Music for Chameleons

I found Truman Capote somewhat late in life. After reading In Cold Blood (Modern Library 100 Best Nonfiction Books) I was hooked. Beautiful word man-ship that takes us on a journey into a world dripping with so much color and personality you can literally smell it. Capote is a natural and this book of short stories, to me anyway, highlights his genius. Some of the stories contain multiple pages of conversation that are just a delight. You always know who's speaking and Capote injects some random thought or "coloring in" into the conversation so you are always aware of the surroundings. Some question the authenticity of these stories as in, the names and places thrown around. This is understandable given the catalog of in/famous people he claims to have been in conversation with. For me it matters little as it really changes nothing. I'm dead set on reading pretty much everything he's written and am currently working through "The Grass Harp". It's a shame we lost him to self-abuse, which is eerie given Philip Seymour Hoffman, who played him on screen, went the same way.

Great read

This is an excellent, very original book. It contains a short novel and non-fiction short stories, all inspired in real-life happenings the author dropped down in his diaries and journals over the years. As he explains in the Preface, he developed a specific style for these stories, a very neat, clean voice with him in the center, playing as an eyewitness in all of them. I have read other books by Truman Capote, but somehow, this one is different. Capote creates the environment for each of the stories as if he were a play writer, or better still, as if it was happening in that very moment. He immediately draws our attention to the conversation, or to the person he is watching, and we feel we are sitting in that park bench with him, letting time pass by. The book itself is organized in three parts: Part I is Music for Chameleons, which is a collection of six short stories, Part II is the short non-fiction novel Handcarved Coffins, and Part III is Conversational Portraits, which are also short stories in the form of conversations with Pearl Bailey, Bobby Beausoleil, Willa Cather, Marilyn Monroe, among others. The last one is a different one, a conversation with himself, which has a different style and is his very original way to tell us his beliefs, his hopes and his fears. I recommend the book to anyone. It's easy reading and yet, very profound.

When my Red Queen died recently, I grabbed your 'Music for Chameleons' and hopped a plane to Paris. It was not the first time I had chosen to take this book of yours along as a traveling companion so to speak. Your journalistic novel of short stories and anecdotes had crossed the Atlantic with me over twenty-five years ago for a family reunion in London, and it got me through a few bumpy days. To tell you the truth, I thought your stories then were fascinating and sometimes hilarious, but this time around, and now that I am older than you today, I read what you wrote more slowly and carefully. I didn't realize what a compassionate man you really were, and how non-judgmental when it comes to those who are having a rough struggle of it all. Whether it was Marilyn Monroe (A Beautiful Child), or your old classmate who self-destructed in his middle years, as you held on to him for dear life after his true confessions (Hello Stranger). But, first I have to tell you that when I opened your novel again, it fell on 'Handcarved Coffins' (A Non Fiction Account of An American Crime). This title made me pause because the first task I had to do on arrival in Paris was to throw my bag into a hotel room, and dash across town to choose an elegant casket that would suit a beautiful woman, known for her exquisite eye, who had requested long before her time came, a small noble funeral in the capital city where she had lived for the majority of her life. All to say, I was paying much more attention to you now, not only as a great American author (your early short stories are among my favorites), but as an individual who is writing towards the end of his life. I will tell you here that although you knew you were ill and failing at the time, your skills were sharper, innovative and brilliant as ever. So this time around, I didn't laugh out loud at your humorous recollections although some of your close calls were pretty funny in retrospect, especially when your friend the great star, Pearl Bailey, comes to your rescue at the airport in Los Angeles (Derring-Do), or you find yourself at night stranded in the middle of nowhere, knocking on the door of a kind woman with permanent cats-on-nap (A Lamp in The Window). Walking with your friend, the professional cleaning woman in New York, on her daily beat was priceless, and at the end when the two of you find yourselves in church after a wild day - Mary: 'Are you praying?' You: 'I'm praying for you, Mary, I want you to live forever' - Mary: 'Don't pray for me. I am already saved. Pray for all those lost souls out there'. And, your quiet and chilling interview with Robert Beausoleil of the Manson Clan (Then It All Came Down). Usually, I am unable to read such material as the latter, but if ever there was a portrayal of a man who is simply a killing machine and whose remaining link with humanity is hanging on the string of a guitar, you were able to write about it. These are just a few of your stories that come to mind here, not least and finally your bout of insomnia when you are tossing and turning, and in the end your memories of childhood come back and your faith in God as well. If I had to sum it up, I would like to think of you today with your wise elderly cousin, Sook, two beautiful paper kites high up in the bluest of crystal skies, long forgiven for having killed a mocking-bird, and enjoying your grandmother's cold banana pudding from Alabama. Hats off to you, Mr. Capote.

This is my favorite Truman Capote book. I have worn out my old copy, so I re-purchased this larger edition. It includes "Hand-carved Coffins", which was a deciding factor in buying this edition. One of my 10 deserted island books, including Salinger's , "9 Stories". I highly recommend "Music for Chameleons". The stories will stay with you for years to come.

J'ai découvert T. Capote à travers ce recueil de récits, à chemin entre la fiction et l'autobiographie au gré des rencontres étranges et parfois rocambolesques qui ont émaillé la vie de Capote. Certains de ces récits m'ont tenue en haleine ne me laissant de répit tant que je n'en avais pas achevé la lecture ! De pures merveilles infernales !

This collection of writings by Truman Capote contains some rather enigmatic short stories (my least favourite part of the book), a 'non-fiction novel' which is wholly gripping if a little inconclusive, and some 'conversational portraits' that vary in tone but are all quite amazing. This does not just contain a piece about Marilynn Monroe, but also how Capote met Willa Cather, and a range of, for example, multiple murders. The writing throughout is great and the content is (with the exception of some of the short stories) of great interest. Capote also seems to understand human nature - interesting reflections on how women who might not look wonderfully attractive can nonetheless not lack for romantic interest in their lives (both in the non-fiction novel and in the final short story). I would very strongly recommend this.

Det är intressant att se hur han använder språket på olika vis i berättelsen "My side of the matters" och sen i "jug of silver".

Leí este libro y el de A Sangre Fría para mi clase universitaria de periodismo. Quedé encantada con los cuentos y relatos ficcionalizados. Mucha gente lo compra por el "portrait" de Marilyn Monroe pero definitivamente va más allá. Es muy de Capote tomar algo de la vida real y darle un toque (como si fuera una foto que subiste a Instagram con un filtro) -le llama non-fiction a los relatos que disque son reales pero ese término tiene sus complejidades. Recomiendo mucho a Truman Capote ya que es uno de los escritores del siglo XX que son indispensables.

This little book only reaffirms my liking for Capote as a writer. What I most admire about his style is his frank and honest look at the world around him. His words are well chosen, and the descriptions sometimes verge on the lyrical. I enjoyed all the pieces contained in this collection, my favourites being ‘Handcarved Coffins’, ‘Mojave’ and ‘A Day’s Work’.