Customer Reviews

Breakfast at Tiffany's (Essential Penguin)

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Just finished reading "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and let out a long sigh right after with a smile on my face. The ending may not necessarily be your typical happy-ending, nonetheless it is delightful. It was a re-read for me, for about like the 4th time and every time I have read it, I have found something different in it. While reading it this time I couldn't separate the movie from the book. Audrey and Peppard kept flashing in front of me as I was reading the book and it felt nice. As I type this so-called review I am listening to "Moon River" [instrumental] and watching Audrey in the opening credits. I love the book. According to me, no one can ever write a novella of such force [besides Marquez and Murakami] than that of Capote. As Norman Mailer said about it, "I wouldn't want to change any word of it. Its just perfect", that's exactly how I feel about it.

Breakfast at Tiffany's - if you already do not know what its about, may be because you haven't read it - the plot is simple: It is about lost dreams, sometimes unrequited love and a whole lot of wit, profundity and the chance to go the whatever length in order to get what one wants. It is about Holiday Golightly [love the play of words] and her life or rather a fragment of her life, as seen through the eyes of the narrator Paul. Paul who loves Holly like all the other men in her life. Holly, who is also an escort/call girl. A girl who is all of twenty and possesses the wisdom of a thirty-year old without losing her naivety. Who believes that one mustn't betray friends, no matter what. Who jumps into a cab and visits "Tiffany & Co." when she gets the `mean reds'. Holly is everything and more. She is promiscuous. She is brazen. She does things like stealing masks and as Billy Joel would put it, "She's always a woman to me"...

Breakfast at Tiffany's is a novella with many layers to it. Abandonment, loneliness, the need to belong and yet not be chained at the same time, the delight in the unorthodox and last but not the least about not loving a wild thing. As Holly says in the book, ""Never love a wild thing, Mr. Bell...That was Doc's mistake. He was always lugging home wild things. A hawk with a hurt wing. One time it was a full-grown bobcat with a broken leg. But you can't give your heart to a wild thing: the more you do, the stronger they get. Until they're strong enough to run into the woods. Or fly into a tree. then a taller tree. Then the sky. That's how you'll end up, Mr. Bell. If you let yourself love a wild thing. You'll end up looking at the sky"

The book was written by Capote at the peak of his career. The somewhat "curious" title Breakfast at Tiffany's was inspired by a man from out-of-town that Capote heard about, who was "ignorant of New York". When the man was asked to pick from the best restaurants in New York where to eat breakfast, he replied: "Well, let's have breakfast at Tiffany's," which was the only place he knew of.

Written in 1958, it portrays a world in which women were invariably best seen and not heard, and totally reliant on men for money and worldly comforts. And yet Capote has created a female character that is largely independent and emotionally strong, although she's vulnerable too (loneliness, depression and desperation are hinted at). While she might be having a lot of fun, she's also on the run from a past that is forever trying to catch up with her as she tries to find a place that makes her feel as happy as Tiffany's does.

All in all, this short novella is a joy to read. Capote's writing is typically rich and lyrical. He describes this woman in such a way that you get the sense he has moulded her on someone that intrigued him, that held some allure or had an aura of mysticism that left a deep impression.

This is a short novella, and a page turner set in New York city in the 1950s or late 1940s.

Truman Capote, 1924 to 1984, is a well know American writer. I have read a number of his works including his famous In Cold Blood, a book that I recommend highly. Also, I read some of his early work including Other Voices, Other Rooms, and many of his short stories. Generally, he is regarded as an excellent writer or a highly gifted writer. He ranks among the best of his time. In Cold Blood is probably his finest work and one of the better crime books of the twentieth century.

There are some parallels between Fitzgerald's Great Gatsby and Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's. Both show an attempt by the writers to write a novel different from their prior works using clear and straightforward prose, and with relatively coherent plots. One could say these works were more commercially oriented. Perhaps they had the idea of novels as the basis of screenplays or a play. The work is less complex than most of Capote's prior works and it seems more polished. Capote called it the beginning of his second career where he thinned out the prose. It is the opposite of his obscure and creative Other Voices, Other Rooms. F. Scott Fitzgerald made similar comments in his diaries on the preparation of Gatsby.

This is a short novel or novella. It involves the fictitious friend of the writer, Holly Golightly, and their mutual friend Joe Bell, a bar owner in Manhattan. She is a free spirit and a neighbour of the narrator living below him in an apartment. They share the telephone at Joe's bar, and Joe takes messages for them. We follow some of her escapades and the relationship between the narrator and Holly. We assume that the narrator is like Capote.

In my own mind, it seems difficult to equate the woman in the story with Audrey Hepburn who appears in the movie version. The woman in the book seems younger, more sexual, and more manipulative.

This is a very entertaining book which is hard to put down. It is among the best works of Capote

Fine writing: 5 stars.

This book is too much fun. The success of the book (it is, of course a tremendously successful piece of writing)depends on the central character, Holly Golightly who charms not only the characters in the book but the reader as well. All of the action occurs in New York City, and the setting just enhances the plot (hence the title). The theme centers around parties, relationships and romance in a frivolous, somewhat flighty atmosphere. Capote's capacity for dialogue borders on genius. I suspect his near perfect recall for conversation helped create this character.

Breakfast at Tiffany's is a true American classic. At 100 pages, it is a quick read, but a must for the faithful reader. The other 3 short stories included in this compilation are even quicker at about 20 pages each. Very entertaining. Good for a light read.

A young lady's hectic life in New York in the 1940's. A beautiful, unpredictable 19 year-old living life to the fullest, from one party to the next, breaking hearts here & there, in short, quite a tease. A strong character indeed, with a hidden fragility coming from an obscure past, a past that she does not want to share with anyone. Meet Holly Golightly, Travelling. She is here depicted by one of her previous neighbours, a young writer with whom she shared quite a few adventures and a strong bond. Holly doesn't seem to have peace, she is forever on her way out, dazzling, attractive. A young woman of the world, well known by New York socialites and not only. Some of her connections are questionable and will they get her into trouble? That is for you to find out.

I loved the narrative. My first book by Truman Capote, better late than never (I had seen the film but could not remember it) and a real discovery. Simple, elegant, to the point, funny and sad simultaneously, conveying Holly's character in a perfect way. I was expecting a heart-breaking love story but this was not it. It was more than that. Strong, fragile Holly (probably still travelling) is a very likeable personage. The other characters including the narrator, mostly in the background, also find a perfect niche to complement the novel.

It was an interesting choice by the author that she was depicted in an era when most ladies' place was at home. Independent, not caring a bit about being "judged". Looking for love? Looking for "something"? Is that why she is forever running around? Well, as long as she can relax with breakfast at Tiffany's, all is ok.

Read this book, a few delightful pages (it's very short) that will leave you hanging in there for an answer.

This is my first time reading a Capote work and I was just dying to see if the book was anything at all like the movie--it was. But I like the movies ending better! Very imaginative storyline-Holly is larger than life and that is truly the way I like my fiction characters. Overall a good read. The short stories that followed were quite good, too.

The purchase was as easy as can be and surprisingly quick. Great Amazon reaching forgotten far away places like mine.

I bet everybody has seen the cult movie starring Audrey Hepburn, well i enjoyed the novella too and so did my students. We worked on the differences in class and my high school students really appreciated the lessons.

The book was second hand and was rated good which was absolutely true.

The customer is fully satisfied.

Thanks.