Just finished reading...

In Cold Blood
by Truman Capote

Well, what can I say? It's a classic, isn't it? (I know it is, it says so on the cover - "Penguin Classics".) This has been on my 'should read' pile for quite a while now, and I'm glad I finally got round to it. I've wanted to see the film (Capote) for ages now, but I really wanted to read the book first.

In Cold Blood is Capote's analysis of a truly gruesome crime that took place in Kansas in the '50s. The book was hugely controversial on its release in 1966 and not surprisingly, since Capote seeks to humanise and understand the perpetrators of this apparently motiveless crime. However at no point does he sympathise with, or apologise for, their actions - he tells it like it is, giving you the facts and letting you make up your own mind. At the same time, you will get to know the victims and the investigators, and a number of other characters affected by the murders. Capote never makes judgements here (quite a feat considering how involved he became with the central players), but he leaves it to the reader to draw conclusions about the issues addressed.