Breakfast at Tiffany's - Truman Capote

I've read Breakfast at Tiffany's before, I'm sure of it. I didn't remember too much of the details that differed from the movie, and I'm wondering how much of that was innocence the first time I read it. First published in the 1950's, the topics covered in the book are still on the far side of the line - promiscuity, drugs, crime, lesbianism, etc.

Rereading the book, the thing that strikes me the most is how poorly the movie captures the main character. I know, it's practically blasphemy suggesting that Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly is anything less than iconic, but really I think she very poorly portrayed the character as written by Capote. The second thing that comes to mind is the narrator-character, who has a fairly limited scope on the action and is not really central to the story. I'm reminded of The Great Gatsby, and this takes the whole outsider-looking-in theme a step farther - I'm fairly certain we never even learn the narrator's name. I'm tempted to write about how the approach affects the pace of the story and character development, but let's face it - it's midnight, and high school English was a long time ago. :) It's well written, even if, like Water for Elephants, a bit sensationalist. I think the books I admire the most are just as deep and fascinating without resorting to shock value.