Anne's IntermittentroPolis

Mixed feelings about this one. Holly Golightly was such an enigmatic figure when she burst upon the scene. The narrator, Buster was his name I believe?--was indifferent and none too curious to meet his newly acquired Brownstone neighbor. I loved how they first 'acquainted' each other; she rang his bell at the buttcrack of dawn and he would get up to ring the buzzer to let her in. That's really rude of Holly and already I was determined to hate her. Nevertheless, she retained a mysterious charm for me and I was soon sucked into her antics like everyone else in the book. This story may have been short but Capote really packed in quite a punch in so short a time. I felt it was the perfect length; more pages and the story would've been stretched.
I've never watched the movie so I'm no good judge for how great of a character 'Fred' is but he seemed reliable enough in the book. Unlike others, he was shrewd and perceived mainly the bad in Holly's character; yet, he did not condemn her harshly. She committed many unsavory things and some were only hinted at, like her whoring ways. She liked to steal and lie and avoid personal inquiries. In short, she might exude a extroverted personality but she is a true introvert through and through. Her musings are all to herself. She confides none of her ultimate plans to anyone until the last minute when she is just about to fulfill it. She makes a frustrating woman to hang around but people still hang onto her and expect some great things from her.
It takes a really nonjudgmental reader to appreciate this book. Holly has been labeled and condemned multiple times throughout her stay at the apartment. Women and gentlemen alike called her whore, starlet, waste, phony, real phony... it reminds me of [b:The Catcher in the Rye|5107|The Catcher in the Rye|J.D. Salinger|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349928703s/5107.jpg|3036731]. Both Holden Caufield and Holly Golightly flitted through life carelessly and threw money away at a whim. When it comes down to it, Holden and Holly are like two sides of a coin; they never change. I like how [a:Truman Capote|431149|Truman Capote|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1220960599p2/431149.jpg] created such crystal clear characters with unconventional thoughts. Which makes it easy for 'Fred' to convey us the perception of Holly exactly the way she is. Rash, irrational, addicted to Picayune cigarettes, and careless. The fleeting image she leaves behind is of a reckless immature girl who goes through life way too fast. Innately, Holly is stubborn like Holden; she never wants to grow up and live up to the numerous responsibilities that generally burden the women back then. Housekeeping is not her way. "That", she says, "is something dykes are good at." She casually brushes off these rules that governed many young matrons just like the way she goes through her ever-revolving circle of relationships. By the time 'Fred' discovers that she is married at 14 and ran away from her husband, he is hardly shocked and ostensibly accepts it is fact. She still steals food and any other merchandise just like she did in her childhood. Truman's storytelling voice is strong and really sheds some light in the end on why Holly did the things she did. In the synopsis, Golightly is described as a broken tawny-haired girl. Yes, she is broken but she is not dead. She continues to haunt everyone's memories if they want it or not. Holly is not an ephemeral figure that people will easily forget and that is why she continues to remain a mystery (in the story) to everyone whose lives she's touched.