“This love of mine, more intense than anything else I felt was lonelier. We are alone-terribly, isolated from the other, so fierce is the world’s ridicule we cannot speak or show our tenderness” (147-48).

Reading this gorgeous bildungsroman of a debut novel finally convinced me what a master Truman Capote was as a writer. This is the third work of his I’ve read, and finally- I’ve found a work of his that I truly felt invested in.

It’s the story of Joel Knox who is sent to live with his mysterious father and his family in a decaying mansion in Mississippi. He meets stepmother Amy, tomboy Idabel, and his enigmatic uncle Randolph who becomes a figure in his coming of age as a young gay man.

Beautiful, haunting and filled with poetic scenes of loneliness and trying to belong- it’s no surprise it reminded me of Carson McCullers’ work, and that Capote himself had been friends with her.

It’s a masterwork of longing and of the grotesque, appropriately categorizing Capote as a one of the masters of the Southern gothic.

“Other Voices, Other Rooms”
by Truman Capote

Book Review by Jay Gilbertson

This is maybe the eighth, could be the ninth time I’ve read this amazing little novel and I know for certain I’ll read it again one day. Billed as Capote’s first, and in my opinion his best work, Other Voices, Other Rooms is truly an amazing piece of literature and still haunts me today.
tThe author took a classic coming-of-age theme and carefully, subtly and with fascinatingly flawed characters—ripped it to smithereens! The story centers around two powerful topics that Capote struggled with his entire life: the search for a father-figure and the struggle with sexual orientation. What carries this tale is Capote’s brilliant prose and impeccable descriptions of place. He is one of the more rare authors that compel the reader to constantly re-read certain passages not because they’re confusing but due to the incredible picture the author presents of thirteen-year-old, Joel Knox, on the brink of manhood.
Give this a try:
“…He lay there on a bed of cold pebbles, the cool water washing, rippling over him; he wished he were a leaf, like the current-carried leaves riding past: leaf-boy, he would float lightly away, float and fade into a river, an ocean, the world’s great flood.”
tWith the death of Joel’s mother early on in the story, he is sent off to live with his estranged father in a dilapidated old hotel that, like its occupants, is further sinking into disrepair. From the psychotic step-mother, Miss Amy, to her eccentric cousin, Randolph, to the crusty-cook, Zoo, there isn’t a stereotype left to imagine. Throw in Idabel and Florabel, twins as different as they are alike, and you’ve got a brew of misfits that will surround you with color and sparkle contrasted with loneliness and despair at every turn. One jarring element that any modern reader will find uncomfortable to read is Capote’s use of the ‘N’ word. Though common back when this work was first published, it seems appropriate within the story and adds yet another layer to this complex cast.

tAnother of the many fascinating characters is not a person, but an old resort called Cloud Hotel. It too is a falling apart place with a history that will burn into your imagination and leave you wanting to know more. Though I’ve read everything Capote ever wrote, it’s this novel I return to because like some poetry, each reading I find some new gem to marvel and wonder about.
Like this clever title-weave-in:
“…But Little Sunshine stayed on: it was his rightful home, he said, for if he went away, as he had once upon a time, other voices, other rooms, voices lost and clouded, strummed his dreams…”
tOh and there’s also a midget and a woman with a huge wart on her chin and a one-armed barber and a cat named Toby. And of course, there’s a woman in the window and you won’t believe who that turns out to be—or perhaps you will.

For more information about the author visit:
www.capotebio.com

Alte glasuri, alte încăperi de Truman Capote (1948)
La doar 23 de ani, Truman Capote scrie un roman puternic, al cărei protagonist este un puști de 13 ani ce încearcă să își facă loc prin complicata lume a adulților. Orfan de mamă, Joel este invitat la conacul de pe o plantație sudistă al tatălui său, pe care nu îl cunoscuse niciodată. Puștiul face o călătorie de unul singur de la New Orleans până într-un ținut uitat de lume din Mississipi, fremătând de emoție că în sfârșit își va cunoaște tatăl. Ajunge însă într-un mediu neobișnuit, în care adulții, de câte ori sunt întrebați când își va vedea tatăl, îi dau răspunsuri vagi și, de cele mai multe ori, par a nu auzi întrebările puștiului. Atmosfera de mister crește pe măsură ce Joel descoperă oamenii care alcătuiesc noua comunitate și mica lui familie. Băiatul este un bun observator al celor din jur, căutând să descopere cum să relaționeze cu fiecare, cum să iubească, cum să fie iubit, descoperind tragediile celor din jur, pierzându-și naivitatea și fiind rănit de dramele celor la care ajunge să țină.
"Lui Joel însă nu-i stătea mintea la rugăciuni, ci mai curând la ceva ce nicidecum nu se putea prinde cu o plasă de vorbe, căci, cu o singură excepție, toate rugăciunile din trecut fuseseră niște cereri simple, concrete: Doamne, da-mi o bicicletă, un briceag cu șapte lame, o cutie cu vopsele de ulei. Dar cum, cum ai putea rosti o rugăminte atât de nelămurită, de lipsită de noimă ca asta: Dă, Doamne, să fiu iubit."
Mă abțin de la a povesti romanul, pot doar să concluzionez că este scris superb, atmosfera este cinematică, iar traducerea lui George Volceanov pentru Editura Polirom este excelentă. Nu simți că este un roman scris de un tânăr, mai degrabă pare că ar cuprinde experiențele cuiva trecut prin viață, pentru că poveștile tuturor personajelor, indiferent de vârstă, sunt credibile, dramele sunt accentuate atât cât trebuie, iar dialogurile sunt vii, de parcă le-ai auzi, nu le-ai citi. Ca și în alte cărți scrise de Capote, nu vom descoperi personaje convenționale, dimpotrivă, găsim oameni cu personalități pe care azi le-am numi accentuate, cu orientări diferite, cu vise care acoperă tragedii și care fac alegeri greu de anticipat. Conținutul semi autobiografic al romanului este evident dacă știi câte ceva despre viața lui Capote, dar aceasta nu este o condiție pentru a te bucura de carte și de lumea construită în ea. Joel este un copil gingaș, sensibil, unic și fascinant, care trebuie să descopere singur cum și ce să aleagă privind cu atenție lumea din jur.
Mai jos, autorul pe coperta 4 a primei ediții într-o fotografie ce a stârnit în epocă multe discuții și controverse, menținând cartea timp de nouă săptămâni pe lista celor mai bine vândute cărți din SUA.

Wow, how does one describe this?!

In this story, Truman Capote's Idabel Thompkins is the young Harper Lee, just as Lee's Dill is the young Capote in To Kill a Mockingbird. The two books are nevertheless c-o-m-p-l-e-t-e-l-y different. Don’t expect to be given a similar tale. Capote’s book is semi-autobiographical and quite a number of the characters are inspired by family and friends he once knew.

What adjectives best describe this book? Magical, beautiful, creepy and frightening. Southern Gothic writing at its best! It is unique. It is special. The reading experience is exhilarating. It is chockfull of perplexing symbolisms. Pay attention to the adjectives I am throwing at you. You will be perplexed and confused but in an imaginative and creative way. You will be shocked—this is not a light-hearted or sweet story. Ordinary characters are as foreign to this book as night is to day.

On the other hand, the themes and the topics covered are relevant to us all—abandonment, loneliness, the universal need for love and a sense of belonging, the loosening of parental ties, loss of innocence, independence and self-awareness. This is a coming of age story and in this respect also one of both sexual awakening and self-acceptance of an individual’s sexual identity.

The central character, Joel Knox, is thirteen. His mother has died. His aunt has sent him to his father, who abandoned mother and son soon after Joel’s birth. This entails a move from New Orleans, Louisiana, to a rural community in Mississippi. The decrepit and falling apart mansion in which he is to live with his father, stepmother, her gay cousin Randolph and two black servants is Skully’s Landing. On arriving, there is no sight or sound of Joel’s father. The girl, Idabel Thompkins, lives nearby. Creepy, mysterious things begin to take place.

Although the book’s central protagonist may be thirteen, the book is not for the young. It is too risqué and too violent. There is a rape. Adult guidance is absolutely necessary.

For an adult, the tale is tantalizing. It is tantalizing as a result of its creativity, its originality and its ambiguity. It is through Capote’s magnificent prose that this is achieved.

The audiobook is narrated by Cody Roberts. I have given the narration performance only one star, the lowest possible rating. This is of course only my personal reaction to it. Roberts uses an exaggerated Southern drawl that jarrs the listener. He pauses in extremely strange places, making it difficult to appreciate the writing. IF you can instead read the paper book, choose that instead! It has been a struggle for me to not let the terrible narration destroy Capote’s fantastic prose.


***********************

*A Christmas Memory 5 stars
*In Cold Blood 4 stars
*Breakfast at Tiffany's 4 stars
*Other Voices, Other Rooms 4 stars
*The Grass Harp, Including A Tree of Night and Other Stories 2 stars

3.5? this had some randomly gorgeous passages that made me almost want to go outside and be afraid of nature :D

[2.5 Stars]

My Video Review (Spoilers):
https://youtu.be/86qxtxzcjQE


For now, it was different than what I expected. I think it was interesting reading In Cold Blood first before reading this one. I found they actually have some overlapping themes, but the ending was very rushed, I thought. I'm going to do some more research and compile my notes, so I hope that video is up in the next week or two.

Get in the bin.

Pot afirma cu stupoare (peiorativ), că Truman Capote nu este unul din autorii moderni care impresionează. Cel puţin nu prin acest volum. Din punctul meu de vedere, nu-şi merită faima. Comparând opera lui cu cea a lui William Styron ori -mergând un strop înapoi- cu cea a lui Hemingway, Capote nu este o figura proeminentă a literaturii americane. Repet: nu prin acest roman.

Este libro tiene temáticas muy diferentes a lo que he acostumbrado, sucedes cosas un poco extrañas y sin explicación, aún así se me hizo tedioso en algunas partes; un día me enganchaba y al otro me aburría y dejaba la lectura en stand by... Aún sigo esperando ese libro de Truman Capote que me realmente atrape dentro de su estilo.

I don't know what to make of this book. There are two threads on GR: people either love this and say it's amazing, or they appreciate it but feel confused. I fall into the latter group. I love Capote's writing style, and finding out that he was only 23 when he wrote this novel makes me appreciate his skill with language even more. The sentences are delicious, especially when I read it aloud through the last fifteen pages or so. The words roll of my tongue. They sound beautiful. But the thing is...they didn't have much meaning in the end.
Through the first two parts, I felt like I was being given a really vivid Southern Gothic novel with odd scenes and circus-like characters. The book reminded me of Doctor Sax and, oddly, Sharp Objects in its evocation of childhood inner fantasy worlds and its kaleidoscope of strange characters doing strange things, these odd tableaux that sort of just happen, hovering but somehow never fully taking place. There is a clear plot in parts one and two and a movement forward. There are characters that aren't developed but who come alive anyway.
Then, part three happens, and it's so weird. Even weirder than the first two parts. It seems completely separated from the rest of the book, and it's confusing because there's something about a bullet and a gun, so I thought Joel shoots himself, but then, other people (and online sources) say he got pneumonia?, so I have no clue what's supposed to be conveyed.
Anyway, I enjoyed this book, and there were parts that I read through quickly because I loved the writing, I connected with the characters, and I wanted to know what happened next. The ending is creepy and makes me think back over the events. The main aspect of Southern writing that I've noted is the connection to the past. It's in Gone with the Wind, it's in Faulkner, it's in Elizabeth Maddox Roberts, it's even in Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. You can't avoid the past--it's so settled in place that it seeps into people, takes hold, and doesn't let them go. People become trapped by where they were born, by their histories, by the people that latch on and refuse to let go, that need to feed off them for fear of dying out and becoming past themselves. The theme is handled interestingly here, and I like the depth of thought it leads me to. I started out "getting it," but the more I think about it, the more I have to say about Capote's handling of the Southern Dialectic between past and present (there can't ever be a future, not really).
I held off on my rating until I wrote this review, and I'm glad I did. Getting my thoughts out helped.
*****3.5*****

3.5***

Capote’s debut novel is a semiautobiographical coming-of-age story. After the death of his mother, thirteen-year-old Joel Knox leaves New Orleans to travel to rural Alabama, and the home of the father who abandoned him at birth. Skully’s Landing is his stepmother Amy’s dilapidated mansion, set far in the woods, and without electricity or indoor plumbing. Among the residents of the estate are a centenarian Negro, Jesus Fever, his granddaughter Missouri (known as Zoo), who keeps house for the family, and the mysterious cousin Randolph. The person who is obviously missing is Joel’s father. Nearby live two sisters, Florabel and Idabel, the latter a tomboy who provides a glimmer of love and approval to the lonely Joel.

This is a classic Southern Gothic novel, full of ghosts, haints, superstitions, secrets and closed off rooms. There are real dangers aplenty as well: poisonous snakes, quicksand, and people with guns. Joel is isolated not only by the remote location, but by the lack of connection with these people. He is confused and cautious, and his loneliness and despair are palpable.

Capote’s writing is wonderfully atmospheric. Here is what Joel sees on his journey to his new home:
Two roads pass over the hinterlands into Noon City; one from the north, another from the south; the latter, known as the Paradise Chapel Highway, is the better of the pair, though both are much the same: desolate miles of swamp and field and forest stretch along either route unbroken except for scattered signs advertising Red Dot 5c Cigars, Dr. Pepper, NEHI, Grove’s Chill Tonic, and 666. Wooden bridges spanning brackish creeks named for long-gone Indian tribes rumble like far-off thunder under a passing wheel; herds of hogs and cows roam the roads at will; now and then a farm-family pauses from work to wave as an auto whizzes by, and watch sadly till it disappears in red dust.

Like Joel, I felt somewhat lost in unfamiliar surroundings. Was Capote trying too hard to be atmospheric? Was he forced by the standards of the day to be so circumspect regarding his message of awakening homosexuality? It makes Cousin Randolph’s statement all the more poignant: ”The brain may take advice, but not the heart, and love, having no geography, knows no boundaries;... any love is natural and beautiful that lies within a person's nature; only hypocrites would hold a man responsible for what he loves, emotional illiterates and those of righteous envy, who, in their agitated concern, mistake so frequently the arrow pointing to heaven for the one that leads to hell. ”

Моя осінь почалася з цієї книжки Трумена Капоте. І це був чудовий початок улюбленої пори. "Інші голоси, інші кімнати" - четверта прочитана мною книжка автора. І найкраща. Мене вона вразила і зачепила навіть більше за легендарну "З холодним серцем" - розслідування, з якого бере початок сучасна нон-фікшн література як така. "Сніданок у Тіффані" та "Літній круїз" сподобались лиш стилем. А тут... Тут так само талановитий стиль, сповнений метафор та поезії. Але й значно більше. Сильний і тонкий психологізм? Так. Щемкий світ дитинства, одвічний пошук любові та дружби. Щирість і самотність - дітей та дорослих. Молодечі (але не інфантильні) роздуми автора про сенс життя. І десь там, не на першому плані, тема гомосексуального кохання, подана спокійно і...гарно. Це прекрасний твір, який називають романом, проте на мою думку, це радше повість. Важко повірити, що таке можна було написати в 23 роки. А з іншого боку - старша людина такого б не написала. Вона ж бо вже зробила на кілька кроків більше й віддалилася від мрійливого віку, в який вступає головний герой Джоел. Поставила 5 зірочок. Одне слово - блискуче.