Advanced Reading Copy of Capote’s Masterpiece "In Cold Blood" Predating the First Edition

Truman Capote

First Edition

Capote, Truman. In Cold Blood. 1965. Published in 1965, In Cold Blood redefined American narrative nonfiction by merging journalistic investigation with novelistic technique, inaugurating what would later be termed the New Journalism. Capote’s reconstruction of the 1959 Clutter family murders in Kansas foregrounded psychological interiority and social environment, expanding the possibilities of documentary prose. The work became a landmark in American literary culture, influencing subsequent nonfiction writers and reshaping public engagement with crime reportage. The passage describing the executions of Richard Hickock and Perry Smith underscores Capote’s method of fusing reportage with narrative pacing: “Die on Rope for Bloody Crime… Hickock, 33 years old, died first, at 12:41 A.M.; Smith, 36, died at 1:19…”

Capote, Truman. In Cold Blood. New York: Random House, 1965. Advance issue in original first-state dust jacket as wrappers bound over burgundy paper, as issued. Octavo. Original wrappers. Light rubbing at extremities; internally clean and sound. Advance issues of this title are scarcer than the standard first edition and reflect the publisher’s early dissemination of the text prior to trade release. Overall condition very good.

Item #16173

Price: $880.00