June 2015: Truman Capote

Truman Capote is our June author! What does everyone plan on reading?

If anyone's interested to know, Truman Capote has two works on the list of 1,001 Books to Read Before You Die:

Breakfast at Tiffany’s
In Cold Blood

I read In Cold Blood years ago and it became an instant favorite. Breakfast at Tiffany's has long been a favorite movie, but I've never read the novella it's based on, so I'd like to do that this month.

I will finally read my copy of In Cold Blood. I read Breakfast at Tiffany's years ago and thought it was just okay.

>4 Tara1Reads: Yeah, since I'm so familiar with the movie, I have a sneaking suspicion that I won't like the divergences between it and the novella, but I still want to give the source material a try.

Quite independent on this discussion, I stumbled upon this article ranking the "100 best novels" (I'm really not sure what their criteria for 'best' is though), with In Cold Blood ranking as #84. It's an interesting write-up: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/apr/27/100-best-novels-84-in-cold-blood-tr...

Now that it's June, has anyone been able to start on their Capote choices?

I haven't started yet, but picked up Breakfast at Tiffany's at the library this week. Was surprised to see it's only about 120 pages -- and that's with three short stories in addition to the titular "novella" (at this point, I'm more inclined to call it a long short story than a novella)!

I will be reading Breakfast at Tiffany's. I saw the movie as a teenager but never read the book.

>7 sweetiegherkin: I was also surprised at how short it is!

This will be my first Capote.

now i'm wondering if my copy of breakfast at tiffany's, which if i'm picturing it on my shelf at home correctly, is maybe 150 pages, has others stories in it as well...

>8 sparemethecensor:, >9 overlycriticalelisa: Yeah, I saw a few copies of Breakfast at Tiffany's at my library that specifically mentioned in the title "And Other Stories" and were lengthier, so I assumed I got the one copy that was standalone. Turns out I was mistaken...

>7 sweetiegherkin: >8 sparemethecensor: and >9 overlycriticalelisa: I read Breakfast at Tiffany's in 2006 according to my book journal. The copy I read from the library had three short stories in it as well. They were "A Christmas Memory," "House of Flowers," and "A Diamond Guitar." I didn't read the Christmas story. I liked "House of Flowers" and did not understand "A Diamond Guitar."

Apparently, I found Breakfast at Tiffany's enjoyable but was disappointed by the ending although I didn't make any notes about why. I wonder what I would think about it now.

I found my notes about Summer Crossing. I read it a few months after reading Breakfast at Tiffany's in 2006. I also had problems with the ending of Summer Crossing and liked the novella less than Breakfast at Tiffany's. Most of my notes about Summer Crossing are in regards to the ending feeling rushed and unfinished leaving me confused. I also apparently did not care much for the character of Grady.

Is anyone planning on reading Summer Crossing?

>11 Tara1Reads: Those are the three stories in my copy as well.

>12 Tara1Reads: Hadn't heard of Summer Crossing before. What's it about?

>13 sweetiegherkin: It's about Grady, a 17 year old girl, who wants to stay home alone in New York for the first time while her parents are away for the summer. What her parents don't realize is that she wants to stay behind because she is in love with this guy named Clyde.

I had lots of negative things to say about Grady in my book journal.

>11 Tara1Reads:

my copy is slimmer than i thought at 127 pages, and includes the same 3 stories you mention, although the front and spine of the book don't mention this.

>14 Tara1Reads: Ah, teenagers in puppy love, not always the most compelling characters to read about....

>15 overlycriticalelisa: Sounds like we have the same copy.

>16 sweetiegherkin: Yes. I would probably still dislike the character of Grady if I read Summer Crossing now if not more so.

I finished Breakfast at Tiffany's today. I loved it. When others finish it, I'd be really interested in discussing!

A couple things I found especially thought-provoking, and would be interested in hearing your opinions about, were how little we get to know the narrator -- he being just a vessel to tell Holly's story -- and the LGBT issues in the book. I'll hold off on any plot points until you guys have had a chance to read.

>18 sparemethecensor: I enjoyed it as well. I went into it knowing two of the major differences between the movie, which I think helped me evaluate it a little bit more on its own terms rather than only in relation to a favorite film. After I read it, I went to re-watch the movie (although I ended up falling asleep pretty soon in to it because it was late & I was tired, and I haven't been able to catch the free time to finish it up yet) and was surprised how sometimes the filmmakers were so attentive to the littlest details - such as the red carnation in Sid Arbuckle's buttonhole - while other times they were perfectly content to veer off in total different directions, like basically everything about Paul Varjak. (By the way, on a slightly off-topic tangent, this is a fun article with trivia about behind-the-scenes of the movie version of Breakfast at Tiffany's: http://www.buzzfeed.com/leonoraepstein/things-you-didnt-know-about-breakfast-at-...

One thing I found interesting in viewing the book versus the movie was how the movie's racist depiction of Mr. Yunioshi isn't really founded in the book, in which he only shows up once. However, then the book has its own issues with racism toward African-Americans and the LGBT issues that you mention.

Feel free to talk about plot points if you use the spoiler tag.

edited to fix typo

>18 sparemethecensor: and >19 sweetiegherkin: I am eager to discuss Breakfast at Tiffany's as well even though I read it years ago and am not able to re-read it right now. I will do my best to keep up in the ensuing discussion. I am curious about the LGBT issues you both mention since Capote was homosexual...

>20 Tara1Reads: I don't believe homosexual men were mentioned at all in the text, but Holly makes several references to "dykes" (Capote's word choice, not mine). No actual homosexual characters though, or at least not any openly ones...

By the way, we haven't really discussed any of the controversies surrounding Capote's work, including:

- assertions that his nonfiction accounts, such as In Cold Blood, were fabricated in part to tell a good story. I recall one of the movies that came out about him, either Capote or Infamous - I saw them both around the same time, so I'm constantly getting them confused in my mind, had a scene in which Capote tries out a "quote" from Perry several times at parties with slightly different wording until he finally gets the reaction he wants, and then he goes with that wording for the book. So they were definitely suggesting that he played fast and loose with the facts. The Wikipedia article on Capote has more on the various arguments against the Truth of Capote's nonfiction works: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truman_Capote#Veracity_of_In_Cold_Blood_and_other_...

- the rumors that Truman Capote was the true author of To Kill a Mockingbird (and on the flip side, others have argued that Harper Lee was the true author of In Cold Blood or at least had a much bigger role to play in its coming about than Capote was wiling to let on)

- the backlash he received for writing openly about the social elite that he rubbed elbows with as a celebrity persona in his own right

Anyone have any strong feelings on any of these?

>21 sweetiegherkin: I don't know...the origins of the word dyke seem to be a bit mysterious and may or may not have had negative connotations then. Breakfast at Tiffany's was published in 1958 and according to the Wikipedia article for the word dyke the first recorded use of the word was in 1942. Maybe the word had not gotten its derogatory reputation then since it was a new slang term. Although the Wikipedia article also does say that some 1920's Harlem Renaissance novels seemed to use the word in a derogatory way and that pre-dates Breakfast at Tiffany's. Truman Capote wasn't born until 1924 so he probably wasn't involved with those writers who used the word pejoratively in the 20's. In that time period communication wasn't as widespread and as quick as it is today and if Capote wasn't socializing with the groups of people who were using the term pejoratively maybe he just didn't know that some people had already started using it negatively. Or maybe he did and wanted Holly to use it pejoratively to make some kind of statement? I wish I could re-read the novel so I would have a better idea.

I don't know the history of LGBT slang terms so I could be completely off-base. Everyone can correct me if that is the case because I really would like to learn. Also, it would help if I had read up on Capote's social life and who he spent time with other than Harper Lee. But I will get to that after I address the In Cold Blood issues.

>23 Tara1Reads: Not sure if Capote meant it to be a derogatory term or not. Holly definitely makes a bunch of assumptions about what she thinks all "dykes" act like:

"Incidentally," she said, "do you happen to know any nice lesbians? I'm looking for a roommate. Well, don't laugh, I'm so disorganized, I simply can't afford a maid; and really, dykes are wonderful home-makers, they love to do all the work, you never have to bother about brooms and defrosting and sending out the laundry. I had a roommate in Hollywood, she played in Westerns, they called her the Lone Ranger; but I'll say this for her, she was better than a man around the house. Of course people couldn't help but think I must be a bit of a dyke myself. And of course I am. Everyone is: a bit. So what? That never discouraged a man yet, in fact it seems to goad them on. Look at the Lone Ranger, married twice. Usually dykes only get married once, just for the name. It seems to carry such cachet later on to be called Mrs. Something Another.

>24 sweetiegherkin: That seems like a derogatory usage to me until I get to this part: Of course people couldn't help but think I must be a bit of a dyke myself. And of course I am. Everyone is: a bit. So what?

I am not sure what to make of that. It sounds almost as if Capote is trying to say something about the idea that sexuality is fluid and exists on a spectrum and everyone lies in a different spot on that spectrum. Some people are more towards the extreme opposite ends of being homosexual or heterosexual than others who might be more towards the center. Was this an idea in the time period the book was written? Yes because Alfred Kinsey and Wardell Pomeroy had some work on this published in 1948. That's how we got the Kinsey scale of sexuality on a spectrum. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinsey_scale.

I am still not sure why Capote would have Holly use dyke in a derogatory manner if that is in fact how readers are meant to perceive it.

>22 sweetiegherkin: assertions that his nonfiction accounts, such as In Cold Blood, were fabricated in part to tell a good story.

-I don't have any strong feelings, but I also haven't read the book yet and that might persuade me one way or another. My friend majored in English in college and read up on this controversy and read In Cold Blood and watched Capote (all on her own not for school). She did tell me that Capote visited the murderer (wasn't there more than one though?) in prison and interviewed him while he was writing the book and that Capote got really emotionally close to the murderer so that it could have affected Capote's own viewpoint and subsequently what he chose to put in the book and/or how he chose to present things in the book. I haven't seen the movies either but is this relationship between Capote and the murderer portrayed in either of the films?

Also, a few months back there was an article online about the son of one of the sheriffs (or someone in law enforcement) in that town in Kansas who wanted to write a book exposing how Truman Capote lied about everything in In Cold Blood. The sheriff guy said he always knew it was all falsified and he couldn't finish reading the book because it made him so angry he threw it against a wall and he said he got up and left the theater in the first few minutes of the movie too (not sure which movie it was). I wish I could remember the father and the sons' names so I could find the article online. But the sheriff guy said their office had kept all the records about the case over the years and they were trying to get their hands on them so the son could write this tell-all book about it. The son has turned it into a legal case. I don't know that I believe this because it sounds like the son is looking for a quick way to make a buck by selling this book if he is ever able to write it. But who knows really!

the rumors that Truman Capote was the true author of To Kill a Mockingbird
- My English major friend also discussed this with me and she said it is definitely possible and that there are some people who argue that In Cold Blood and To Kill a Mockingbird have a similar feel or writing style/voice. And people thought it was plausible because Harper Lee never wrote anything after To Kill a Mockingbird so that was one reason for people thinking she never actually wrote it. But I also discussed this with my English major friend before anything was known about Go Set a Watchman which complicates the matter. And Go Set a Watchman comes with its own set of controversies.

Lee being the true author of In Cold Blood or at least helping with it also seems plausible because everything I've ever read has talked about how close Lee and Capote were but I've never read the details about their friendship. I feel like I will probably have more to say after I actually read In Cold Blood. I have to finish my current book first!

the backlash he received for writing openly about the social elite that he rubbed elbows with as a celebrity persona in his own right

-Wow. I didn't know about this at all. I am surprised he put Herbert Clutter in the La Cote Basque story too.

I feel like we will never really know the answers to any of these questions just because no matter what Truman Capote is dead so we will never get his side of the story. Even though Harper Lee is alive and possibly some of Capote's old elite friends are too we would still only be getting one side of the story if they spoke about it. I am not going to hold my breath waiting for Harper Lee to speak about anything.

I really don't think I know enough to discuss everything properly yet. I've mentioned all that I know in this post. I need to read In Cold Blood and watch the movies now!

>24 sweetiegherkin: That seems like a derogatory usage to me until I get to this part ... I am not sure what to make of that.

Yeah, that was sort of my feeling as well, hard to know what Capote was driving at with such a speech. Are we supposed to think more fondly or less fondly of Holly because of it? Or is it just more evidence of how "shocking" her lifestyle is?

At a later point when Mag moves in with Holly and is presumably sharing Holly's double bed with her, Holly finds the only way to convince Mag that she isn't trying to steal Mag's boyfriend Jose is to say that she herself is a "dyke." Afterwards, a cot appears in the apartment, so I guess we're meant to believe that Holly is far more open-minded than Mag ?

Interesting about the Kinsey scale, had never heard of that before.

>26 Tara1Reads: Two murderers, Capote interviewed both of them extensively and had an emotional connection with one of them (Perry Smith); I think that is evident in the way they are presented in the book. I know for myself I despised Dick (the other murderer) through and through, but I had some sympathy for Perry, despite his terrible actions.

There has been much speculation about the nature of the relationship between Capote and Perry, with at least one prison guard stating that the two were actually homosexuals -- even though if I recall correctly, Capote specifically mentions in In Cold Blood a conversation in which Perry is openly hostile (for lack of a better term) about homosexuality. Like I said earlier, I keep getting Capote and Infamous confused, but I think the latter touched more on the Perry-Capote relationship than the former, although I think it was in both to some degree. I remembered I didn't like the actor chosen to play Perry in Capote (even though I'd seen him in other films where I liked him) because he didn't jive with my idea of what Perry should look like. I was more impressed (and surprisingly so) with Daniel Craig as Perry in Infamous.

By the way, a very interesting read tangentially related here is Fantasies of Flight, a psychoanalytic book looking at why people dream of flying. A large portion of the book is dedicated to analyzing J.M. Barrie's life and his flying themes in Peter Pan, but another large chunk of the book is about Perry Smith and a recurring dream he recounts to Capote in In Cold Blood about a rescuing bird. I highly recommend it.

I don't know that I believe this because it sounds like the son is looking for a quick way to make a buck by selling this book if he is ever able to write it.

Yeah, in that case, it sounds like suspect motives could be in play rather than a quest to reach the Truth. Some of the other criticisms over the years sound like they have less monetary motivations, although it's possible that some of the people involved objected to the way they were presented in the book and thus said that Capote falsified facts. It's also possible that people don't remember exactly what they said or how they acted, or that Capote subjectively read things between the lines that weren't actually there. Human actions and motivations are very complicated; it's a tricky subject for sure ...

re: Harper Lee
Yep, the fact that she hadn't written anything else is always something of a mystery. The feminist in me has my hackles up that people are simply dismissing her because "of course a woman couldn't haven't written To Kill a Mockingbird" so it must have been Capote, although I don't know if that's necessarily the motivation behind that rumor. Everything else about Capote seems like he was far too self-important to allow someone else to claim glory for his work, so I pretty much doubt that he was the real author of TKAM. As for similarity in style between the two, I don't really see that although it's been about 15 years since I read TKAM and 6 or so since I read In Cold Blood. If they are similar, I would chalk that up to the two of them being childhood friends who also spent a lot of time together when working on those books, surely influence rubs off. And yep, Go Set a Watchman has really complicated matters further in regards to Lee and her writing career.

Even though Harper Lee is alive and possibly some of Capote's old elite friends are too we would still only be getting one side of the story if they spoke about it.

Many of the people he mentioned in his various writings are dead now also -- Marilyn Monroe, Marc Blitzstein, Jackie O., etc. Even if everyone were still alive, it's just sort of a game of 'he-said, she-said, he-said, etc.' Everything is subjective so we still wouldn't get to the Truth, if one even exists.

I actually read the LGBT issues quite differently.

I think we are supposed to interpret for certain that Rusty is gay. Holly essentially says so, right -- that he doesn't know what to do with women and doesn't care, or something to that effect? (I had to return the book to the library or I would look it up specifically.) That seemed clear to me.

Are we also supposed to interpret that "Fred" (the narrator) is gay? This connects to my other comment about how little we know about Fred. For instance, Fred gets a job part way through the story, and he doesn't even tell us what it is. It isn't important. Nothing about him is important. Only Holly matters.

I get it, because I also found Holly fascinating, but isn't it an odd storytelling technique?

I think -- and I have little to support this other than my reaction when reading, so I'm very open to others' ideas to change my viewpoint -- that "Fred" is supposed to be Truman Capote's stand-in. So, there may be elements of Capote's sexuality sneaking into "Fred"'s character, whether or not it is intentional. Then again, this story is so tightly written that I don't think Capote would do anything unintentionally. So perhaps instead, we are seeing the very first incarnation (or at least the first incarnation I'm familiar with) of the story of a gay man, open or closeted, becoming fascinated by a glamorous woman.

As with the lesbian mentions you guys referenced in the previous posts, I think these examples are showing a society in which it is not acceptable to be "out" but friends know friends' orientations. But I too don't know what to make of Holly's "dyke" comment.

>26 Tara1Reads:
>28 sweetiegherkin:

Thanks for this information. This is all new to me; I was unaware of any of this, particularly the Harper Lee conspiracy theory. What a frightful one. Yes, I am also getting the sexism vibe in this story.

Do you guys recommend In Cold Blood?

>27 sweetiegherkin: Or is it just more evidence of how "shocking" her lifestyle is?

It's hard for me to answer this without knowing more about Holly's lifestyle as I don't remember and I can't re-read the book now.

Holly & Mag: Also hard for me to answer this one. I think this is also part of the struggle of reading a novella. There is less character building.

>28 sweetiegherkin: Well, I started the book a couple of days ago. I hope to find out more about all this especially Capote's relationship with Perry. I will get back to you and let you know what the book says, if anything, regarding Perry's sexuality etc.

Fantasies of Flight sounds interesting. Thanks for mentioning it.

It's also possible that people don't remember exactly what they said or how they acted, or that Capote subjectively read things between the lines that weren't actually there. Human actions and motivations are very complicated; it's a tricky subject for sure ...

This is what I keep thinking about as I am reading In Cold Blood. Capote includes dialogue from all the people involved (I am still in the intro part that leads up to the murders). And there is no way Capote could know exactly what Herb and his family said to each other, to their help on the farm, or to the Japanese woman from 4-H on the day they were murdered since they died and Capote couldn't interview them afterwards. Also, I know Capote interviewed Dick and Perry later but he still couldn't have gotten 100% factual conversational snippets between Dick and Perry as they are driving into Holcomb and buying supplies for the murders. It just bugs me because any reader that thinks about what they are reading would know that these obviously aren't accurate. Capote could've written the book in a different way and not included dialogue in this intro part.

"of course a woman couldn't haven't written To Kill a Mockingbird" so it must have been Capote

I certainly hope this isn't what people think. That doesn't even make sense! :-/

Everything else about Capote seems like he was far too self-important

Yeah, I have been reading up more on Capote and his writing of In Cold Blood and he sounds conceited. It was his Wikipedia page I believe that said he was disappointed that In Cold Blood didn't win a Pulitzer. **rolls eyes** And the part you pointed me to on Wikipedia regarding his story about his socialite friends sounded that way too because he called the rich women that hung around him his "swans."

As for similarity in style between the two, I don't really see that although it's been about 15 years since I read TKAM and 6 or so since I read In Cold Blood. If they are similar, I would chalk that up to the two of them being childhood friends who also spent a lot of time together when working on those books, surely influence rubs off.

I agree. They probably influenced each other. It's especially hard to deny that Harper Lee probably influenced some of In Cold Blood since she accompanied Capote to do the research in Kansas. It has also been a long time since I read TKAM so it's hard for me to compare styles too.

>6 sweetiegherkin: I finally read this Guardian piece about In Cold Blood. I can't believe Tom Wolfe said the book was pornoviolence. I mean maybe for the late 50's and early 60's it was but I kind of doubt it. The murders weren't that violent. Getting shot is horrific but there are a lot of much worse ways people have been murdered before and after the Clutter family murder. Of course, now I feel insensitive saying that a couple days after the shooting in South Carolina.

But that's part of my problem with the book so far is that I have had trouble understanding Truman Capote's motivation for writing the book in the first place. Of all the murders that take place why this one? But apparently Capote was writing for the New Yorker at the time and they wanted a story about it. I guess it's capitalizing on human nature--everyone wants to know every gory detail so stories about murder become the sensationalist pieces.

>30 sparemethecensor: Do you guys recommend In Cold Blood?
- I am not sure yet. I have to finish the book first! :-)

>29 sparemethecensor: re Rusty: Yes, Holly tells the narrator: "... only he's awfully touchy about it. He tried to stab me with a butter knife because I told him to grow up and face the issue, settle down and play house with a nice fatherly truck driver. Meantime, I've got him on my hands; which is okay, he's harmless, he thinks girls are dolls literally." Her comments, combined with Rusty's frequent but short-lived marriages to women, indicate that Rusty is homosexual but unable to acknowledge it either openly or to himself. Perhaps how ironic then that he ends up with Mag, who we saw wasn't okay with Holly saying she was a "dyke." It also goes with what you were saying about a society where it's not okay to be out, but yet everyone (or at least friends) seems to know a person's sexual orientation anyway.

re: the narrator I don't know if we were meant to believe he was also homosexual. He was about the only male character who wasn't in love with Holly and/or interested in her sexually (oh, how the movie diverges from the source material there!), so perhaps. But yes, indeed, he is rather enigmatic. I too found it interesting that he gets a 9 to 5 job but we haven't the slightest clue what it is. He only mentions it to make note of the fact that he sees Holly less often for a bit of time there. I can't think of any other examples offhand, but I feel like I've read other books where a similarly nondescript narrator talks about a more glamorous person, so I don't think it's that odd of a storytelling technique. You're not alone in thinking that the narrator is a stand-in for Capote. Many have argued this, and that also Holly is based in part on Marilyn Monroe. Here's one blog post that touches on those points: http://georgesjournal.org/2011/10/13/holly-hits-50-how-breakfast-at-tiffanys-cam... Incidentally, this blogger also strongly feels that the narrator was indeed homosexual.

Lots to think about with these characters!

>30 sparemethecensor: I thought In Cold Blood was a fascinating read. If you listen to audiobooks, the one for In Cold Blood with Scott Brick as the reader is very good.

>31 Tara1Reads: Well, she is a call girl! That in itself is pretty shocking for most 'ordinary' types, I'd assume ... especially in the 1950s.

re: character building: I think Capote gives an interesting mix in this novella. He has this habit of introducing everyone & giving some back story and/or seemingly straightforward details about their personality or lifestyle, so it feels like you know them ... but then when you start to discuss them like this, you realize how much you don't really understand about them. We know the most about Holly, yet even she's still a bit of a mystery.

Speaking of characters, what did everyone make of Doc? He's an older man with grown children, yet he's perfectly okay with marrying a young teenaged girl who seems to be marrying him simply because she has no other choice for basic survival. Capote/the narrator/any other character doesn't seem to be all that bothered by this.

>32 Tara1Reads: And there is no way Capote could know exactly what Herb and his family said to each other, to their help on the farm, or to the Japanese woman from 4-H on the day they were murdered since they died and Capote couldn't interview them afterwards.

Yeah, unfortunately a lot of nonfiction books can get that way. I can't remember which title it was now, but I recall reading this biography of Marilyn Monroe about a decade ago and the author kept saying things like Monroe "was feeling nervous as she embarked that day" or "she was sailing on cloud nine when she got the news" and all this other inferred conjecture, while I was sitting there reading the book all, 'HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY KNOW WHAT SHE WAS FEELING??!!' Certainly the author could make an educated guess, but she didn't clarified her comments by saying something like "one would assume she was sailing on cloud nine" or "it's likely she was feeling nervous" or anything like that. She just put it all out there as if it was fact. It was very frustrating. That was the worst offender, but I've read other nonfiction books where I was sitting there thinking even if the author interviewed all these people etc., no one remembers at length word for word a conversation they had 40 years ago, or whatever the case may be.

re: The Guardian piece: Yeah, "pornoviolence" seems a misnomer. Obviously, Capote has to address the violence but he doesn't seem to revel in it. When I read the book, I felt like he did a very good job of making the reader feel a TON of sympathy for the Clutter family and not in the least feeling like 'hey, murder is sexy & cool!' To me, 'pornoviolence' would evoke the latter on some level.

Of all the murders that take place why this one?

I don't know 100% the motivation for why Capote wrote about this case, but I believe the murders were nationwide headlines when they happened. I think it had something to do with the 'it couldn't happen here' mentality, so it was very shocking. And the fact that it was complete strangers who committed it -- a lot of murders are actually committed by people the victims knew, so this case was one of those very frightening ones regarding the complete randomness of it.

>32 Tara1Reads: Capote includes dialogue from all the people involved (I am still in the intro part that leads up to the murders). And there is no way Capote could know exactly what Herb and his family said to each other, to their help on the farm, or to the Japanese woman from 4-H on the day they were murdered since they died and Capote couldn't interview them afterwards. ... It just bugs me because any reader that thinks about what they are reading would know that these obviously aren't accurate. Capote could've written the book in a different way and not included dialogue in this intro part.

... It was his Wikipedia page I believe that said he was disappointed that In Cold Blood didn't win a Pulitzer.

I've been thinking about this more and perhaps it's not total conceit that he was thinking In Cold Blood should receive a Pulitzer. Capote's belief was that he was writing a new kind of genre that he dubbed the "nonfiction novel" - the idea being that you could write something factual without it being in a dull textbook style; instead, it could use the elements of a novel's narrative - pacing, dialogue, foreshadowing, flashbacks, etc. So probably in Capote's mind the dialogue in the beginning was necessary for this concept. However, since then, I think we've come across other authors (David McCullough, Ben McIntyre, and Lauren Hillenbrand spring to mind as a few recent examples) who do a better job at using the narrative techniques without stretching the facts, which Capote is presumed to have done.

HOWEVER, all that being said, I can't recall anything of nonfiction I've read that predates In Cold Blood, so I don't know if anyone else was doing this before Capote anyway, and he just took credit for it by giving it a name.

Last week I also picked up Music for Chameleons from the library and have been working on reading that.

Music for Chameleons contains a bunch of short story-length works and one novella-length one. These are supposed to be nonfiction and "a continuation of Mr. Capote's concern with developing the artistic possibilities of journalism," according to the dust jacket. The shorter pieces in the first section of the book touch on a wide variety of topics from random misadventures to childhood memories to travel reflections. The second section is the novella-length "Handcarved Coffins," which is subtitled "a nonfiction account of an American crime," even though there's been a lot of speculation (even more so than with In Cold Blood) about how much of this story was true & how much was Capote's invention. (See http://www.peterleni.com/Truman%20Capote.pdf for more details.) I haven't gotten to the third part titled "Conversational Portraits" yet.

The book also contains a preface from Capote in which he talks a great deal about his literary career, noting highs and lows. Interesting factoid was that he had at one point written some movie scripts, including the one for Beat the Devil, a rather forgettable movie I watched a decade ago but hadn't realized Capote had in a hand in it. He also talks about his experiment with the "nonfiction novel" quite a bit:
- "For several years I had been increasingly drawn toward journalism as an art form in itself. I had two reasons. First, it didn't seem to me that anything truly innovative had occurred in prose writing, or in writing generally, since the 1920s; second, journalism as an art was almost virgin terrain, for the simple reason that very few literary artists ever wrote narrative journalism, and when they did, it took the form of travel essays or autobiography. ... I wanted to produce a journalistic novel, something on a large scale that would have the credibility of fact, the immediacy of film, the depth and freedom of prose, and the precision of poetry."
- "Many people though I was crazy to spend six years wandering around the plains of Kansas; others rejected my whole concept of the 'nonfiction novel' and pronounced it unworthy of a 'serious' writer; Norman Mailer described it as a 'failure of the imagination' - meaning, I assume, that a novelist should be writing about something imaginary rather than about something real."
- "Several critics complained that 'nonfiction novel' was a catch phrase, a hoax, and that there was nothing really original or new about what I had done. But there were those who felt differently, other writers who realized the value of my experiment and moved swiftly to put it to their own use - none more swiftly than Norman Mailer, who has made a lot of money and won a lot of prizes writing nonfiction novels (The Armies of the Night, Of a Fire on the Moon, The Executioner's Song), although he has always been careful never to describe them as 'nonfiction novels.' No matter, he is a good writer and a fine fellow and I'm grateful to have been of some small service to him."

Capote really had a bone of contention with Norman Mailer apparently! And that last line is another proof of a conceited Capote who I doubt would have written TKAM and then given credit to it to someone else, even if she was a childhood friend.

edited to fix touchstone issue

Literary critics have noted that Capote was gifted and insightful analyst of people's psychology in his short works, almost all of which are small psycho-dramas. Since his motive for writing In Cold Blood was to experiment in a new form of journalism in attempt (in his words) to make it an art, the subject of the murders and how it impacted the community and individuals where and who the Clutters were respected and beloved friends, Capote was able to combine two of his great literary drives.

Norman Mailer had a love-hate relationship with Capote, judging from his correspondence that can be found in Selected Letters of Norman Mailer. But that is not extraordinary as he had similar dichotomous feelings about nearly every author he was acquainted with and most of the non-authors who numbered among his acquaintances. I'd suggest, Capote was being humorously snide in his negative remarks in re Mailer and his Pulitzers for narrative nonfiction; they both expressed that kind of "manly" disrespect for each others talents where denigrating remarks were a substitute for true admiration of their mutual creative output.

>39 Limelite: re: Capote & Mailer: I suspect that Mailer winning the Pulitzer the same year that In Cold Blood was up left Capote enviously miffed. But I think you're on to something with the masculine ribbing. Capote mentions a bunch of other authors throughout Music for Chameleons and the ones he seems to be the most unequivocally fond of are women (e.g., Willa Cather, Karen Blixen, etc.) while with the men, he is more apt to find a fault to pair with a compliment.

Finished up Music for Chameleons today. The third part titled "Conversational Portraits" had a faster pacing/flow that made these stories/essays more interesting to me than the ones in the first part. I can see how Capote could have alienate a bunch of his society friends with his works though -- these are pretty open about a bunch of celebrities, using their real names. There's not anything horribly bad per se in what he has to say, but I don't know that any of these folks thought their private conversations with him would become public consumption. There's also more controversy here with a story he writes after interviewing Robert Beausoleil, a convicted murdered involved with Charlie Manson's Helter Skelter murders. Beausoleil wrote a lengthy note in 2006 (posted now on Facebook of all places) about how he thought that Capote fabricated some details of the meeting, twisted his words, and repeated misinformation: https://www.facebook.com/notes/bobby-beausoleil/the-capote-interview/99278491740... Of course, Beausoleil has had at least two different accounts of what happened regarding the murder he committed and others with him at/around the time question some of the stories he has told about it. So consider the messenger....

>35 sweetiegherkin: Interesting point about Doc. Can this be attributed to society's attitude toward women at the time -- namely that women must find men to marry them to survive? It isn't as though most women could have their own careers to support themselves. And, it certainly doesn't seem to be the case that "Fred" is such an enlightened, feminist man who would react with indignation that such arrangements are still made. Teenaged girls marrying much older men for support has hardly been unusual over history. I just read recently that the federal government has still been paying civil war pensions to a few women who, as teenagers, married old men who had fought in that war.

>42 sparemethecensor: Yeah, I guess it's just my 21st century liberal feminist mind that can't help itself. The narrator does seem a little confused/boggled by it at first, but he doesn't seem outraged the way I do about it.

Does anyone else remember the "Oldest Living Confederate Widow" TV movie? Apparently it was based on a book: The Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All. As I recall, the age gap between that married couple is HUGE. I had completely forgotten about it until your comment reminded me of it. But a teenaged bride in the 1860s seems somehow less worse than one in the 1940s (when Breakfast at Tiffany's is set) ... like we should have gotten a little more enlightened by that point, nearly 100 years later. Of course, teenaged brides (and younger ones, in some cases) are still a thing around the globe, so clearly we still haven't gotten that enlightened yet.

>41 sweetiegherkin: Fascinating. I'm not sure who to trust, since I think both Capote and Beausoleil had something to gain from exaggerating the truth.

>43 sweetiegherkin: Should have, yes. But women who kicked butt in the working world during the war were forced back into the home after the men returned.

I was outraged for Holly, too, especially when she sleeps with Doc again because she thinks she owes him.

>44 sparemethecensor: Fascinating. I'm not sure who to trust, since I think both Capote and Beausoleil had something to gain from exaggerating the truth.

Agreed. More than likely, they are both telling the truth and both obfuscating it as well.

I was outraged for Holly, too, especially when she sleeps with Doc again because she thinks she owes him.
Yes, that whole relationship is complicated. Her running out without a word is pretty bad, so I guess that's where she thinks she owes him ... except for the fact that she should have never been in that position to begin with; a grown man *should* know better than to think a teenaged girl is an appropriate choice for a wife, especially one who has no other option.

>36 sweetiegherkin: 'hey, murder is sexy & cool!' To me, 'pornoviolence' would evoke the latter on some level.

Yes, to me "pornoviolence" implies the reader of such material gets immense satisfaction out of the details of the murder itself. From what I know about Capote and from what I have read by him, I do not think he would want to write something that focused on blood splatters on walls etc.

>36 sweetiegherkin: I don't know 100% the motivation for why Capote wrote about this case, but I believe the murders were nationwide headlines when they happened.

Capote was assigned to write about the murders by the New Yorker but the case was such a big deal partly because it was one of the first murders where a whole family was killed (minus the two children who had moved out on their own).

>37 sweetiegherkin: I can't recall anything of nonfiction I've read that predates In Cold Blood, so I don't know if anyone else was doing this before Capote anyway, and he just took credit for it by giving it a name. and >40 sweetiegherkin: I suspect that Mailer winning the Pulitzer the same year that In Cold Blood was up left Capote enviously miffed.

Yes. This would make sense. And I read in one of these articles (perhaps the Guardian one you posted) that Truman Capote said he invented the non-fiction novel and Norman Mailer went on to make a successful career out of writing non-fiction novels without giving Capote any credit.

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I had to give up on In Cold Blood. I found it too boring and did not feel like forcing myself through another book. I have tried to read it many times before and this was the farthest I have ever made it. I am thinking I should just give it up for good but I never want to do that! I have still enjoyed learning more about Capote and his works this month though.

Ditto, this was one of my favorite monthly author reads since I joined. Lots of great discussion and I'm glad I finally motivated myself to try Capote.

>32 Tara1Reads: he called the rich women that hung around him his "swans."

There's a new novel coming out based on Capote & his New York socialite friend Babe Paley. It's called The Swans of Fifth Avenue. FYI.

>48 sweetiegherkin: I have seen that book around the Internet and it never occurred to me to connect it to Truman Capote.

I don't think I shared this before, just read this interview of Capote: http://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/4867/the-art-of-fiction-no-17-truman-ca...

Jives with a lot of what we've already ascertained about Capote - talented and interesting & also very aware and, dare I say, boastful of that.

Other Voices, Other Rooms – Truman Capote
3.5***

Capote’s debut novel is a semiautobiographical coming-of-age story. After the death of his mother, thirteen-year-old Joel Knox leaves New Orleans to travel to rural Alabama, and the home of the father who abandoned him at birth. Skully’s Landing is his stepmother Amy’s dilapidated mansion, set far in the woods, and without electricity or indoor plumbing. Among the residents of the estate are a centenarian Negro, Jesus Fever, his granddaughter Missouri (known as Zoo), who keeps house for the family, and the mysterious cousin Randolph. The person who is obviously missing is Joel’s father. Nearby live two sisters, Florabel and Idabel, the latter a tomboy who provides a glimmer of love and approval to the lonely Joel.

This is a classic Southern Gothic novel, full of ghosts, haints, superstitions, secrets and closed off rooms. There are real dangers aplenty as well: poisonous snakes, quicksand, and people with guns. Joel is isolated not only by the remote location, but by the lack of connection with these people. He is confused and cautious, and his loneliness and despair are palpable.

Capote’s writing is wonderfully atmospheric. Here is what Joel sees on his journey to his new home:
Two roads pass over the hinterlands into Noon City; one from the north, another from the south; the latter, known as the Paradise Chapel Highway, is the better of the pair, though both are much the same: desolate miles of swamp and field and forest stretch along either route unbroken except for scattered signs advertising Red Dot 5c Cigars, Dr. Pepper, NEHI, Grove’s Chill Tonic, and 666. Wooden bridges spanning brackish creeks named for long-gone Indian tribes rumble like far-off thunder under a passing wheel; herds of hogs and cows roam the roads at will; now and then a farm-family pauses from work to wave as an auto whizzes by, and watch sadly till it disappears in red dust.

Like Joel, I felt somewhat lost in unfamiliar surroundings. Was Capote trying too hard to be atmospheric? Was he forced by the standards of the day to be so circumspect regarding his message of awakening homosexuality? It makes Cousin Randolph’s statement all the more poignant: ”The brain may take advice, but not the heart, and love, having no geography, knows no boundaries; ... any love is natural and beautiful that lies within a person's nature; only hypocrites would hold a man responsible for what he loves, emotional illiterates and those of righteous envy, who, in their agitated concern, mistake so frequently the arrow pointing to heaven for the one that leads to hell.”