Capote in Kansas: A Ghost Story

by Kim Powers

A fictional tale based on the childhood friendship between Truman Capote and Harper Lee traces how their youthful dreams give way to disparate literary careers before they reunite in a desolate region of Kansas, where they secretly collaborate on the tale To Kill a Mockingbird.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Ghosts, Book Club

304 pages, Paperback

First published October 28, 2007

Reviews

[Kathy (Bermudaonion) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Capote in Kansas: A Ghost Story by Kim Powers is a fictional account of the relationship between Truman Capote and Harper Lee. The book opens over twenty years after the publication of In Cold Blood with Truman being haunted by the ghost of Nancy Clutter. Even though he hadn’t spoken to Nelle (Harper Lee) in twenty years, he calls her in the middle of the night. From there, the book explores their relationship from childhood to Truman’s death. It also delves into the affect writing and researching the book In Cold Blood had on their relationship and on them individually. At one point, Nelle wondered, “What had happened to them in Kansas? Had those murders so sapped them they didn’t have anything left over to put on the page?” Capote in Kansas also examines the controversy surrounding the authorship of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Of course, this is a work of fiction. In an author’s note at the back of the book, Kim Powers explains how he came to write the book and the research he undertook in preparation for writing it. So, while this book is fiction, much of it is based on real events. The thoughts and emotions of the characters are all imagined, though.

I am a fan of both Truman Capote and Harper Lee and their writing, so I found this to be a fascinating, page-turning read. I do wonder if someone who is unfamiliar with them would enjoy the book as much as I did.

[Alison Hardtmann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Truman Capote is being haunted by the Clutter family. Aging and isolated in Florida after losing his New York society friends once they saw that he would use their own histories in his stories, he's spiraling downward in a haze of pills and booze. He does have two friends, his housekeeper, Myrtle and the ac repairman. He begins to send his childhood friend, Harper Lee, tiny coffins in decorated boxes. Nelle is also living isolated and not writing, but for different reasons. Now estranged, they were once so close that they worked together in Kansas to research Capote's masterpiece.

This is an atmospheric look at the lives of both Harper Lee and Truman Capote. Moving back and forth between their shared childhood, to their time in New York and Kansas, to their self-imposed exiles where they no longer write, Powers digs into their motivations and fears and into the reason they stopped being friends.

This was a lot of fun. I enjoy the exercise of imagining the lives of authors and Powers handled these two Great American Novelists with empathy and humor.

[Velvetink · Rating 3 out of 5]

This seems like a development of fan-fiction, only it's really an alternative history of Harper Lee and Truman Capote with a twilight zoneish twist. It didn't shed too much new light on Capote other than I was not aware of his collaged "snake boxes". Powers attempts to blend them into some possible meaning. It was an enjoyable read and made me want to find out more about Harper Lee.(Nellie).
I might add that if you are not familiar with Capote's life much of it won't make sense.

* library borrow.

So far hauntingly familiar. Have I read this before? or just read enough of Capote for it to be familiar.

[Andi M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful, surreal, really sad book. A fictional version of Truman Capote's and Harper Lee's friendship. Not to be missed.

[David Burkam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written and emotionally true ... and what greater truth is there?

[Jaclyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm sure if I was a huge fan of Truman Capote, I would have liked this book a bit more. It was not bad as a stand-alone book, but it wasn't good either, hence the 2 star "it was ok" review." I found myself looking up a LOT of history on both Capote and Harper Lee, just so that the story would make sense. Doing that made it a bit more interesting; being able to discern fact vs. fiction, and learning how much of this fictional story was biographical. Capote was definitely a strange duck. This alone is not why I rated it 2 stars though, as that's not the writer's fault. I just didn't feel that this book was all that interesting or gripping. After a while it started feeling a bit like a chore I needed to finish. While I started out intrigued by the ghost story and the mystery of it all, by the end I was just annoyed with it all. I don't regret reading it, but won't likely recommend it to anyone either. It did make me the slightest bit curious to read In Cold Blood though, which was never on my list previously, simply due to the disturbing nature of the story not being my cup of tea. We'll see if I get around to making time for it or not.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

All the characters are factual and famous: Truman Capote, Harper Lee (Nelle Harper), and Nancy Clutter. The story is confusing and positively shrill at times. Capote's constant drunken harassment of his housekeeper and his childhood friend Harper/Nelle, and his rantings about ghostly visitations by the murdered Clutter family seemed over the top. Nancy Clutter, an ordinary mother and farmwife cruelly killed along with her family by two drifters, Perry Smith and Richard Hickock, who Capote immortalized in his novel, In Cold Blood, is the ghost who visits Capote and Nelle most often. This book fascinated and frustrated me.

[Caitlin Huettemann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Powers' book is an interesting and heart-wrenching look at the lives of Truman Capote and Nelle (Harper Lee) as they grow older. Although the two have been separated for some time, the appearance of ghosts in Truman's life causes him to reach out to Nelle and ask for forgiveness. The supernatural aspects, supplemented by glimpses at the past, allow this book to remain engaging throughout.

[Adriana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked the world he conjured. Was sad when it ended. He let me feel such an intimacy with Nelle and Truman and Myrtle.

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry, but I quit reading this about a third of the way through. Didn't want to spend any more time on it.

[Kara Kilgore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cool book! Enjoyed it very much.

[Timothy Juhl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy novels by authors who take a few facts from the real lives of notable people and weave them into a fictional storyline. This slim novel lifts many facts from the lives of Truman Capote (perhaps one of our most fascinating authors) and his relationship with his childhood friend and Pulitzer-winner (and renowned recluse), Harper Lee. The story shifts from modern day (1984, in the months before Capote's death), to twenty years prior when he and Lee were researching the Clutter murders in Kansas for 'In Cold Blood' and then gives glimpses into the Lee and Capote's childhood in Alabama and those events that inspired Lee to write 'To Kill A Mockingbird'. Capote is portrayed with all the insanity and hallucinatory frailty we came to understand in his many talk show appearances. Harper Lee (who the author notes as having known personally) is drawn as a fearful woman who only wishes she had never met fame. Both are visited in their dreams by the ghosts of the Clutters who only wish to be left alone and never asked for the odd fame brought by Capote's brilliant telling of their murders. Lee is also haunted by the undo fame she gave her neighbor, the unwitting inspiration for Boo Radley, whose family came to hate Lee for making their son and brother an object of ridicule in their opinion. There were some nice moments in the book, a few phrases and descriptive turns that were worthy of my time reading this book, and I have to confess to a newly discovered obsession with Capote and his work.

[Mark Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Given that To Kill a Mockingbird is my favorite novel and Truman Capote is in my top five writers, I was intrigued when I unwrapped this book on Christmas morning. From the subtitle, I expected more of a classic ghost story, but the spirits in Powers' book are more like the personal demons haunting Nelle Harper Lee and Truman Streckfus Persons Capote as they enter their later years. Using real and well-known treasured writers as characters in fiction (particularly when one of them is still alive) and taking creative liberties with the facts, is, in a word, nothing short of audacious (as in "a willingness to take surprisingly bold risks"). I was kept off kilter throughout, and had to periodically remind myself that I was reading a novel and not a biography--which I believe is the only fair approach one can take when approaching Powers' ambitious book. As a writer of historical fiction myself, and one who gave Capote a cameo appearance in my debut novel, I was rather shocked by some of Powers' bold choices--such as putting Harper Lee smack dab in the middle of the action at Capote's famous Black & White Ball. To his credit, Powers explains all of his choices in an Author's Note, and I'll admit these fanciful rewrites of history do, in fact, serve his narrative. All in, Powers has written a bold, risky novel that simultaneously satisfies as much as it unsettles.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Capote in Kansas tells the story of two childhood friends, Truman Capote and Harper Lee, who investigated the slaughter of the Clutter family together but eventually severed all ties. It begins with Capote making a late-night call to Lee, known as Nelle, to say he is being tormented by the ghost of Nancy Clutter. He hasn't spoken to Nelle in years. What follows is an eccentric tale of the end of Capote's life, the ghosts that haunt both him and Nelle, and the creepy snake boxes Capote assembles and has delivered to Nelle. Nelle must determine who is sending her these odd packages and why, and the snake boxes spark memories from their childhood and their trip to Kansas to research the Clutter murders. Why have the Clutters come back to haunt them? Did Harper Lee really pen To Kill a Mockingbird? And why does she never write another book? These are just some of the questions Powers raises in Capote in Kansas.

Powers expertly created a fictional story about two very real, very famous people. The book flows seamlessly from the past to the present, and he made the characters come to life on the page.

Full review on Diary of an Eccentric

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fictional tale based on reality concerning Truman Capote and Harper Lee. The book begins with Capote contacting Lee towards the end of his life after 20 years of estrangement. He claims to be seeing the ghosts of some members of the family he chronicled in In Cold Blood as well as one of their murderers. The story goes back and forth between the present and past referring to Capote and Lee's friendship as children and their time in Kansas while Capote was working on In Cold Blood in the past and Capote's bizarre behavior in the present and how it affects Lee. It was a quick read. It wasn't a great book, but I did find it kind of interesting because it had lots of information I didn't really realize about Capote and Lee's friendship. While I was reading it I kind of wondered how much of the story was actually based in fact. The author wrote an afterward that pretty much outlined which parts of the story were fact and which were embellishments, which I really appreciated.

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the imagining of "What if Capote and Harper Lee got back in touch before they died." It was a really good refresher on significant events in both the authors' lives, from the Klan appearing at a party in their childhood, to their working on In Cold Blood together, to both of them living as celebrity authors. It eludes to potential reasons for their fall out.

Most of this book was just depressing. I found the Capote chapters more compelling, and even laughed out loud at his retaliation to a person stealing something from him. But, that was it. One chapter that I truly enjoyed.

Before this book I hadn't known about Capote's "art pieces" of snake bite kit collages, and Powers did a great job incorporating the pieces into the story.

[Bamboozlepig · Rating 4 out of 5]

After a string of DNF's, I finally found a book that caught my interest. I almost returned the book the same day I checked it out because sometimes supernatural elements make me uneasy. But I'm glad I decided to keep the book and give it a chance because it turned out to be a solidly good read.

I'm not going to spoil the plot for anyone who might be interested in reading the book, but I will say it blew me away. It's about the relationship between Harper Lee and Truman Capote and while it's fiction, it really delves into the turmoil both Lee and Capote had in regards to their writing abilities. Really loved the prose in this, Powers knows how to turn out beautiful phrases. For such a short book, it packed a powerful impact. In fact I really don't know what to say other than wow.

[Donna Radcliff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this quirky little book about the odd and decades old relationship between Truman Capote and Harper Lee. The story is set in 1984,weeks before Truman dies, and the ghosts of his past come to haunt him...the Clutter family of In Cold Blood, as well as his 20+ year estrangement from his childhood friend, Harper (Nelle) Lee.

The story meanders smoothly between past and present, fact and fiction so the reader is never LOST. The characters are nicely developmented, so much that you can actually see some of Capote's signature gestures and hear his voice.

Based on historical fact and literary license, this was a great tale with a bittersweet ending.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Capote in Kansas is a ghostly story, in which a pair of childhood friends attain tremendous literary fame, only to have their relationship destroyed by their success. The novel opens as both Truman Capote and Harper Lee are nearing the ends of their respective lives. Each has been a “one book wonder” of a sort, each now long paralyzed by a form of writer’s block. Both authors, who were simply human, after all, obsess over the choices they’ve made, struggling with enormous guilt and anxiety, somewhat existential in nature. Kim Powers takes the reader on an imaginary sojourn into their minds and hearts.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise of this book is more audacious than what it actually does with it. It imagines Truman Capote and Harper Lee being haunted by their pasts, figuratively and literally. Having not read too much about Capote's actual life, I was surprised to find out that the more surprising aspects of the book were based in fact. I guess I was just too distracted by the conjecture. It makes me want to read biographies of Capote and Lee (is there even one?) more than anything else. I liked it, but that's it--just liked it.

[npaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the idea of this book more than the book itself. Since I've read the biographies on both Capote and Lee it was fun to see the facts worked in with the fiction, but it wasn't necessarily worked in as well as it could have been. For a good chunk of the book it read as if Powers was trying too hard to make it work. It didn't flow at all. Far too much punctuation. This guy has never met a semicolon or comma he didn't like. Made for choppy reading and in some places stopped me all together. Could have been so much better.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was strange. I don't know very much about Truman Capote, but this book made him out to be more than odd. Also it made me more curious about Harper Lee. But not more curious about Capote. I don't think I really like him as an author. Or as a person, at least based on this book and the movie Capote, very accurate depictions on which to base judgement I'm sure. Anyways, this book deals with Capote being haunted by ghosts of the murdered Clutters and then trying to reestablish contact with Harper Lee at the end of his life. It's really bizarre.

[Nico · Rating 1 out of 5]

Flatfooted, prurient, notably devoid of insight or imagination, and littered with charming ol' racist stereotypes.

Such racism is infuriating enough in Capote and Lee, but at least each can offer the alibi of birth: Capote was born in 1924 (in New Orleans), Lee in 1926 (in Monroeville, Alabama).

Powers -- a former writer for Good Morning America -- has no such "excuse." Avoid this book, if at all possible, and read Capote and Lee themselves -- or any of the magisterial biographies written about either of them.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

An elegant, slender "what if" novel about the last days of Truman Capote's life and his lost friendship with Harper Lee. I've never read anything else by Mr. Powers before (and probably wouldn't have if I hadn't been working on a Southern Gothic unit), but he has a gift for rendering powerful images with just a few sentences. He deftly weaves known facts about Capote and Lee into his own narrative framework to create a very plausible scenario. It's ultimately a melancholy book, perfect for reading on a warm summer night.

[Erin Sterling · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5. A fictionalized account of the friendship between Truman Capote and Harper Lee told through a ghost story of sorts, I was surprised to find that most of the factual events in the book were true. I just read In Cold Blood a little while ago, which is amazing, and this book intrigued me and made me wonder how Harper Lee or Truman Capote would feel about the book because of how it explores psychological demons.

[Naomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise of this book is good, yet the story line was ok for me. I have always been interested in the story behind In Cold Blood: A True Account of a Multiple Murder and Its Consequences and this was there, but it just didn't reach my threshold for anything above 3 stars.

[H. Givens · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a Capote enthusiast, I didn't feel like this book really added anything to the mythos. It was competently written, but almost too realistic or too factual -- it just hits all the usual beats, it didn't make me consider anything new. On the other hand, if you're not as familiar with Capote to start with, this might be a good choice, informative but in the style of a novel. The later parts are more fictional, bringing Capote and Lee back together when they were much older.

[Rachael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book renewed my interest in Truman Capote and Harper Lee. I loved To Kill a Mockingbird and remember being intrigued by Capote in high school but somehow never ended up reading In Cold Blood. I also never knew that there were rumors Capote wrote To Kill a Mockingbird.

I liked the book itself and now I will be reading In Cold Blood and reading up on Capote & Lee's relationship and collaboration. I also love the cover art.

[Chelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a fictionalized account of the repercussions of In Cold Blood on Truman Capote. Harper Lee plays a role as well. I am probably confusing this story with the biography of Truman Capote that I have read and really come down to Capote's drinking and lack of intimacy in his life. A little too tragic and hard to watch.

[Chery · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a huge fan of Harper Lee, I was anxious to read this book. But, unfortunately it did not add up to my expectations. Most of the book dealt with the supposed tortured relationship between Lee and Capote, and in my opinion, was disturbing. I would be surprised to find that Miss Lee liked this book or appreciated its story line. Well written, but not my cup of tea.