i have a policy against reading non-fiction on vacations, but i figured in cold blood does not really count as a non-fiction.

i saw the capote film earlier this year, and had in cold blood in my "to read" list ever since. i was happy that when i started reading the book i forgot all of what i have seen in the movie, so i could be surprised by much of it.

i have not read many books that tell the story of a crime (under the banner of heaven, was the most recent one), but this one is probably the best. capote tells the story in such detail that you start thinking he was there as a fly on the wall the whole time.

the story itself is quite disturbing. mostly because the target of the crime (the clutter family) was so arbitrary. they just the extremely bad luck to be the victims of two losers who set their mind to commit the "perfect crime", by doing a robbery and leaving no witnesses. and they almost got away with it. 

what i found most interesting in the book is the detailed descriptions of the backgrounds, mindset, rationale and emotions the killers had leading to the murders. though you get to know perry and dick (the two murderers) as the story progresses, i think it is impossible to feel sympathy for either maybe pity.