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Breakfast at Tiffany's
Penguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.
Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.
The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.
Breakfast at Tiffany's, a Level 4 Reader, is A2+ in the CEFR framework. The text is made up of sentences with up to three clauses, introducing more complex uses of present perfect simple, passives, phrasal verbs and simple relative clauses. It is well supported by illustrations, which appear regularly.
Visit the Penguin Readers website
Exclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.
An unnamed writer remembers living in New York City in the United States of America during World War II. He becomes friends with one of his neighbors, the beautiful yet strange, Holly Golightly.
Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.
The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.
Breakfast at Tiffany's, a Level 4 Reader, is A2+ in the CEFR framework. The text is made up of sentences with up to three clauses, introducing more complex uses of present perfect simple, passives, phrasal verbs and simple relative clauses. It is well supported by illustrations, which appear regularly.
Visit the Penguin Readers website
Exclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.
An unnamed writer remembers living in New York City in the United States of America during World War II. He becomes friends with one of his neighbors, the beautiful yet strange, Holly Golightly.
Paperback
Published April 7, 2022
About the author
Truman Capote
309 books6,470 followersTruman Capote was an American writer whose non-fiction, stories, novels and plays are recognised literary classics, including the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's (1958) and In Cold Blood (1965), which he labeled a "non-fiction novel." At least 20 films and TV dramas have been produced from Capote novels, stories and screenplays.
He was born as Truman Streckfus Persons to a salesman Archulus Persons and young Lillie Mae. His parents divorced when he was four and he went to live with his mother's relatives in Monroeville, Alabama. He was a lonely child who learned to read and write by himself before entering school. In 1933, he moved to New York City to live with his mother and her new husband, Joseph Capote, a Cuban-born businessman. Mr. Capote adopted Truman, legally changing his last name to Capote and enrolling him in private school. After graduating from high school in 1942, Truman Capote began his regular job as a copy boy at The New Yorker. During this time, he also began his career as a writer, publishing many short stories which introduced him into a circle of literary critics. His first novel, Other Voices, Other Rooms, published in 1948, stayed on The New York Times bestseller list for nine weeks and became controversial because of the photograph of Capote used to promote the novel, posing seductively and gazing into the camera.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Capote remained prolific producing both fiction and non-fiction. His masterpiece, In Cold Blood, a story about the murder of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas, was published in 1966 in book form by Random House, became a worldwide success and brought Capote much praise from the literary community. After this success he published rarely and suffered from alcohol addiction. He died in 1984 at age 59.
He was born as Truman Streckfus Persons to a salesman Archulus Persons and young Lillie Mae. His parents divorced when he was four and he went to live with his mother's relatives in Monroeville, Alabama. He was a lonely child who learned to read and write by himself before entering school. In 1933, he moved to New York City to live with his mother and her new husband, Joseph Capote, a Cuban-born businessman. Mr. Capote adopted Truman, legally changing his last name to Capote and enrolling him in private school. After graduating from high school in 1942, Truman Capote began his regular job as a copy boy at The New Yorker. During this time, he also began his career as a writer, publishing many short stories which introduced him into a circle of literary critics. His first novel, Other Voices, Other Rooms, published in 1948, stayed on The New York Times bestseller list for nine weeks and became controversial because of the photograph of Capote used to promote the novel, posing seductively and gazing into the camera.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Capote remained prolific producing both fiction and non-fiction. His masterpiece, In Cold Blood, a story about the murder of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas, was published in 1966 in book form by Random House, became a worldwide success and brought Capote much praise from the literary community. After this success he published rarely and suffered from alcohol addiction. He died in 1984 at age 59.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 235 reviews
December 21, 2023
I wish I'd been warned off of this novel any time in my life up until yesterday. Alas. In case other readers, like me, don't know anything about Breakfast at Tiffany's other than, (a) it's short; (b) there is an Audrey Hepburn movie adaptation of it, and (c) it has nothing to do with either a meal or a luxury retail brand: more than once its main character utters the n-word for no purpose that advances the plot, and a dozen + times, uses the term, dyke, derisively. If I recall correctly, retard is thrown in for good measure and there are at least 2 instances in which nameless Black boys and Mexican men are included in the plot solely to have them demonstrate stereotypically negative characteristics. So there's that.
Nonetheless, having determined to stick with it to the bitter end in case there was some countervailing redeeming quality to it, I assure you, there is not. From time to time, Capote's writing moves past serviceable to elegant, but that's an insufficient inducement to spend 2 - 3 hours of your time in the mind of one of those empty, shallow, mid-century young, white, male easily-besotted-by-any-hot-mess-self-absorbed-blonde-slender-woman-he-meets narrators of which the American literary canon offers several dozen interchangeable denizens. See novels by Fitzgerald for more exemplars. If you insist on experiencing Breakfast at Tiffany's, the audible version is narrated by Michael C. Hall ("Dexter") and makes as much of the material as can be made.
p.s. how a character treats her pets is as valid a barometer for their value as it is in real life.
Nonetheless, having determined to stick with it to the bitter end in case there was some countervailing redeeming quality to it, I assure you, there is not. From time to time, Capote's writing moves past serviceable to elegant, but that's an insufficient inducement to spend 2 - 3 hours of your time in the mind of one of those empty, shallow, mid-century young, white, male easily-besotted-by-any-hot-mess-self-absorbed-blonde-slender-woman-he-meets narrators of which the American literary canon offers several dozen interchangeable denizens. See novels by Fitzgerald for more exemplars. If you insist on experiencing Breakfast at Tiffany's, the audible version is narrated by Michael C. Hall ("Dexter") and makes as much of the material as can be made.
p.s. how a character treats her pets is as valid a barometer for their value as it is in real life.
December 28, 2023
Never have I ever been so deceived by a book - by that I mean confused and surprised. This is largely due to the fact that I had absolutely so idea what the story was about but it certainly ain’t a group of people sitting around Tiffany’s (a person) breakfast table!
Throughout the book I swayed back and forth between confusion and understanding the plot - thankfully it was a novella so there wasn’t too much too be uncertain about.
I think the most charming part of the book I came across was when Holly says she sometimes gets “the mean reds,” which is different than having the blues. The mean reds, she says, is a kind of “angst,” and the only way she knows how to deal with it is by taking a taxi to Tiffany’s jewelry store and gazing at its beauty and protected by the security guards. This makes her feel calm, she says, because it feels like nothing bad could ever happen at Tiffany’s. She claims that if she could find a place in real life that made her feel like this, she would settle there immediately. I thought that painted such a calming picture. Do you have a place like that?
The narrator is unnamed but has lived with or beside this friend Holly. I wanted them to be together, to become something more but in the end he only receives only one telegram from Holly saying that she’s living in Buenos Aires and will send him a permanent address when she has one - she never does. He is disappointed because he wants to tell her that he found her cat (whom has no name) and he hopes that Holly, like the cat, has found somewhere she belongs.
Throughout the book I swayed back and forth between confusion and understanding the plot - thankfully it was a novella so there wasn’t too much too be uncertain about.
I think the most charming part of the book I came across was when Holly says she sometimes gets “the mean reds,” which is different than having the blues. The mean reds, she says, is a kind of “angst,” and the only way she knows how to deal with it is by taking a taxi to Tiffany’s jewelry store and gazing at its beauty and protected by the security guards. This makes her feel calm, she says, because it feels like nothing bad could ever happen at Tiffany’s. She claims that if she could find a place in real life that made her feel like this, she would settle there immediately. I thought that painted such a calming picture. Do you have a place like that?
The narrator is unnamed but has lived with or beside this friend Holly. I wanted them to be together, to become something more but in the end he only receives only one telegram from Holly saying that she’s living in Buenos Aires and will send him a permanent address when she has one - she never does. He is disappointed because he wants to tell her that he found her cat (whom has no name) and he hopes that Holly, like the cat, has found somewhere she belongs.
January 3, 2023
Penguin Clothbound Classics edition. Fine to read; felt bad for the cat
December 18, 2022
It’s the 1950’s language for me. 😕
October 8, 2022
"I want to still be me when I wake up one fine morning and have breakfast at Tiffany's " 🤍
January 16, 2023
A story about an idiot, and the idiot who falls in love with her.
June 20, 2023
Lord Miss Holly is a problematic queen, a wild ride though
July 7, 2023
Capote is such an effortless writer. I wanted to take a highlighter to all the genius sentences. It's a good story but its brilliance is in the quality of the writing itself.
May 10, 2023
Capote has such a beautiful way with words and characterizations. As someone who adores the film, I feel like most people probably know this novel doesn't exactly have the same tone. It's darker, more multidimensional.
It's a beautifully written book, and Capote did something that many writers at the time were not doing: He wrote an unapologetically selfish female character, and (in my opinion) didn't condemn her for it.
Knowing that Capote imagined a Marylin Monroe type for the character of Holly makes perfect sense. Holly Golightly is beautiful and charming. She has a guilelessness about her that is 100% phony, but no one minds the facade (except perhaps the narrator). She uses what skills she has at her disposal to survive, and seemingly thrive.
Holly's desires for freedom and security are, by the very nature of the world she lives in, conflicting. As a woman with no support system in 1958, it is not possible for her to have both. But she is happy to have either, to use her "wiles" to live the free happy life she wants, or her charm to find a rich older man to take care of her. The cat is also clearly symbolic of Holly: trapped and well-fed, OR free and on the hunt. The real tragedy is the option for both is ripped away from her in the end, and she is forced to give up security forever when her freedom is threatened.
It's ironic to me that the movie chose to make the narrator her love interest, and give them a "happy" ending together. In reality, if Holly had ended up in a monogamous relationship with the narrator, a poor writer with no career prospects, she would lose both her freedom and security. And that is something book Holly would never allow.
It's a beautifully written book, and Capote did something that many writers at the time were not doing: He wrote an unapologetically selfish female character, and (in my opinion) didn't condemn her for it.
Knowing that Capote imagined a Marylin Monroe type for the character of Holly makes perfect sense. Holly Golightly is beautiful and charming. She has a guilelessness about her that is 100% phony, but no one minds the facade (except perhaps the narrator). She uses what skills she has at her disposal to survive, and seemingly thrive.
Holly's desires for freedom and security are, by the very nature of the world she lives in, conflicting. As a woman with no support system in 1958, it is not possible for her to have both. But she is happy to have either, to use her "wiles" to live the free happy life she wants, or her charm to find a rich older man to take care of her. The cat is also clearly symbolic of Holly: trapped and well-fed, OR free and on the hunt. The real tragedy is the option for both is ripped away from her in the end, and she is forced to give up security forever when her freedom is threatened.
It's ironic to me that the movie chose to make the narrator her love interest, and give them a "happy" ending together. In reality, if Holly had ended up in a monogamous relationship with the narrator, a poor writer with no career prospects, she would lose both her freedom and security. And that is something book Holly would never allow.
February 26, 2024
Consider this one of those classics you have to read at least once. If you're like me, you saw the movie a handful of times growing up, but never knew there was a book behind it. Like every book/movie combo, there are a number of differences, but I wouldn't say there's anything significantly off with the movie other than maybe Holly’s hair color, the book having a slightly darker tone to it, and the setting being later in time. Overall, I did enjoy getting to experience the book side of Holly Golightly and her adventures through NYC, and other parts of the world. It's difficult not picturing Audrey Hepburn while reading the book because of the icon she became. Also, if you are not already aware, there are various slurs in both the book and movie that are unacceptable.
THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU IF: You're looking for a classic short story that has a free-spirited leading lady wit, charm, and class.
THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU IF: You're looking for a classic short story that has a free-spirited leading lady wit, charm, and class.
January 17, 2023
Such a deft touch. The story's pacing is swift but far from rushed. It seems perfected without being labored.
May 15, 2023
‘Never love a wild thing, Mr Bell,’ Holly advised him. ‘That was Doc’s mistake. He was always lugging home wild things. A hawk with a hurt wing. One time it was a full-grown bobcat with a broken leg. But you can’t give your heart to a wild thing: the more you do, the stronger they get. Until they’re strong enough to run into the woods. Or fly into a tree. Then a taller tree. Then the sky. That’s how you’ll end up, Mr Bell. If you let yourself love a wild thing. You’ll end up looking at the sky’.
I think the above quote is the most beautiful thing I have read since S.E Hinton’s ‘stay golden’ quote. Maybe not all of us but most of us have fallen in love with someone wild, they are so irresistible. You love them because of their passion, uniqueness and undomesticated personality but you know deep down they are never truly yours or were ever yours in the first place because wild things can never be kept or tamed. And we are left looking up in the sky hoping to get a glimpse of the wild love we once lost that is unleashed upon the world again. You never want to love a wild thing again because the damage of loosing them is so heart breaking you don’t think you could survive a lose like that again. But nevertheless you dream of them almost every night and in the mundaneness of life, their memory is what keeps you strong.
Holly is a wild thing, you can’t help but love her.
I think the above quote is the most beautiful thing I have read since S.E Hinton’s ‘stay golden’ quote. Maybe not all of us but most of us have fallen in love with someone wild, they are so irresistible. You love them because of their passion, uniqueness and undomesticated personality but you know deep down they are never truly yours or were ever yours in the first place because wild things can never be kept or tamed. And we are left looking up in the sky hoping to get a glimpse of the wild love we once lost that is unleashed upon the world again. You never want to love a wild thing again because the damage of loosing them is so heart breaking you don’t think you could survive a lose like that again. But nevertheless you dream of them almost every night and in the mundaneness of life, their memory is what keeps you strong.
Holly is a wild thing, you can’t help but love her.
November 24, 2023
Beautiful writing. Cold, hard to love characters... Dated language. As usual, glad I read!
November 26, 2023
I felt like I couldn’t justify dressing up in Audrey Hepburn’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s classic outfit for yet another Halloween without having read the book. And the OG Holly Golightly could not be more different than my naive conception of the character—from her wild blonde hair replacing the dark brunette bun, to her whimsical, slightly petulant persona supplanting the timeless poise and sophistication I had associated with Hepburn. Other than my shock at the dissimilarity of the protagonist, the story was colorful and entertaining, though personally nothing to ride home about. I did, however, enjoy the depiction of a powerful, multidimensional female protagonist, who casts a gravitational pull with her guiles and charisma, embroiling all.
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December 14, 2023"If a man doesn't like baseball, then he must like horses,"
January 10, 2024
I abhorred Holly Golightly’s character. A flighty and racist floozy that for some reason attracted the men she was acquainted with.
November 25, 2023
Well written and obviously a classic. Although it doesn’t age well, I recommend listening to it. Michael C. Hall performs it on Audible.
October 6, 2023
Still pondering what I think of this book. The characters and language are very much of its time, by todays standards very unlikable, however the writing is amazing. Despite not liking any of the characters at all I was absolute sucked in with the writing, will be reading more Capote in the future. Having seen clips of the film I am surprised at how different the stories are, however I see why it is considered a classic of it’s time. Overall enjoyed it despite its flawed characters and will read more Truman Capote in the future.
December 22, 2023
holly golightly is the og manic pixie dream girl
July 8, 2023
Having not seen the film I had no preconceived ideas of the story. Such a sad book. Not what I expected at all. Must watch the film now.
November 4, 2023
Capote, you beauty!
March 29, 2024
I've stayed away from this book for so long because the movie is my favorite movie ever. I mean, you can see why they had to change some things for Hollywood. I like this Holly as much as I like Hepburn's Holly, although this one is much grittier. Obviously there is a lot of language in here that is no longer acceptable, or was never really acceptable, but I definitely think it is the way people talked. Overall, I enjoyed it. I still like the movie better.
April 25, 2024
holly golightly og manic pixie dream girl?
December 31, 2023
Hm I am a bit perplexed at what I just read … vibes were interesting.
My favorite quote was “I don’t like to see him run because there’s something funny looking about him when he runs”. Who knew the author created the ick in 1958.
My favorite quote was “I don’t like to see him run because there’s something funny looking about him when he runs”. Who knew the author created the ick in 1958.
March 1, 2024
I still prefer the classic film with Audrey Hepburn. But I also recognize how good is the complex description of its characters on the book
July 22, 2023
If you’re into “The Great Gatsby” then this book is for you! Not only the beautiful romantic feeling but a nice good man AND a weird annoying af h*e.
Who. Who said this book is a top classic? And is iconic and nostalgic? Because I couldn’t get it. I couldn’t figure out what was so special about it. Just a crazy kind of girl playing chess ♟ with everyone in a bad f***** way. In a stupid way. I can’t get over this character. The traveler. Traveling between men. Not knowing where she belongs.
It’s a form of trauma now that I think about it. Not having a place. Being a toy in peoples hands. But a very dangerous toy. Trying to be strong and being so young at the same time. This book reminds me of that famous quote saying “You don’t have to pretend that you know what you’re doing in life. Because you have never experienced this exact situation. So no need of pretending”. Because I was absolutely sure this girl has some kind of diagnosis. This looks like a diagnosis but it’s actually a form of character - the lonely one, the “trying to build myself even tho I don’t have family, I don’t have anyone”. Being so lonely is dangerous, it makes you paint the moustache of your cat. And play on your guitar just crying in the dark but really it sounds like singing. And sometimes. You just have one chance to leave a pathetic city and find a new life. Where you maybe won’t be that lonely. Or you might be in a new. Strange way. What the … I’m gonna give it one more star.
Who. Who said this book is a top classic? And is iconic and nostalgic? Because I couldn’t get it. I couldn’t figure out what was so special about it. Just a crazy kind of girl playing chess ♟ with everyone in a bad f***** way. In a stupid way. I can’t get over this character. The traveler. Traveling between men. Not knowing where she belongs.
It’s a form of trauma now that I think about it. Not having a place. Being a toy in peoples hands. But a very dangerous toy. Trying to be strong and being so young at the same time. This book reminds me of that famous quote saying “You don’t have to pretend that you know what you’re doing in life. Because you have never experienced this exact situation. So no need of pretending”. Because I was absolutely sure this girl has some kind of diagnosis. This looks like a diagnosis but it’s actually a form of character - the lonely one, the “trying to build myself even tho I don’t have family, I don’t have anyone”. Being so lonely is dangerous, it makes you paint the moustache of your cat. And play on your guitar just crying in the dark but really it sounds like singing. And sometimes. You just have one chance to leave a pathetic city and find a new life. Where you maybe won’t be that lonely. Or you might be in a new. Strange way. What the … I’m gonna give it one more star.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 7, 2023
This is one of those books that I always meant to read but never did. I love the movie and love Capote, so I thought it was time. The original Holly is much grittier but still as buoyant as Hepburn’s. The ending is different but unusually, I like both. I could certainly see the story going with direction. Overall, I enjoyed this book.
April 18, 2023
The only thing I felt after reading this book was relief that I actually got through it. I hated Holly. I cannot fathom what any man saw in her. I also hated the racist undertones. This book is definitely dated and requires a strong stomach just to get through it.
November 2, 2023
A slow start, but once you meet her it’s a thrill until the finish line.
January 12, 2024
I absolutely LOVED this book. I was a little hesitant to read it because, years ago, I watched the movie and was largely unimpressed. I remember thinking it was rather too innocent and dimensionless (def due for a rewatch to confirm or deny prior suspected sentiments). But book Holly Golightly was an absolutely fascinating character study of a young, abused woman navigating a life of freedom in a man's world.
Favorite quotes: **potential spoilers ahead as a result**
Never love a wild thing, Mr. Bell,' Holly advised him. 'That was Doc's mistake. He was always lugging home wild things...But you can't give your heart to a wild thing: the more you do, the stronger they get. Until they're strong enough to run into the woods. Or fly into a tree... Then the sky. That's how you'll end up, Mr. Bell. If you let yourself love a wild thing. You'll end up looking at the sky.
"Promise me, though. Promise you'll never put a living thing inside it." - Holly regarding the gifted cage
Putting women in cages has been society's go-to for centuries. I love the symbolism of Holly escaping every single cage, stronger and leaving a trail of admirers in her wake. Also loved how Capote portrayed the side effects of constantly being hunted to remain free from that cage.
"And believe me, dearest, it's better to look at the sky than live there. Such an empty place. So vague just a country where the thunder goes and things, disappear."
Books like this are why I love reading the classics so much; it's an absolute work of art! I was disappointed to see so many reviews who rated this poorly because of the racist and homophobic rhetoric. One must remember this was written in 1956, when segregation was still VERY much a thing and movies/shows were still doing black face. I believe the appropriate response is disgust and anger (which may have even been the author's intent). Regardless, it is a stark reminder of what societal norms were like not so long ago, in hopes that we never revert.
I've never loved an ending of a novel more. Sheer perfection. She's alone traveling the world, but free.
Favorite quotes: **potential spoilers ahead as a result**
Never love a wild thing, Mr. Bell,' Holly advised him. 'That was Doc's mistake. He was always lugging home wild things...But you can't give your heart to a wild thing: the more you do, the stronger they get. Until they're strong enough to run into the woods. Or fly into a tree... Then the sky. That's how you'll end up, Mr. Bell. If you let yourself love a wild thing. You'll end up looking at the sky.
"Promise me, though. Promise you'll never put a living thing inside it." - Holly regarding the gifted cage
Putting women in cages has been society's go-to for centuries. I love the symbolism of Holly escaping every single cage, stronger and leaving a trail of admirers in her wake. Also loved how Capote portrayed the side effects of constantly being hunted to remain free from that cage.
"And believe me, dearest, it's better to look at the sky than live there. Such an empty place. So vague just a country where the thunder goes and things, disappear."
Books like this are why I love reading the classics so much; it's an absolute work of art! I was disappointed to see so many reviews who rated this poorly because of the racist and homophobic rhetoric. One must remember this was written in 1956, when segregation was still VERY much a thing and movies/shows were still doing black face. I believe the appropriate response is disgust and anger (which may have even been the author's intent). Regardless, it is a stark reminder of what societal norms were like not so long ago, in hopes that we never revert.
I've never loved an ending of a novel more. Sheer perfection. She's alone traveling the world, but free.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 235 reviews