breakfast_at_tiffany's epitome of incomprehensibility I just finished reading this book, sort of! The title novella only. The volume I borrowed from the library also has three short stories. But yes, Breakfast at Tiffany's! Talk about a fast read - I went through it in two days and I'm usually much, much slower at these things. I like how the signature poster with Audrey Hepburn reflects how Holly is described in a key scene - black dress, pearls, sunglasses. Or almost; Holly's supposed to be blond. But the casually elegant look, the mysteriousness, seems more relevant than hair colour...and the movie DID this, HIGHLIGHTED it even. I remember being disappointed that the Harry Potter movie put Harry's scar on the side of his face, as I'd pictured it down the middle. I don't even know if it was even described as such - I'd just imagined it that way. Anyway, I haven't seen Breakfast at Tiffany's in years, and now I'm curious to. One thing I wondering when reading: "Did they make everyone straight?" And then, online just now, I came across a video by Rowan Ellis talking about "straightwashing" that briefly mentioned this book/movie. Only she talked about someone called "Paul" and I don't know who that is. The narrator? I don't think he's given a name in the novel. Holly calls him "Fred" after her brother, but that's not his real name. His orientation is never made clear, except he says his love for Holly isn't sexual. Capote was gay, and it's possible the narrator was based on himself. My evidence? Narrator's also a writer. Slim, perhaps. But! There's a side character called Rusty that Holly explicitly states is gay - although perhaps he's bi, if his relationships with women aren't just for show. And it's kind of nasty of her to insinuate that the reason is that he was molested as a child, especially when she expresses this "all love is love" idea later. Oh, and near the end, she also insults a woman by calling her a dyke, though she already said she's fine with lesbians in general. Is *she* bi at all? She says things that sound like it, casually, though it doesn't seem that she's attracted to any women (except in celebrity_girlcrushes: hers is Greta Garbo). Now, the beauty of her character is that she contradicts herself and that she's so outspoken...which doesn't always make for a NICE person, or one that I'm ready to like right away. Audrey Hepburn gives off a strong aura of niceness (I need to see the film again since I'm going off distant memories), which isn't bad, but there's more of a bite to book-Holly. Example: would Hepburn tell a cat to fuck off?? Not in a 1961 film, anyway. The chatterbox characters, the humour, the sadness - it seems like a grown-up version of The Catcher in the Rye, although Salinger tends to be slower-paced. The only seem that didn't seem to be "real" is Holly's age. In a certain reveal scene about her past, I was expecting to hear that she's older than she's first stated to be. Nope! But everything else fits together for me...and anyway, it seems like a small miracle whenever books can communicate across generations, let alone do so this well. 230108 ... e_o_i Two out of the three following stories completed. Themes of travel, of finding or losing a home, come up in each. (And in the main novel, for that matter.) 230111 ... e_o_i "A Christmas Memory" takes its time more than the other stories. Capote gets to flex his syntax, which was slightly confusing in the description of a hat, but otherwise flowing like...like a river? I don't know. He wouldn't write something so boring. What sets this apart from other Christmas stories? On a literal level, the setting: southern U.S., so no snow. Crossing a river to find a tree. And it's not about a big, happy family - in fact, it's implied that most of the narrator's family isn't that supportive - but about the particular bond between a small boy and his sixty-something-year-old cousin, who have a sort of aunt-and-nephew relationship. 230122 ... e_o_i Anyway, it's weird and sweet. And very sensory: textures and smells to place you in the child's environment, sensing what he senses and ignoring what he ignores. ... I also listened to the song raze posted on song_of_the_day way back. Simple lyrics, simple-sounding guitar (I'm hedging because I don't know guitars that well), but that put the focus on the central conceit: a couple being incompatible or not. Kind of goofy - "Hey, we both saw this film once and liked it!" - a bit cynical but not bitter, if that makes sense. Toe-tapping, too. And the theme of compatibility is in the book/movie too. With a friend (book) or love interest (movie)...or with an earlier version of yourself. (In short, thanks! It was a fun listen.) 230122 ... raze (hey, you're welcome! i just thought it was a fun opportunity to link back to your blathe. that song was a constant presence on the radio the summer i turned twelve. i always misheard "one thing we've got" as "one *that* we've got", so in my twisted pubescent brain it became a song delivered from the perspective of an eager video store employee.) 230123 what's it to you? who go blather from