I’ve been working through a reading list, more classic books and this is one of them. In my leisure time, I enjoy genre work. However there’s also the craft element of my writing to consider as well as the benefits of good literature.
Having read this soon after The Executioners Song by Norman Mailer, there are thematic similarities which made it a more thoughtful read for me. The Clutter family, their friends and community, the law enforcement agencies who investigated and prosecuted their murder are written with insight and warmth, and Capote extends this to the pair of murderers, without sparing us from the damage they embodied and inflicted.
It is a masterpiece of reportage and imagination, there are lines of acute insight and warmth but Capote never forgets to keep the whole thing moving and growing.
There is a respect for the horror and beauty of life here and although it’s the first Capote I’ve read, it won’t be the last.
My book Until She Sings is out now.
Ebook:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07XJRDND8If
Paperback: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1692105566/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_4akEDb3FTWNKR
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MB Blissett 