In these gems of reportage Truman Capote takes true stories and real people and renders them with the stylistic brio we expect from great fiction. Here we encounter an exquisitely preserved Creole aristocrat sipping absinthe in her Martinique salon; an enigmatic killer who sends his victims announcements of their forthcoming demise; and a proper Connecticut householder with a ruinous obsession for a twelve-year-old he has never met. And we meet Capote himself, who, whether he is smoking with his cleaning lady or trading sexual gossip with Marilyn Monroe, remains one of the most elegant, malicious, yet compassionate writers to train his eye on the social fauna of his time.
خرید کتاب موسیقی برای آفتاب پرست ها
جستجوی کتاب موسیقی برای آفتاب پرست ها در گودریدز
معرفی کتاب موسیقی برای آفتاب پرست ها از نگاه کاربران
داستان‌های کتاب صرفا گزارش‌های مستندگونه‌ی نویسنده از اتفاقات و ملاقات‌های روزمره‌ست، پس نباید توقع فرم معمول داستان کوتاه رو از این کتاب داشت. با این آگاهی به سراغ کتاب رفتم و لذت زیادی هم بردم. تصور نمی‌کردم گزارش‌هایی معمولی از موقعیت‌های پیش پا افتاده تا این حد جذاب و خواندنی از آب در بیاد، برای همین کتاب رو در وقت‌های مرده و در موقعیت‌های مختلف و نسبتا ناجوری خوندم، اما واقعا تجربه‌ی لذت‌بخشی بود. بخش زیادی از این لذت رو مدیون طنز گزنده و صراحت کلام نویسنده هستم مثلا این یک مورد:
(view spoiler)[ جیمی داشت به زور پاهایش را توی شلوار من می‌کرد، شلواری که ناجور برایش تنگ بود و من داشتم بادگیر سفید او را تن می‌کردم که صدای در زدن سراسیمه‌ای آمد
- صدای مرد: هی! اونجا چه‌خبره؟
- جیمی: شما کی باشین؟ دِ بگو
- صدای مرد: من مسئول اینجام، برام هم پررو بازی در نیارین. چه خلاف قانونی دارین می‌کنین؟
- جیمی: ریدن ممنوعه؟
- صدای مسئول: من اونجا چهارتا پا می‌بینم. می‌بینم یه لباس‌هایی داره درمیاد. فکر کردین اونقدر احمقم که نفهمم چه خبره؟ دو تا مرد، چهارتا پا، این خلاف قانونه
- جیمی: اه برو درتو بذار
- صدای مسئول: من پلیس خبر می‌کنم بابت ع و ع بگیرنتون
- جیمی: ع و ع دیگه چه کوفتیه؟
- صدای مسئول: عشق و عیاشی، بعله یارو. من پلیس خبر می‌کنم
- ترومن کاپوتی: یا عیسی، یا یوسف، یا مریم (hide spoiler)]
خب، حالا بعد از خوندن دومین کتاب از کاپوتی می تونم بگم من عاشق این نابغه‌ی معتاد الکلی‌ام!
مشاهده لینک اصلی
من اول اصلاح کنم که این دقیقاً داستان‌کوتاه نیست. خاطرات خود ترومن کاپوتیه. بعضاً جذابن، بعضاً حوصله‌سربر. توی بعضیاشون چیزهای ناب و درخور تأملی هست و خیلی داستانیه. ولی بعضیای دیگه‌شون بیشتر برای کسایی که به خود ترومن کاپوتی علاقه دارن، جذابه.
مشاهده لینک اصلی
L’UOMO CHE VOLEVA ESSERE FRED ASTAIRE
Truman Capote balla con Norma Jeane Mortenson Baker Monroe (Los Angeles, 1º giugno 1926 – Los Angeles, 5 agosto 1962) meglio nota come Marilyn Monroe.
E probabilmente anche Jacko, i due ballerini più leggeri di sempre.
Sin da bambino, Capote sognava di diventare un ballerino di tip tap, da sempre attratto dalla leggerezza (non posso non pensare alla prima lezione americana di Calvino).
Chiaramente è lui, Truman, il camaleonte del titolo - molto più lui che i veri animaletti affascinati dalla musica che compaiono nel primo splendido racconto.
Truman e la maschera.
È lui il camaleonte capace di essere scrittore di racconti e romanzi, giornalista di reportage e inchiesta, viaggiatore, sceneggiatore, attore, conversatore, personaggio a 360°, trasformista e illusionista, di essere un alcolizzato, un tossicomane, un omosessuale, un genio, ma non un santo.
Sono sei racconti, un romanzo breve che speravo non finisse mai, e sette ritratti (incontri?) dialogati. Affreschi brevi.
Volevo presentare un romanzo giornalistico, di ampio respiro e che avesse la credibilità del fatto reale.
Si tratta di una raccolta che avrei voglia di citare per intero, dove dalla meraviglia si passa allo stupore attraverso la bellezza. Capote è una voce altra, che conduce in altre stanze, apre porte.
È un compendio della sua arte, della sua grandezza: il fascino magico dei racconti autobiografici accanto a un nuovo romanzo-verità che finisce troppo presto, l’occhio penetrante dell’osservatore mondano e una serie stupenda di ritratti dialogati in cui spicca il più tenero e intenso omaggio di sempre all’indimenticabile bellissima bambina Norma Jeane.
La sua impareggiabile capacità di rendere letterario il gossip sarebbe stata apprezzata da Proust.
E nonostante il costante ricorso ad alcol e droghe, lo scrittore Capote era per un controllo completo della scrittura, e quindi dell’opera, diffidando dell’ispirazione “under the influence” o anche solo febbrile che limitava la padronanza dell’atto creativo, e, in sostanza, precludeva la ricerca della giusta distanza.
Il più famoso ritratto fotografico di Truman Capote è questo di Henri Cartier-Bresson scattato a New Orleans nel 1947.
Ecco il maggiore desiderio di Capote, così semplice e condivisibile:
Svegliarmi una mattina e sentirmi finalmente una persona adulta, svuotata di risentimenti, di idee di vendetta e di altre emozioni infantili, distruttrici. In altre parole, sentirmi maturo.
Questa ‘musica’ è la parte più oscura dell’oscurità, più folle della follia.
Truman Capote tra Peter Falk e David Niven in “Murder By Death – Invito a cena con delitto” di Robert Moore, 1976.
PS
Come dimenticare questo cammeo! In mezzo a un cast da brivido, Capote si improvvisò eccellente attore rubando la scena ai ben più esperti colleghi (Alec Guiness, Peter Sellers, Maggie Smith, David Niven, Peter Falk…!). La scena dove Lionel Twain, il padrone di casa, corregge l’inglese di Sellers-Wang mi si è impressa nella memoria da quando il film uscì nelle sale e io lo vidi quattro o cinque volte in una sola stagione.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znS3g...
Norma Jeane Mortenson Baker Monroe (Marilyn Monroe) insieme a Karen Christentze Dinesen baronessa von Blixen-Finecke (Karen Blixen) fotografate da Cecil Beaton. Loccasione fu lultimo viaggio della Blixen in US.
مشاهده لینک اصلی
Sencillamente magnífico!
مشاهده لینک اصلی
the biggest attraction to this collection is @Handcarved Coffins@, an excellent account of serial killing in a small town. by turns mysterious, frustrating, tense, and bizarre, the accounting details Capotes relationship with the FBI agent assigned to the case, who has in turn romantically assigned himself to one of the potential victims. the modus operandi of the killer is original and very upsetting. the identity of the killer does not appear to be in question; what arises over the course of the piece is a dual portrait of a haunted agent and an arrogant, infuriatingly entitled potential serial killer. intriguing stuff, although the ambiguity of the ending may be problematic for some. and of course there is always the chance that this True Crime story, told in the style of In Cold Blood, isnt a true crime at all, and is instead a combined product of Capotes overactive imagination and his narcissism as well. eh, who cares. whatever it may be in the end, it is still a riveting and beautifully spun tale of longing, horror, the sadness of small towns and broken lives, and the toxic power of the very rich, the very greedy, and the very, very psychotic.
the rest of the collection is an assortment of interviews, musings, and at least one very interesting narrative story. at times very precise portraits and landscapes are drawn, at other times Capotes preciousness and tendencies towards navel-gazing and star-worship come across a bit much. the pieces @Dazzle@ and @Nocturnal Turnings@ are fascinating and uncomfortable: nakedly honest self-portraits of an author whose penchants for self-admiration and self-loathing seem to be drawn in equal measures.
مشاهده لینک اصلی
In this collection of fiction and non-fiction from late in Capotes life, he shows us that while his fiction may be depleting, his non-fiction is as sharp as ever. The stories at the beginning of the book didnt do anything for me. They were all very middling and detracted from this work in my opinion. @Handcarved Coffins@ is a work in the style In Cold Blood but the recent discovery that most of it was probably made up does make it hard to suspend disbelief. However, the real jewel in this collection, the reason why its getting three-stars, is A Beautiful Child. The transcript of the day Capote spent with Marilyn Monroe is absolutely fantastic. It portrays a side of Monroe that we never really got to see, we see her as a human being. It is utterly wonderful and strangely poetic. Its just a shame that the rest of this work doesnt live up to it.
مشاهده لینک اصلی
If you want to know more about Truman Capote, this is a better entertaining option for you. Composed of 14 short stories, Capote made himself a character in each. In the last one, in fact, he appeared as 2 characters conversing with each other. I had a nice time reading most of them because he seemed like a very versatile writer who was not afraid to experiment. I understand that these small masterpieces appeared in various magazines (New Yorker, Esquire, etc) during his time. So, probably thats the reason why each of them had to be fresh, engaging and interesting. You see, to keep the readers always looking forward to his piece in each issue of the magazine.
I. MUSIC FOR CHAMELEONS
Music for the Chameleons. 3 STARS
The narrator is a guest in a lovely house in Martinique. There is an aristocratic lady in the house and she takes care of chameleons. She plays music for them to emit different colors. I am not sure what Capotes exact message is but I thought that the colors of the chameleons symbolize the ever-changing opinion of the aristocrats with regards to the aboriginals in the island.
Mr. Jones. 2 STARS
So, who was Mr. Jones and why did he disappear so suddenly? What was Capotes motive in telling his reader that the narrator saw him in the train again? I just did not get it. I know there is a point there somewhere but sorry.
A Lamp in the Window. 4 STARS
I liked the ending. It was unexpected. I like it when Capote shows his quirkiness, i.e., his fun side. We know he was gay and gays are fun people. So, this story comes off as sincere and fun too. But dont get me wrong, this is not funny. Know what I mean?
Mojave. 3 STARS
An old masseur who is left all alone in a desert by his prostitute wife while he is urinating. In their trailer is the wifes lover whose hair is full of smelly pomade. Despite what the wife did, the elderly man says that he still loves his wife. This reminded me of gay men who knew all along that they were being fooled by their lovers and yet they were blind. So pathetic yet we all know this happens, gay or straight.
Hospitality. 3 STARS
Seems like this one is a true-to-life experience of Capote while growing up during the Depression. I just wondered where they got all those food while many Americans go hungry like what I read in Out of the Dust and of course book:The Grapes of Wrath|4395].
Dazzle. 4 STARS
Very funny childhood story of a gay boy Capote. He teased the reader on what he would ask the witch for. I thought I knew and then Capote made a twist but still I got it right. This is a breakthrough story because in here, Capote made known to the world that when he was young, (view spoiler)[he wanted to be a girl. (hide spoiler)]
II. HANDCARVED COFFINS
A Nonfiction Account of an American Crime. 4 STARS
A well-loved politician in an small town in the South has been discovered to be the mastermind for the killing of members of the committee. The said committee denied his huge track of land the proper irrigation since the river was diverted. I liked the story telling and the playfulness of Capotes character (yes, he is in the story just like the other stories in this book) especially the references to Jane Austen and Edith Whartons male characters. I should read a Wharton and resume my reading of Austen books.
This comprises half of the book. I think he wrote this as a follow up to In Cold Blood. However, according to Wiki, this is basically fiction as there was no criminal case like this. However, Capote is one of the characters here and the events parallel those of In Cold Blood. In that said masterpiece of him, Capote did not appear as a character.
III. CONVERSATIONAL PORTRAITS
A Days Work. 3 STARS
Capote joins and observes a girl Friday cleaning the houses of the rich and famous in Italy. Not all of them are rich and famous but with juicy stories. There is a reality TV show like this, I think.
Hello Stranger. 4 STARS
@Shades of Humbert Humbert,@ says Capote but George Claxton doesnt read books because he hates literature. When they were young, Capote did all the book reports of George while the later did all his assignments in Algebra. Capote flunked first year Algebra thrice even with the help of a tutor! I think I can relate to this. Not in my case, but someone dear.
Hidden Gardens. 2 STARS
I got distracted by the shift in narratives. All I understood was a guy with a huge prick and he put it on the girl who inquired about it and the girls hair turned white overnight (because of intense pressure). Maybe Capote meant this to be a joke and I took it seriously?
Derring-do. 2 STARS
Maybe I was just too tired while reading this part late last night. It seemed like another In Cold Blood criminal case this time with a serial killer facing execution soon. Other than that, this one did not leave anything in my mind.
Then It All Came Down. 3 STARS
This one also has similarities with some scenes in Capotes In Cold Blood. Well, this book was his follow up to that best-selling novel of him, right? In here, Capote is conversing with an inmate in the maximum-security cell block. The inmate, Robert Beausoleil, was charged of multiple murder. In the conversation, Capote or CP is namedropping; claiming to have met Lee Harvey Oswald, Priscilla Johnson, etc. Based on Wiki, party-boy Capote hobnobbed with the rich and famous.
A Beautiful Child. 4 STARS
Ha! This is the cutest story here. Marilyn Monroe, the sex goddess during Capotes time, appears as herself talking with our genius writer. It reminds me of beautiful girls in the campus with gay man as sidekick or bestfriend. This made me want to read a book about Marilyn Monroe. The way she expresses herself here is... cute!
Nocturnal Turnings, or How Siamese Twins Have Sex. 5 STARS
Dont be misled by the title. There is nothing obscene here. They slept in the end. @They@ means Capote and Capote. Two personas in one body. They talk to each other and unlike the angel and the demon, the ying and yang, they are not completely opposites. So, you have to really take time to read their banters. Brilliant and funny. Very Capote.
I think this collection of his works was entitled @Music for Chameleons@ because like what was in the first story, we readers are like chameleons that change our colors depending on the music provided to us. In this case, the music is provided by Capote. He writes, we read. Then our reaction varies depending on his style. And he has a lot of those (styles) up his sleeves.
مشاهده لینک اصلی
کتاب های مرتبط با - کتاب موسیقی برای آفتاب پرست ها
خرید کتاب موسیقی برای آفتاب پرست ها
جستجوی کتاب موسیقی برای آفتاب پرست ها در گودریدز
دوست دارم تناسخ بعد از مرگم یه پرنده باشه، ترجیحا کرکس! کرکس مجبور نیست بابت ظاهرش یا تواناییش تو دلبری و جلب رضایت بقیه خودش رو ناراحت کنه. به هرحال که کسی قرار نیست دوستش داشته باشه، زشته، زیادیه، هیچ جا نمی خوانش. در مورد آزادی‌ای که این موقعیت پیش می‌آره کلی می‌شه حرف زد. از طرف دیگه مخالفتی با لاک‌پشت دریایی شدن هم ندارم. می‌تونن رو زمین ول بچرخن و از رمز و راز اعماق اقیانوس هم با خبرن. عمرشون هم زیاده و چشم‌های خمارشون کلی حکمت و معرف جمع می‌کنه. - برداشت آزاد از غَلت‌های شبانه، مصاحبه با خود
داستان‌های کتاب صرفا گزارش‌های مستندگونه‌ی نویسنده از اتفاقات و ملاقات‌های روزمره‌ست، پس نباید توقع فرم معمول داستان کوتاه رو از این کتاب داشت. با این آگاهی به سراغ کتاب رفتم و لذت زیادی هم بردم. تصور نمی‌کردم گزارش‌هایی معمولی از موقعیت‌های پیش پا افتاده تا این حد جذاب و خواندنی از آب در بیاد، برای همین کتاب رو در وقت‌های مرده و در موقعیت‌های مختلف و نسبتا ناجوری خوندم، اما واقعا تجربه‌ی لذت‌بخشی بود. بخش زیادی از این لذت رو مدیون طنز گزنده و صراحت کلام نویسنده هستم مثلا این یک مورد:
(view spoiler)[ جیمی داشت به زور پاهایش را توی شلوار من می‌کرد، شلواری که ناجور برایش تنگ بود و من داشتم بادگیر سفید او را تن می‌کردم که صدای در زدن سراسیمه‌ای آمد
- صدای مرد: هی! اونجا چه‌خبره؟
- جیمی: شما کی باشین؟ دِ بگو
- صدای مرد: من مسئول اینجام، برام هم پررو بازی در نیارین. چه خلاف قانونی دارین می‌کنین؟
- جیمی: ریدن ممنوعه؟
- صدای مسئول: من اونجا چهارتا پا می‌بینم. می‌بینم یه لباس‌هایی داره درمیاد. فکر کردین اونقدر احمقم که نفهمم چه خبره؟ دو تا مرد، چهارتا پا، این خلاف قانونه
- جیمی: اه برو درتو بذار
- صدای مسئول: من پلیس خبر می‌کنم بابت ع و ع بگیرنتون
- جیمی: ع و ع دیگه چه کوفتیه؟
- صدای مسئول: عشق و عیاشی، بعله یارو. من پلیس خبر می‌کنم
- ترومن کاپوتی: یا عیسی، یا یوسف، یا مریم (hide spoiler)]
خب، حالا بعد از خوندن دومین کتاب از کاپوتی می تونم بگم من عاشق این نابغه‌ی معتاد الکلی‌ام!
مشاهده لینک اصلی
من اول اصلاح کنم که این دقیقاً داستان‌کوتاه نیست. خاطرات خود ترومن کاپوتیه. بعضاً جذابن، بعضاً حوصله‌سربر. توی بعضیاشون چیزهای ناب و درخور تأملی هست و خیلی داستانیه. ولی بعضیای دیگه‌شون بیشتر برای کسایی که به خود ترومن کاپوتی علاقه دارن، جذابه.
مشاهده لینک اصلی
L’UOMO CHE VOLEVA ESSERE FRED ASTAIRE
Truman Capote balla con Norma Jeane Mortenson Baker Monroe (Los Angeles, 1º giugno 1926 – Los Angeles, 5 agosto 1962) meglio nota come Marilyn Monroe.
E probabilmente anche Jacko, i due ballerini più leggeri di sempre.
Sin da bambino, Capote sognava di diventare un ballerino di tip tap, da sempre attratto dalla leggerezza (non posso non pensare alla prima lezione americana di Calvino).
Chiaramente è lui, Truman, il camaleonte del titolo - molto più lui che i veri animaletti affascinati dalla musica che compaiono nel primo splendido racconto.
Truman e la maschera.
È lui il camaleonte capace di essere scrittore di racconti e romanzi, giornalista di reportage e inchiesta, viaggiatore, sceneggiatore, attore, conversatore, personaggio a 360°, trasformista e illusionista, di essere un alcolizzato, un tossicomane, un omosessuale, un genio, ma non un santo.
Sono sei racconti, un romanzo breve che speravo non finisse mai, e sette ritratti (incontri?) dialogati. Affreschi brevi.
Volevo presentare un romanzo giornalistico, di ampio respiro e che avesse la credibilità del fatto reale.
Si tratta di una raccolta che avrei voglia di citare per intero, dove dalla meraviglia si passa allo stupore attraverso la bellezza. Capote è una voce altra, che conduce in altre stanze, apre porte.
È un compendio della sua arte, della sua grandezza: il fascino magico dei racconti autobiografici accanto a un nuovo romanzo-verità che finisce troppo presto, l’occhio penetrante dell’osservatore mondano e una serie stupenda di ritratti dialogati in cui spicca il più tenero e intenso omaggio di sempre all’indimenticabile bellissima bambina Norma Jeane.
La sua impareggiabile capacità di rendere letterario il gossip sarebbe stata apprezzata da Proust.
E nonostante il costante ricorso ad alcol e droghe, lo scrittore Capote era per un controllo completo della scrittura, e quindi dell’opera, diffidando dell’ispirazione “under the influence” o anche solo febbrile che limitava la padronanza dell’atto creativo, e, in sostanza, precludeva la ricerca della giusta distanza.
Il più famoso ritratto fotografico di Truman Capote è questo di Henri Cartier-Bresson scattato a New Orleans nel 1947.
Ecco il maggiore desiderio di Capote, così semplice e condivisibile:
Svegliarmi una mattina e sentirmi finalmente una persona adulta, svuotata di risentimenti, di idee di vendetta e di altre emozioni infantili, distruttrici. In altre parole, sentirmi maturo.
Questa ‘musica’ è la parte più oscura dell’oscurità, più folle della follia.
Truman Capote tra Peter Falk e David Niven in “Murder By Death – Invito a cena con delitto” di Robert Moore, 1976.
PS
Come dimenticare questo cammeo! In mezzo a un cast da brivido, Capote si improvvisò eccellente attore rubando la scena ai ben più esperti colleghi (Alec Guiness, Peter Sellers, Maggie Smith, David Niven, Peter Falk…!). La scena dove Lionel Twain, il padrone di casa, corregge l’inglese di Sellers-Wang mi si è impressa nella memoria da quando il film uscì nelle sale e io lo vidi quattro o cinque volte in una sola stagione.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znS3g...
Norma Jeane Mortenson Baker Monroe (Marilyn Monroe) insieme a Karen Christentze Dinesen baronessa von Blixen-Finecke (Karen Blixen) fotografate da Cecil Beaton. Loccasione fu lultimo viaggio della Blixen in US.
مشاهده لینک اصلی
Sencillamente magnífico!
مشاهده لینک اصلی
the biggest attraction to this collection is @Handcarved Coffins@, an excellent account of serial killing in a small town. by turns mysterious, frustrating, tense, and bizarre, the accounting details Capotes relationship with the FBI agent assigned to the case, who has in turn romantically assigned himself to one of the potential victims. the modus operandi of the killer is original and very upsetting. the identity of the killer does not appear to be in question; what arises over the course of the piece is a dual portrait of a haunted agent and an arrogant, infuriatingly entitled potential serial killer. intriguing stuff, although the ambiguity of the ending may be problematic for some. and of course there is always the chance that this True Crime story, told in the style of In Cold Blood, isnt a true crime at all, and is instead a combined product of Capotes overactive imagination and his narcissism as well. eh, who cares. whatever it may be in the end, it is still a riveting and beautifully spun tale of longing, horror, the sadness of small towns and broken lives, and the toxic power of the very rich, the very greedy, and the very, very psychotic.
the rest of the collection is an assortment of interviews, musings, and at least one very interesting narrative story. at times very precise portraits and landscapes are drawn, at other times Capotes preciousness and tendencies towards navel-gazing and star-worship come across a bit much. the pieces @Dazzle@ and @Nocturnal Turnings@ are fascinating and uncomfortable: nakedly honest self-portraits of an author whose penchants for self-admiration and self-loathing seem to be drawn in equal measures.
مشاهده لینک اصلی
In this collection of fiction and non-fiction from late in Capotes life, he shows us that while his fiction may be depleting, his non-fiction is as sharp as ever. The stories at the beginning of the book didnt do anything for me. They were all very middling and detracted from this work in my opinion. @Handcarved Coffins@ is a work in the style In Cold Blood but the recent discovery that most of it was probably made up does make it hard to suspend disbelief. However, the real jewel in this collection, the reason why its getting three-stars, is A Beautiful Child. The transcript of the day Capote spent with Marilyn Monroe is absolutely fantastic. It portrays a side of Monroe that we never really got to see, we see her as a human being. It is utterly wonderful and strangely poetic. Its just a shame that the rest of this work doesnt live up to it.
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If you want to know more about Truman Capote, this is a better entertaining option for you. Composed of 14 short stories, Capote made himself a character in each. In the last one, in fact, he appeared as 2 characters conversing with each other. I had a nice time reading most of them because he seemed like a very versatile writer who was not afraid to experiment. I understand that these small masterpieces appeared in various magazines (New Yorker, Esquire, etc) during his time. So, probably thats the reason why each of them had to be fresh, engaging and interesting. You see, to keep the readers always looking forward to his piece in each issue of the magazine.
I. MUSIC FOR CHAMELEONS
Music for the Chameleons. 3 STARS
The narrator is a guest in a lovely house in Martinique. There is an aristocratic lady in the house and she takes care of chameleons. She plays music for them to emit different colors. I am not sure what Capotes exact message is but I thought that the colors of the chameleons symbolize the ever-changing opinion of the aristocrats with regards to the aboriginals in the island.
Mr. Jones. 2 STARS
So, who was Mr. Jones and why did he disappear so suddenly? What was Capotes motive in telling his reader that the narrator saw him in the train again? I just did not get it. I know there is a point there somewhere but sorry.
A Lamp in the Window. 4 STARS
I liked the ending. It was unexpected. I like it when Capote shows his quirkiness, i.e., his fun side. We know he was gay and gays are fun people. So, this story comes off as sincere and fun too. But dont get me wrong, this is not funny. Know what I mean?
Mojave. 3 STARS
An old masseur who is left all alone in a desert by his prostitute wife while he is urinating. In their trailer is the wifes lover whose hair is full of smelly pomade. Despite what the wife did, the elderly man says that he still loves his wife. This reminded me of gay men who knew all along that they were being fooled by their lovers and yet they were blind. So pathetic yet we all know this happens, gay or straight.
Hospitality. 3 STARS
Seems like this one is a true-to-life experience of Capote while growing up during the Depression. I just wondered where they got all those food while many Americans go hungry like what I read in Out of the Dust and of course book:The Grapes of Wrath|4395].
Dazzle. 4 STARS
Very funny childhood story of a gay boy Capote. He teased the reader on what he would ask the witch for. I thought I knew and then Capote made a twist but still I got it right. This is a breakthrough story because in here, Capote made known to the world that when he was young, (view spoiler)[he wanted to be a girl. (hide spoiler)]
II. HANDCARVED COFFINS
A Nonfiction Account of an American Crime. 4 STARS
A well-loved politician in an small town in the South has been discovered to be the mastermind for the killing of members of the committee. The said committee denied his huge track of land the proper irrigation since the river was diverted. I liked the story telling and the playfulness of Capotes character (yes, he is in the story just like the other stories in this book) especially the references to Jane Austen and Edith Whartons male characters. I should read a Wharton and resume my reading of Austen books.
This comprises half of the book. I think he wrote this as a follow up to In Cold Blood. However, according to Wiki, this is basically fiction as there was no criminal case like this. However, Capote is one of the characters here and the events parallel those of In Cold Blood. In that said masterpiece of him, Capote did not appear as a character.
III. CONVERSATIONAL PORTRAITS
A Days Work. 3 STARS
Capote joins and observes a girl Friday cleaning the houses of the rich and famous in Italy. Not all of them are rich and famous but with juicy stories. There is a reality TV show like this, I think.
Hello Stranger. 4 STARS
@Shades of Humbert Humbert,@ says Capote but George Claxton doesnt read books because he hates literature. When they were young, Capote did all the book reports of George while the later did all his assignments in Algebra. Capote flunked first year Algebra thrice even with the help of a tutor! I think I can relate to this. Not in my case, but someone dear.
Hidden Gardens. 2 STARS
I got distracted by the shift in narratives. All I understood was a guy with a huge prick and he put it on the girl who inquired about it and the girls hair turned white overnight (because of intense pressure). Maybe Capote meant this to be a joke and I took it seriously?
Derring-do. 2 STARS
Maybe I was just too tired while reading this part late last night. It seemed like another In Cold Blood criminal case this time with a serial killer facing execution soon. Other than that, this one did not leave anything in my mind.
Then It All Came Down. 3 STARS
This one also has similarities with some scenes in Capotes In Cold Blood. Well, this book was his follow up to that best-selling novel of him, right? In here, Capote is conversing with an inmate in the maximum-security cell block. The inmate, Robert Beausoleil, was charged of multiple murder. In the conversation, Capote or CP is namedropping; claiming to have met Lee Harvey Oswald, Priscilla Johnson, etc. Based on Wiki, party-boy Capote hobnobbed with the rich and famous.
A Beautiful Child. 4 STARS
Ha! This is the cutest story here. Marilyn Monroe, the sex goddess during Capotes time, appears as herself talking with our genius writer. It reminds me of beautiful girls in the campus with gay man as sidekick or bestfriend. This made me want to read a book about Marilyn Monroe. The way she expresses herself here is... cute!
Nocturnal Turnings, or How Siamese Twins Have Sex. 5 STARS
Dont be misled by the title. There is nothing obscene here. They slept in the end. @They@ means Capote and Capote. Two personas in one body. They talk to each other and unlike the angel and the demon, the ying and yang, they are not completely opposites. So, you have to really take time to read their banters. Brilliant and funny. Very Capote.
I think this collection of his works was entitled @Music for Chameleons@ because like what was in the first story, we readers are like chameleons that change our colors depending on the music provided to us. In this case, the music is provided by Capote. He writes, we read. Then our reaction varies depending on his style. And he has a lot of those (styles) up his sleeves.
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