The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
This New York Times bestseller intertwines the true tale of the 1893 World's Fair and the cunning serial killer who used the fair to lure his victims to their death. Combining meticulous research with nail-biting storytelling, Erik Larson has crafted a narrative with all the wonder of newly discovered history and the thrills of the best fiction.
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Community Reviews
August’s bookclub read was The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
In this dramatic, non-fiction novel, Larson tells the story of two men: Daniel H. Burnham, the architect responsible for the Chicago World’s Fair construction, and H. H. Holmes, a serial killer masquerading as a charming doctor. Burnham’s struggles to create a spectacle that unites a country and Holmes methodical and sinister actions hidden by the crush of humanity, are skillf...read more
3.5 stars!
My librarian in high school recommended this book to me, but I couldn't get past the first chapter at the time because it seemed like such a dry topic. I wasn't into history, and I certainly did not care about the history of the World Fair (I didn't even know what the World Fair was!) Cut to ten years later. I'm not sure why I decided to give it another go, but this time, the history part of the book actually held my interest. I think t...read more
My librarian in high school recommended this book to me, but I couldn't get past the first chapter at the time because it seemed like such a dry topic. I wasn't into history, and I certainly did not care about the history of the World Fair (I didn't even know what the World Fair was!) Cut to ten years later. I'm not sure why I decided to give it another go, but this time, the history part of the book actually held my interest. I think t...read more
Mind-blowing. The contrast between the glittering city and this deeply depraved man was very, very well done. Felt like a dark Boys in the Boat.
This book is mostly about the billing and creation of the 1893 World Fair in Chicago and the unfortunate series of events surrounding it from mysterious deaths, architectural failures and the draw of a notorious serial killer. This book was painful to read mostly because of the flow did not focus on any particular character but mostly just constant side tracks. I find the reviews more entertaining then how this book turned out to be.
I struggled with this book. I think it was the amount of people that were being written about. I had a hard time keeping them all straight at times, especially because their names were so similar. I enjoyed the history of the Chicago fair though and that there were so many things invented/built that is still being used to this day. Overall a good book.
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