In Cold Blood

· Sold by Vintage
4.3
448 reviews
Ebook
432
Pages
Eligible

About this ebook

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The most famous true crime novel of all time "chills the blood and exercises the intelligence" (The New York Review of Books)and haunted its author long after he finished writing it.

On November 15, 1959, in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas, four members of the Clutter family were savagely murdered by blasts from a shotgun held a few inches from their faces. There was no apparent motive for the crime, and there were almost no clues. 

In one of the first non-fiction novels ever written, Truman Capote reconstructs the murder and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers, generating both mesmerizing suspense and astonishing empathy. In Cold Blood is a work that transcends its moment, yielding poignant insights into the nature of American violence.

Ratings and reviews

4.3
448 reviews
Nick Livengood
January 21, 2014
Truman Capote, a known gay, wrote this book about the true murder of the Clutter family by two delinquent misfits. One of the murderers, Perry Smith, had a horrific childhood growing up. It is believed that Truman had a homosexual liking for Smith, and displayed Smith as a sweet, almost innocent-seeming man in the book. The worst part of this book is that Truman tried to use Perry's childhood as an excuse for him to not be hanged. Apparently, the fact that he himself murdered a sweet, innocent family of four from point-blank distance with a shotgun didn't register properly with Capote. Smith had the choice to change and better himself despite his upbringing. He deserved to be hanged for the horrific act he committed, and I greatly detest the fact that Capote tried to make an evil murderer look like a normal human being. I was forced as a high school student in the North Carolina public schools. The book pushes the typical liberal agenda because it was written by a gay man, denotes capital punishment, and blames the terrible childhood of one murderer as the reason way he ended up so violent. BOTTOM LINE: I WOULD NOT RECCOMEND THIS BOOK BECAUSE IT IS TRULY A WASTE OF TIME TO READ!!
6 people found this review helpful
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Alan Schulz
March 14, 2016
It is difficult to read this book without occasionally considering its place in American literature. Honestly, it dragged along for quite a while and then ended. The character studies were without a doubt the work of an observant and interested person, but all of Capote's talent seems a bit wasted on a less than riveting story. That said, who the hell am I to discredit this master work by a deservingly famous author? I didn't really like Citizen Kane either.
13 people found this review helpful
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Megan Carmichael
January 25, 2020
I am unsure if I would have finished the book if I knew it wasnt a classic. I am a huge fan of true crime but some areas of the book seemed to go rather slow. I definitely enjoyed the insights into Smith's life. I wonder why Hickock's life was not described in detail. Good book, definitely makes a person think.
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About the author

TRUMAN CAPOTE was born September 30, 1924, in New Orleans. After his parents’ divorce, he was sent to live with relatives in Monroeville, Alabama. It was here he would meet his lifelong friend, the author Harper Lee. Capote rose to international prominence in 1948 with the publication of his debut novel, Other Voices, Other Rooms. Among his celebrated works are Breakfast at Tiffany’s, A Tree of Night, The Grass Harp, Summer Crossing, A Christmas Memory, and In Cold Blood, widely considered one of the greatest books of the twentieth century. Twice awarded the O. Henry Short Story Prize, Capote was also the recipient of a National Institute of Arts and Letters Creative Writing Award and an Edgar Award. He died August 25, 1984, shortly before his sixtieth birthday.

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