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I have always, always wanted to read this book. When I recently read Capote's In Cold Blood for book club, I knew I needed to read this one too; it couldn't just stay on my wish list forever!

So I grabbed it :)

Note: this copy also contains House of Flowers, A Diamond Guitar, and A Christmas Memory.

So this ended up being my first "read" of 2008. Actually, I started it in 2007, had 12 people to my house for Christmas, and finished it in 2008 :)

So. I have to say that I've known of this book forever. And I think, in some back corner of my mind, I always knew it was by Truman Capote. What I couldn't reconcile in my head was Audrey Hepburn, the previously-mentioned In Cold Blood, the Robin's Egg blue of Tiffany, and the title of this book. Not to mention Deep Blue Something's song, to which I love to sing harmony. All these conspired to confuse me, and having never read the book or seen the movie, they've floated around in my head for years.

Now I've finally read the book, and although I liked it ok, I have to say it was rather a let-down. But I'm still excited to see the movie. Whether or not it actually goes with the book (as we all know what happens when books are made into movies), I shall see, but at least maybe then I will understand it all.

Oddly, I liked In Cold Blood, gruesome though it may be, better. Again, perhaps this book is suffering from a lifetime of something in my head that was inaccurate. Regardless, this book was just kind of "meh" for me. It didn't really go anywhere or do anything; just followed around one flighty girl who might or might not have been married to a Bubba and might or might not have been old enough to drink and who definitely aided and abetted a mafia guy, whether she was aware of it or not. Certainly Holly is a character, and I don't think her last name is a coincidence, but the book sort of stops there. Mr. Capote gets me interested with the Yunioshi picture right from the beginning. He intrigues me with the Bubba from Texas and the politician from ... Brazil? I've already forgotten and don't care enough to go back and look. Not a promising sign. So he gets me to ask a lot of questions and then never answers them.

The book goes nowhere and says nothing. Is anything resolved? Are any questions answered? Not really. There was no there, there.

I'm still interested in the movie, though :)

Now, will I bother with the short stories in the back when I've already read what I'd consider one unfulfilling short story?