Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
Author Erik Larson imbues the incredible events surrounding the 1893 Chicago World's Fair with such drama that readers may find themselves checking the book's categorization to be sure that 'The Devil in the White City' is not, in fact, a highly imaginative novel. Larson tells the stories of two men: Daniel H. Burnham, the architect responsible for the fair's construction, and H.H. Holmes, a serial killer masquerading as a charming doctor.
It seems everyone read this when I lived in Chicago except me, but the true crime hook turned me off then. Turns out it's mostly about architecture and temporary facades of respectability, and engagingly told as popular history. Satisfyingly travel-back-in-time-to-Chicago.
As a big fan of Chicago history, I liked this book a lot. Despite already knowing quite a bit about both Holmes and Burnham, I learned so much more. Kudos to the author on his research, but my only critique: the book sometimes gets lost in the minute details.
fun read, bad history, weird moral inflections
Devil in the White City follows two historical stories; that of the creation of a world's fair and of a serial killer active at the same time.
The world's fair story is utterly fascinating, unspooled in a suspenseful manner and well contextualized within the times.
The serial killer story is interesting as serial killer stories go. It's not a genre I'm a fan of, but the novel doesn't descend to the level of torture porn as some books do and the author has a nice sense for detail.
The problem with the book is these two stories don't connect in any real way. A weak argument is made that the chaos of the world's fair made it easier for the killer to proceed, but that's about it. I agree with another reviewer here that it feels like two short books stuck together to make a longer one.
It's hard to …
Devil in the White City follows two historical stories; that of the creation of a world's fair and of a serial killer active at the same time.
The world's fair story is utterly fascinating, unspooled in a suspenseful manner and well contextualized within the times.
The serial killer story is interesting as serial killer stories go. It's not a genre I'm a fan of, but the novel doesn't descend to the level of torture porn as some books do and the author has a nice sense for detail.
The problem with the book is these two stories don't connect in any real way. A weak argument is made that the chaos of the world's fair made it easier for the killer to proceed, but that's about it. I agree with another reviewer here that it feels like two short books stuck together to make a longer one.
It's hard to say if this is a failure of writing or premise. A good author can tie anything to anything, and having committed to this premise, it's surprising that this author - who writes very well - couldn't create a context within which this pairing made sense.
The book is often fascinating, full of interesting facts, and well worth reading, but the lack of cohesion and the way the book winds down into nothingness keeps it from being fully satisfying.
This book was recommended to me by more than one person, so I picked up the audiobook and listened at work.
Overall, it was interesting ... though somehow didn't really feel satisfying as a true-crime serial killer story nor a historical narrative of the Chicago World's Fair. I'll admit, my impression could well be colored by not being able to give the story my full attention; I'm still not 100% clear on which of the architects is really which.
I'm not sure there's another way that the story could have been laid out; switching between bureaucratic design meetings, "hey did you know" name drops of famous fair attendees, and gristly, cold-blooded homicide might have been more effective for me written on a page ... something about how the narrator used the same academic tone of voice for all the plot threads seemed more dry ... sort of implying that all …
This book was recommended to me by more than one person, so I picked up the audiobook and listened at work.
Overall, it was interesting ... though somehow didn't really feel satisfying as a true-crime serial killer story nor a historical narrative of the Chicago World's Fair. I'll admit, my impression could well be colored by not being able to give the story my full attention; I'm still not 100% clear on which of the architects is really which.
I'm not sure there's another way that the story could have been laid out; switching between bureaucratic design meetings, "hey did you know" name drops of famous fair attendees, and gristly, cold-blooded homicide might have been more effective for me written on a page ... something about how the narrator used the same academic tone of voice for all the plot threads seemed more dry ... sort of implying that all of these threads were equally important.
I may return to this again when I have some time, I might be able to get a bit more out of it on a second pass.
I would still recommend this to any true crime fan (though I might include a quick aside)
A fascinating look into the politics, architecture and murder of the Columbian Exposition.
Great interweaving of the filth and the fine.
3 1/2 stars
This was an interesting read, especially for those of us who are from the Chicago area. Most of us are somewhat familiar with the World's Fair that was held in Chicago in 1893. Anybody who is from Chicago or watches our local PBS station WTTW has seen architectural shows that mentioned the Fair and the Chicago architects involved, mainly Daniel Burnham. So we have a little bit of background info about this story to begin with though perhaps not many of the details. Rest assured, once you read this book you will have ALL the details! LOL
So yeah for those of us from the Chicago area this is right up our alley so to speak. And for architecture buffs also. Ditto history buffs. Some of the rest of the world might be somewhat bored by the amount of detail Eric Larson goes to great pains to …
3 1/2 stars
This was an interesting read, especially for those of us who are from the Chicago area. Most of us are somewhat familiar with the World's Fair that was held in Chicago in 1893. Anybody who is from Chicago or watches our local PBS station WTTW has seen architectural shows that mentioned the Fair and the Chicago architects involved, mainly Daniel Burnham. So we have a little bit of background info about this story to begin with though perhaps not many of the details. Rest assured, once you read this book you will have ALL the details! LOL
So yeah for those of us from the Chicago area this is right up our alley so to speak. And for architecture buffs also. Ditto history buffs. Some of the rest of the world might be somewhat bored by the amount of detail Eric Larson goes to great pains to provide. You can tell he did his research! I can say I was never bored and the book was a quick and enjoyable trip back in time when something like a World's Fair could leave fair goers awe struck, thoroughly charmed and entertained, and even fundamentally changed by the experience. In our jaded times, with the world at our fingertips there are very few experiences left to us that we haven't at least virtually experienced.
The other story depicted in this book is about a certain character known as H.H. Holmes (among other known aliases) and his wheeling and dealings (building a hotel for fair goers among other things) in the Jackson Park neighborhood around the time of the fair. Here is a story most of us have not heard. This nefarious character was a true sociopath and I don't think we know the full truth of his story. What Eric Larson does provide is a sketch of Dr. Holmes' time in Chicago and a (partial) list of his victims. We can't be sure what the final count of his victims actually was due to police work of the times and the forensic tools available in the late 1800s. I have a feeling there were many more victims.
All in all a detailed look back in Chicago's history when the stockyards still operated in the city, the first skyscrapers were built and men with a vision had the wherewithal to see it through.
Really engaging book on the Chicago World's Fair. Only issue is that after pages of great, intimate detail, it rushes through the ending. Worth your time.
2 separate books that have no other connection other than the Chicago 1893 exhibition. The first one follows the architects charged with the realization of the exhibition, the other book turns around a serial killer who profited from the affluence and confusion generated by the same exhibition.
Amazing
I had such a hard time getting into this book, but luckily I'm reading this for a book discussion so I was forced to muddle through it. I didn't care about the background of the fair and how it got built, but once it opened the descriptions of the fair were truly breathtaking and I found myself despondent that I could never see the fair in all its glory. The author did a great job of transitioning between the two stories of Burnham's Columbian Exposition and Holmes' macabre hotel, but I would have preferred more Holmes and a little less Burnham (and a whole lot less Olmstead).
Fascinating, I loved it!
I like this style of history book, by intertwining 3 or 4 stores this book covers it makes each more interesting and sets the mood for the era!
This is the next book on the pile...
