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| The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America | 
 enlarge | Author: Erik Larson
Publisher: Vintage
Category: Book
List Price: $14.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (750 reviews)
Sales Rank: 138
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 447
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.8
ISBN: 0375725601
Dewey Decimal Number: 364.15230977311
EAN: 9780375725609
ASIN: 0375725601
Publication Date: February 10, 2004
Release Date: February 10, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
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. Burnham's challenge was immense. In a short period of time, he was forced to overcome the death of his partner and numerous other obstacles to construct the famous "White City" around which the fair was built. His efforts to complete the project, and the fair's incredible success, are skillfully related along with entertaining appearances by such notables as Buffalo Bill Cody, Susan B. Anthony, and Thomas Edison. The activities of the sinister Dr. Holmes, who is believed to be responsible for scores of murders around the time of the fair, are equally remarkable. He devised and erected the World's Fair Hotel, complete with crematorium and gas chamber, near the fairgrounds and used the event as well as his own charismatic personality to lure victims. Combining the stories of an architect and a killer in one book, mostly in alternating chapters, seems like an odd choice but it works. The magical appeal and horrifying dark side of 19th-century Chicago are both revealed through Larson's skillful writing. --John Moe
Product Description
Bringing Chicago circa 1893 to vivid life, Erik Larson's spellbinding bestseller intertwines the true tale of two men--the brilliant architect behind the legendary 1893 World's Fair, striving to secure America’s place in the world; 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.
Download Description
In The Devil in the White City, Erik Larson, author of Isaac's Storm, tells the spellbinding true story of two men, an architect and a serial killer, whose fates were linked by the greatest fair in American history: the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, nicknamed "The White City." Two men, each handsome and unusually adept at his chosen work, embodied an element of the great dynamic that characterized America's rush toward the twentieth century. The architect was Daniel Hudson Burnham, the fair's brilliant director of works and the builder of many of the country's most important structures, including the Flatiron Building in New York and Union Station in Washington, D.C. The murderer was Henry H. Holmes, a young doctor who, in a malign parody of the White City, built his "World's Fair Hotel" just west of the fairgrounds -- a torture palace complete with dissection table, gas chamber, and 3,000-degree crematorium. Burnham overcame tremendous obstacles and tragedies as he organized the talents of Frederick Law Olmsted, Charles McKim, Louis Sullivan, and others to transform swampy Jackson Park into the White City, while Holmes used the attraction of the great fair and his own satanic charms to lure scores of young women to their deaths. What makes the story all the more chilling is that Holmes really lived, walking the grounds of that dream city by the lake. The Devil in the White City draws the reader into a time of magic and majesty, made all the more appealing by a supporting cast of real-life characters, including Buffalo Bill, Theodore Dreiser, Susan B. Anthony, Thomas Edison, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, and others. In this book, the smoke, romance and mystery of the Gilded Age come alive as never before. Erik Larson's gifts as a storyteller are magnificently displayed in this rich narrative of the master builder, the killer, and the great fair that obsessed them both.
"Engrossing... exceedingly well documented... utterly fascinating."
CHICAGO TRIBUNE "A dynamic, enveloping book.... Relentlessly fuses history and entertainment to give this nonfiction book the dramtic effect of a novel.... It doesn't hurt that this truth is stranger than fiction."
THE NEW YORK TIMES "So good, you find yourself asking how you could not know this already."
ESQUIRE "Another successful exploration of American history.... Larson skillfully balances the grisly details with the far-reaching implications of the World's Fair."
USA TODAY "As absorbing a piece of popular history as one will ever hope to find."
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE "Paints a dazzling picture of the Gilded Age and prefigure the American century to come."
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY "A wonderfully unexpected book... Larson is a historian... with a novelist's soul."
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
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| Customer Reviews: Read 745 more reviews...
 Great slice of history July 7, 2008
This book really takes you back to a time when a group of true visionaries change the world. It is really interesting and educational at the smme time. Well worth reading!
 Absolutely absorbing July 2, 2008
I loved "The Devil in the White City" and was thoroughly absorbed by it, something I find to be rare with nonfiction. Larson's writing style is perfect for drawing you and making you feel like you were there in 1890s Chicago. He obviously took a number of creative liberties to add narrative flourish (e.g., describing what people felt, the expressions on their faces, etc.), but I'm happy he did and won't criticize him for it as it made the book so enjoyable.
One criticism I had, though, is that the book would have been more aptly named "The Devil AND the White City," as the story of the psychopath Holmes is a parallel thread that just barely intersects with the story of the White City. And though the book won the Edgar Award for true crime, Holmes' story accounts for only about 35% of the book. The dominant story is that of Burnham and the White City's inception, execution, and ultimate success.
I also felt that the section detailing the White City's operation from May-October 1893 was surprisingly somewhat skimpy, compared to the amount of detail Larson presented for the time when the fair was being built. Larson's over-fascination with eyes and his tendency to end most chapter subsections with blunt-as-a-hammer foreshadowing grew a little irritating, but these are minor gripes compared with the overall excellence of the book.
I think everyone will find something to enjoy here: history buffs, crime buffs, people who just enjoy a compelling story, and more. I hadn't previously known the impact the 1893 World's Fair had on both its own time and through the present day--the story is simply fascinating.
Excellent historical novel June 27, 2008
Erik Larson did a masterful job of blending the historical significance of the Columbian Exposition and life in Chicago at the turn of the century. Well researched, well written and a novel that I really enjoyed.
Such ease, such difficulty June 24, 2008
Erik Larson's "The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America" captures the evil enthusiam of one man's murder spree and a group of men's desire to create a great American pleasure ground. This book will disappoint those looking for the grizzly details of the dozens of murders committed by HH Holmes (real name Mudgett). Mr. Larson is not looking to exploit the gruesome tortures the victims underwent--and for this restraint Mr. Larson is to be congratulated. What he does relate are the tribulations faced by the designers of Chicago's Columbian exposition and the frustrations of lawmen to capture a madman.
In what I believe is intentional, Mr. Larson gives us a frightening picture of American life then and, quite possibly, now. That being: it is much more difficult to do something good for society than it is to do evil. The ease with which Holmes was able to build a large house, complete with gas chambers, torture chambers, soundproof rooms -- at times, without even paying for the materials -- and burial grounds is remarkable. Meanwhile, the men who wanted to construct the exposition had to agonize over every penny and over every design, had to struggle with laborers, unions, fires, the weather... it seemed everything went wrong. Nervous breakdowns and illnesses plagued these men. Holmes, who plucked several victims from the fair, went through his savagery like it was a walk in the park. It is a frightening conclusion.
So why only four stars? One big reason is that the book fails to live up to the last part of its subtitle "...the Fair that Changed America". He makes several arguments for this proposition, but they all fall a little short, to me. Maybe I'm wrong. Find out for yourself because "The Devil in the White City" is valuable reading for anyone interested in American history and/or crime.
An exciting while informative read! June 19, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The Devil in the White City is an exciting book. Thank heavens, since it is non-fiction, I knew that it ended well, otherwise I would have died from the suspense. I got such a rich perspective on what it takes to pull off an event like a World's Fair, or The Olympics (making it relevant for today), and what wonderful talent it takes to hold the vision and bring it to fruition. Very inspiring. But juxtaposing this along side the fascinating story of the serial killer - and it's all true. Great writing and pacing. I was riveted while learning history all the same time. An unusual combination. Chicago is a beautiful city, thanks in large part to the great minds who created the Columbian Exposition and the leaders since then who have followed suit.
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