My frequent bus rides to university are prosy and boring when divorced from the company of a book. One of my previous gallants had been the non-fiction, In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. The purchase had been made on a whim, with the encouragement of a 30% discount offer that gleaned at me in its imploring way (like all discount vouchers do). How could I resist? Yeah, you would have done the same. Yes, you would. Don't lie.

In Cold Blood takes place in 1959, Kansas, where the Clutter family resides. The Clutter family consists of Herb, his wife Bonnie and their two children, Nancy and Kenyon. In a nutshell, the novel is about how they died at the hands of Dick Hickock and Perry Smith.



As news of the murder is announced through radio and newspaper headlines, frenzied uproar pervades the small town with rapid efficiency. Distrust and suspicion blazes through the once troublefree, felicitous town, and people begin changing all their locks. They've never heard such horror and they've never experienced such consternation. Fear is finally swallowing them up after many years of famine. The culprits, Dick and Perry are now on the run; but they aren't scared. No, it had been the 'perfect crime'. They had left no clues. They had killed everyone in the house, leaving no witnesses. All for what? For barely fifty dollars. In the meantime, the law authorities are investigating the murders, finding themselves clutching at straws.

I think what's interesting about this novel is that it's a true recount of murder. At least the majority of it is true anyway, since there's been criticism regarding the accuracy of some details. What's also strange is the empathy you may experience, as you learn about Perry's traumatic childhood experiences, leading to his psychotic tendencies and mental demise.

In Cold Blood permits a glimpse of how messy and anarchic the mind of killer is. For instance, Perry had said in the police interview, "I didn't want to harm [Mr Clutter]. I thought he was a very nice gentleman. Soft spoken. I thought so right up to the moment I cut his throat." It's quite disturbing how Perry could evince such a strong liking and appreciation for Herb Clutter and yet, was able to kill him, free from batting an eyelid. It's pretty clear, he's unable to connect emotionally with people and is devoid of all self control. The frightening thing is, he can't control it.

In Cold Blood isn't for everyone. It's definitely not a book that will unlax, being laced with lament and morbidity throughout. Nonetheless, In Cold Blood was a pretty interesting read. I had never read a true crime novel before this book. It didn't exactly leave me rejoicing in satisfaction, nor did it leave me scowling at the cover because it was so horrible. It was definitely an interesting read though.

In Cold Blood gets 3.8/5 hot dogs