The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America (Vintage) [Paperback]

The Devil in the White City is a first-rate narrative history book and one of the best books I have read in any genre. The story of the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 is fascinating in that the fair tied together the past and the future in the areas of business, politics, architecture, science and American culture. Larson tells the story in an entertaining way and packs it with interesting bits of information about not only the process of creating the fair but also the effect it had on American society. What brings the book to a higher level and makes it unique is the way the story of the serial killer H.H. Holmes is brilliantly interwoven into the story of the World's Fair. This adds fuel to the suspense that drives the story and adds another dimension to the book's portrayal of life in Chicago at the time. The concept is ingenious and the book is superbly executed. Highly recommended for anyone, and essential for those with an interest in American history.

In 1893, Chicago was gearing up for its shining moment on the international stage. The city had been selected to host the World's Fair, beating out New York and a number of other American contenders. A prominent local architect, Daniel Burnham, had taken the reins to organize and construct the massive project. He assembled a dream team of architects, landscapers, engineers, and other professionals to help pull the fair together. Certainly Chicago could outdo the Paris Fair, which had been a worldwide success years earlier.

Unfortunately for Burnham and his team, everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. Due to a lack of organization and bickering among the committees responsible for the fair, construction began far later than it should have. Partially completed buildings blew over and burned down. Union workers threatened strikes. One sideshow act showed up a year early, while another (which was believed to be made up of cannibals) killed the man sent to retrieve them and never showed up at all. And there was a monster on the loose. A man who used the chaos of Chicago at this time in history to conceal the murders of dozens of people - many of them young, single women. A man who constructed a building with stolen money, then used the building as a slaughterhouse to lure, kill, and dispose of his victims.

THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY is a terrific book. It is nonfiction, but it reads like a novel. The real-life details of this story seem almost too bizarre to be true, yet this is one example of the old saying that "truth is stranger than fiction." The author, Erik Larson, even includes a lengthy section at the back where he documents his facts and explains his suppositions.

The book's chapters alternate between the World's Fair and the exploits of serial killer, Dr. H.H. Holmes. I found myself enjoying both stories, as they ran parallel throughout the book. The Herculean task of putting together the fair in record time was fascinating, and the sociopathic actions of Dr. Holmes were chilling. It made for a brilliant contrast - just when the frustrations of the Fair seemed overwhelming, the book switched to Dr. Holmes as he lured yet another young woman into his web. And just when Dr. Holmes' evil seemed too much to bear, the chapter would end and the reader would be back at the World's Fair dealing with political back stabbing, instead of Holmes' more literal variety.

I rarely read nonfiction, but this book came highly recommended to me, so I gave it a try. I'm so glad I did, too. It offers a wonderful historical perspective on Chicago and the world near the close of the 19th century. For a Chicago-area native like me, its frequent mentions of famous local names, like Burnham and Adler and Marshall Field, that still grace street signs and the sides of buildings, were an added treat. Just a brief word of warning, though: it does contain some of the dreaded "adult themes." Some of Dr. Holmes' crimes are described - although not too graphically - and they might be upsetting for "younger or more sensitive" readers.

I strongly recommend THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY to anyone who enjoys an engrossing, well-written story, whether they normally read fiction or nonfiction. In particular, if readers have a book report in school, this book should be considered. It makes history come alive.

Reviewed by: K. Osborn Sullivan

A hugely enjoyable, readable and informative book on a subject that would not necessarily sell itself from the bookshelves.

The Devil in the White City is a history of the bidding, creation and construction of the Chicago World Fair 1893, the Columbine Festival in honour of the 500th anniversary of Columbus's discovery of the new world. Much attention was focused on the largest cities in the USA as they vied for the honour of hosting the world fair. In the end Chicago is victorious, and the city elects one of its own most successful sons to be the lead architect.

On the dark side on this balanced, Tao-like book is the story of Dr H.H. Holmes. This gentleman has the dubious honour of being America's first recorded serial killer. His 'career' mirrored the construction at the world fair, and of course took place just a stones throw from the festival's building site. It reached its apogee as the country's attention was focused on Chicago, and the details would shock a still naïve country.

Erik Larson is a spectacularly lucid writer. One imagines that whatever he turns his pen to will come out as gold plated as this. Whilst it might seem that the machinations over the building of a world fair over 100 years ago would not survive as a matter of interest, Larson proves that a book is as interesting as the person telling the story. Larson uses key historical details, diaries, letters, weather reports and newspapers to evoke a complete world and bygone age. He tells us of the moods, health conditions and character of the people involved and even whether they would have been rained or shone on by careful dredging of meteorological records.

An example of the gloriously pleasing phraseology is his description of various meals which the worthies of the city treated themselves to. After reproducing the menu in its entirety, Larson notes wryly that it was a wonder that the city's leading dignatories had working arteries at all. In a a similar vein Larson wonders whether the plan for an extending, pneumatic tower should have featured a bordello rather than the planned café.

It is in switching between the two stories, that of destruction and creation, building and cruelty, wonder and death that the book really wins. There is an amazing pace fashioned out of the knowledge that both stories are hurtling to vastly different end points - worldwide success for the fair and the discovery of Holmes's brutal crimes. Accompanied by the forensic eye for research and detail, a silken writing style and a story of fascinating personalities it is certain that this book is one of the best narrative histories I have had the pleasure to read. I am going to enjoy seeing if his subsequent books are as readable.