Review: "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote

From Goodreads: 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.

As Truman Capote reconstructs the murder and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers, he generates 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.

My Thoughts: This was the November pick for my book club and I feel like I can't live in Kansas without having read this book. It was definitely well worth the read. In Cold Blood reads like a novel but tells the story of an brutal murder that took place in the 1950s. I had to keep reminding myself that this was non-fiction because it read like your average mystery novel. Capote did an amazing job of showcasing the victims as well as the killers and created an amazing story. I felt like I was supposed to feel sorry for the killers, especially Perry Smith, but I just couldn't. They were both so apathetic and basically killed 4 innocent peopel for no reason. A lot of focus was put on Smith's dysfunctional childhood and how that it negatively impacted his adult life but to me he still seemed to be your average sociopath and I had trouble feeling anything but anger towards him. Otherwise, I really enjoyed this book to be a thoroughly engaging story. 4 stars.

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