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A review by bludgeoned_by_hail
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
3.5
Simultaneously good literature and good investigative journalism, casting a long shadow over its genre.
It conjures a story, characters and themes from a list of facts and testimonies, while still managing to refrain from sensationalism and approaching the events with a surprising degree of empathy and tact. Its style of oral history/mosaic/reconstruction amalgam feels surprisingly current (no doubt because of its impact) and clearly recognizable in the thousands of hours of true crime mini-series and documentaries on any given streaming service nowadays.
Unfortunately, just like many of its inferior successors, it also feels a bit repetitive, stretched thin or unable to prioritize some content over other at points. I understand that if you conducted this much independent investigation, cutting things must feel like pulling teeth, but that doesn't make segments like the in-depth description of the crimes of each inmate who happened to be on death row alongside Dick and Perry or the endless circumstantial opinions of the locals any less excrutiating to read. On the other hand, this "boring" meticulousness is also one of the biggest strengths of the book, especially when bringing the killers' portraits to life without leaning into voyeurism or romanticization.
Not the quickest or most fun read, but still timeless and fascinating nontheless.
It conjures a story, characters and themes from a list of facts and testimonies, while still managing to refrain from sensationalism and approaching the events with a surprising degree of empathy and tact. Its style of oral history/mosaic/reconstruction amalgam feels surprisingly current (no doubt because of its impact) and clearly recognizable in the thousands of hours of true crime mini-series and documentaries on any given streaming service nowadays.
Unfortunately, just like many of its inferior successors, it also feels a bit repetitive, stretched thin or unable to prioritize some content over other at points. I understand that if you conducted this much independent investigation, cutting things must feel like pulling teeth, but that doesn't make segments like the in-depth description of the crimes of each inmate who happened to be on death row alongside Dick and Perry or the endless circumstantial opinions of the locals any less excrutiating to read. On the other hand, this "boring" meticulousness is also one of the biggest strengths of the book, especially when bringing the killers' portraits to life without leaning into voyeurism or romanticization.
Not the quickest or most fun read, but still timeless and fascinating nontheless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Torture, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Hate crime, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual violence, and Suicide
Minor: Religious bigotry