The story is told from the point of view of "Fred." His name isn't actually Fred; that's just what the enchanting Holly Golightly calls him, since he looks like her brother. (I assume this to be vaguely or in another manner other than physical, as it is implied that he does not look like him). Throughout the novella, the reader follows what is roughly two years of their friendship and their ups and downs. We observe several aspects of Holly Golightly's life through the narrator (who is a writer) and why she lives the way she chooses to live.
TBH: I have not watched the movie, but from what I hear it's a very loose adaptation with the addition of an extremely racist depiction of a Japanese man, played by Mickey Rooney.
Also, there were a whole bunch of aspects of this story that I simultaneously loathed and adored, so they will probably show up multiple times in my rendition of the literary Good, Bad, and WTF.
Iconic: Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly
The Good:
- The Narrator: I love the fact that we are told Holly Golightly's story from the point of view of a faceless narrator. I mean, he isn't lacking existence; he exists very well as a character and as a person, and the fact that he is a #struggling writer drew me in from the get-go. However, the fact that we don't even know his name or his history allows the reader to truly step in, while he uncovers the mystery that is Miss Golightly.
- Pop Culture References and Slang: So, reading through this novella gave me a new appreciation for the 1940s, tbh. I learned so much slang that I cannot help but to pepper it throughout my own speech and I will definitely be using it online. I regret nothing.
- Holly Golightly: The socialite herself works as many things, thematically, but when I was reading Breakfast at Tiffany's, I couldn't help but think of her as that friend. You know, the one that you just click with, for whatever reason, and you exist in mutual throes of friendship and then one day you blink and they're no longer there, but you know it was mutual? You remember them fondly, but you probably will never see them again, and it's fine. Plus, I love the character's joie de vivre, as she moves throughout social circles. Hell, even I fell in love with Holly a little. Not to mention, the way she destroys the tacky Mag Wildwood is fucking hilarious.
- The Length: Normally, I prefer my books longer, but Breakfast at Tiffany's works so well as a short novel. Personally, it took me about two days to finish it, but that was because I only read it in short spurts in between activities. If someone sits down to read-read it, than they can probably read it in a few hours. It is, roughly, around a hundred pages.
- The Prose: Capote's use of language in this novella is amazing, sensual, hell I would even call it orgiastic. He'll use phrases you don't really understand, absolutely wreck you and once you're done with that part, you're turning back and asking yourself "What was that?" and "Can you teach me how to do that?" As you can tell, I really liked the prose. #SorryNotSorry
The Bad:
- The Subtlety: As the reader, there are a lot of things implied that we are supposed to infer, but with this one, I just want them spelled out. Like, was Holly actually a call girl? (I argue with this one, as some readers would say yes, but it really is debatable, as I would say no). Was the narrator gay (as it was actually implied several times) or a call boy as well? There were other instances, as well, where I just confused in what to think. (AND WHY WAS THE NARRATOR FIRED TELL ME TRUMAN CAPOTE TELL ME).
- The Length: I felt like it was too short. There was more to Holly's story, or at least I wanted more, even if the novella is perfect the way it is presented.
- Casual Racism and Homophobia: It's all over the place, y'all. FYI.
- The Prose: While orgiastic, as I described it above, the prose also had it's wtf-moments. Like, we'd be churning along, and suddenly Capote does something that's vaguely uncomfortable and you're like "No, stop that" and then you'd just end up really confused. This tended to be tied hand-in-hand with cultural references and slang, as it's related to things we're supposed to know. It's a generational thing.
The Ugly:
- The Slang: JFC, I loved it, but it was so hard to understand. The amount of things I had to google at certain point. I did come across this glossary, though. It describes most slang terms and cultural references in the novella, as well as several other things for people that may not know.
- Lulamae Barnes: Lulamae Barnes is the ugliest fucking name ever; no wonder she changed it, omfg, I would too.
Overall, Breakfast at Tiffany's was a very interesting read and I challenge y'all to read it and not fall a little in love with Holly Golightly. (Even if she can be annoying).