In Cold Blood

Middle section dragged like crazy for me. Didn't pick up again until the case broke. Cannot believe how different trials were then - no Miranda? No mandatory appeals? Capote seemed to think that alleging ineffective assistance is a personal affront, but it's not. I don't know. I'm looking at it from a defense lawyer's perspective.

I read this book the summer before last for an English class I was entering. It was (and is) not the type of book I would ever read for myself, and I'll probably not read it again. That being said, I deeply enjoyed [b:In Cold Blood 168642 In Cold Blood Truman Capote https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1365125582s/168642.jpg 1940709]. Heartbreaking though it was, you go into the novel knowing that the Clutters will die - and it's incredible to see their lives and then the lives of Richard & Perry after the fact. This book puts a firm but encircling frame around a period of time and people and really rocks your emotional world. Definitely recommended. If you're squeamish, you'll be able to flip past the worst bits and still enjoy a quality true-crime novel.

That we already know the outcomes of Dick and Perry does NOT take away from Capote's magnum opus.

The gruesome and gory details of the killing is set against the humanness of Perry. Do the killers deserve the death penalty or should we be better than and show empathy?

It is an absolutely heartbreaking and gut wrenching tale of forcing the reader to view criminal actions and the people who do such actions in a completely different light. That it has automatically been put in my Top 5 must read books speaks volumes. I implore you to give this book a chance.