This book is kind of odd. It has what I can only call short stories at the beginning, a nonfiction novella in the middle, and “conversational portraits” at the end. It’s also written by the fabulous Truman Capote, so I was really looking forward to reading it.

Handcarved Coffins, the novella, I saved to read till last, and I’m glad I did. It’s a really sad story written in a similar kind of style as In Cold Blood, also about murder in a small town. I thought it was really well written, touching and engaging.

The short stories at the beginning were good, some better than others. I wish I had my book with me to be able to give you specifics, but I know some were home run kind of great, and some were only adequate (for Capote. For anyone else they would be spectacular). The conversational portraits, on the other hand, were fascinating. Capote based them on real people (the most famous of which is A Beautiful Child, about Marilyn Monroe) and it’s a rapport between him and the other individual. They’re fantastic little snippets into somebody’s life, written out in play format, and very easy to fall into.

Overall, it’s a book I loved, but I really expect no less from Capote. It’ll be a very sad day for me when I finally finish reading everything he’s written.