A review by henrygravesprince
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

3.75

Capote’s prose is masterful, but the non-fiction aspect was handled in a way I don’t find responsible, and I think that, as one of the first major modern true crime media “sensations”, In Cold Blood embodies many of the same problems that true crime media, particularly dramatizations, maintains today. I don’t dislike Capote, and in fact I quite like his writing for the most part, but I couldn’t in good conscience give this book a wholly glowing review. There would still be issues if I looked at it the way one looks at fiction, but monumentally less — that said, it is not purely fiction, and I can’t look at this novel & not be acutely aware of the fact that these were real people & the facts were embellished in ways that can’t really be brushed off, in my opinion.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Mental illness, Death, Child death, and Murder

Moderate: Pedophilia, Racism, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Misogyny, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, War, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Homophobia, Abandonment, and Grief