers to visit him in treatment centers. It's the part of his 12-step program where he's making amends with his fans.
Perry is less forthcoming about his showbiz adventures. He spends an entire chapter lauding "Whole Ten Yards" costar Bruce Willis and shares dirt about how he blew a promising romance with Julia Roberts. But he shies away from backstage tales about his work, except for when he's dealing with how he let down his castmates. (He spends a lot of ink apologizing to Jennifer Aniston.)
TV fans would have loved at least more than passing references to his guest appearances on "The West Wing" and his fine performance as Teddy Kennedy in "The Kennedys — After Camelot" miniseries. Perry has written for stage and screen, so he knows how to tell a story. The book, however, leans a little too hard on cliches.
He ends up repeating certain anecdotes, sometimes within a few pages of each other. Those who have struggled with drugs and alcohol, though, will forgive him. If Perry's only goal was to be an inspiration to fellow addicts, he's succeeded.
