The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about The Devil in the White City, please sign up.

Answered Questions (18)

Brock Dickson Hey I'm 14 and I have thourhely enjoyed and if you think he mature enough then let him read its all how he can handle it age is just a number…moreHey I'm 14 and I have thourhely enjoyed and if you think he mature enough then let him read its all how he can handle it age is just a number(less)
H-Grace I loved this book. I didn’t know anything about the murders, so I find it interesting that the parts about him were the draw for many readers. The par…moreI loved this book. I didn’t know anything about the murders, so I find it interesting that the parts about him were the draw for many readers. The parts about the fair, how its technology still reverberates today, plus discovering things like the impetus behind the invention of the Ferris wheel, all fascinated me. Before I read all the comments about “architecture,” I would have said the fair inventions and ground-breaking technologies were the focus. Plus I didn’t know about the most famous American landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmstead’s (designer of NYC’s Central Park) involvement in the fair. Anyone interested in history is likely to love this book as much as I did. (less)
Marianne A. Yes, I had trouble getting into the flow of the book at first. But I found this was not a great book to hear on audible - better to read the paper boo…moreYes, I had trouble getting into the flow of the book at first. But I found this was not a great book to hear on audible - better to read the paper book. I heard much of this book on audible and read much of the hard copy. The portions about Holmes were easy to follow on audible, but the portions about the planning of the fair, especially when it got at all dry or technical, or when too many different names were involved, or vocabulary words peculiar to that era (not many, but some) were tough - those portions I could not follow well on audible or I didn't retain much. So I recommend reading the hard copy, at least the Burnham/fair planning sections.(less)

About Goodreads Q&A

Ask and answer questions about books!

You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.

See Featured Authors Answering Questions

Learn more