Micro Mention "Breakfast At Tiffany's"

"Breakfast at Tiffany's" by Truman Capote is one of those short classics that I didn't know if I liked it initially, which is probably intentional. There is something about Capote's gossamer writing that keeps you invested and it's narrated brilliantly by Michael C. Hall—it got to me at the end.

I think what kept me invested beyond Capote's writing is the manic energy he infused in every character, even the narrator. They're all out to do—something, even if they're not sure what. It's like watching ambitious twenty-somethings all ping-ponging off of each other, not sure where they're going or what they want, but they know they want to get there fast. Also, and I talk about this more in my full review, which you can find here, but a lot of the characters feel like archetypical people you meet throughout life.

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"Breakfast at Tiffany's," by Truman Capote--Fiction Review

This week let’s head back in time with an old classic. Take in that old New York feel of the 1940s with Truman Capote’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” 

***The Non-Spoiler part of this review***

What I love about this book:

How Capote constructs this story, from a technical perspective, is ingenious. It’s written in the first person from the POV of a character who isn’t the story’s protagonist. Not only that, but his name is never given. That’s a hard trick to pull off and could go wrong in several ways. I believe that’s also why this story is a relatively short novella.

Holly Golightly, the true protagonist of this story—the character in which the plot pivots around—initially is an unlikeable protagonist. By the end, I softened on her. Here’s the thing, though, not because she learns anything or even significantly changes her ways. Holly is just that compelling in how firm she holds to her character.

Capote also captures the feeling of a New York of yesteryear and crystalizes it in his prose. All of the principal characters in this story are complex creations that often express conflicting values, which I feel is emblematic of the war years of WW2.

What I don’t love about this book:

On the flip side, this is definitely a story that dates itself in an unpleasant way regarding race and sexuality—hint, it’s got that cavalier use of derogatory terms, which was all the rage in the 1950s. I’m not suggesting that Capote was a racist or homophobic. After all, he was an openly gay man at a tough time to be a gay man. My impression of him, which comes across in this story, is that he was very preoccupied with the sensational. If a little offense was needed to get that shock value, so be it.      

Without spoiling too much here in the non-spoiler part, but there is a bit with Holly’s cat that I found incredibly sad. It doesn’t get hurt or anything—nothing like that—it’s just that I am especially prone to sad animal moments. 

This preview is an Amazon Affiliate link; 

as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

***The Spoiler part of this review***

***Ye be warned to turn back now***

The quick and dirty synopsis:

The story begins with our unnamed narrator, a writer, having a conversation with a bartender about a mutual—friend—love? It’s hard to tell with how they talk about Holly. What’s clear is they miss her, and she seems to have fled the country.