The Devil in the White City in Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge

Mar 10, 2023 Deb rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction, history, botm

Two interesting subjects, though shoehorning one in with the other is questionable. And the pacing, especially in the middle is off--the detailed sections on the building of the fair got quite tedious at points until I was skimming those sections. But the ending was excellent and made me want to immediately visit Chicago. I have been to the Museum of Science and Industry many, many times, but I never realized that it is housed in one of the remaining fair buildings. You could never fault Larson ...more

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May 18, 2012 Melissa Wiebe rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, history, nonfiction, erik-larson

Originally reviewed at Jayne's Books.

I was more interested in the H.H. Holmes storyline rather than the stuff about the building of the "White City" for the Chicago's World Fair, even though there was some connection between the two. The story about the building of "White City" seemed to be full of details that I honestly really didn't care about. The H.H. Holmes story line was the reason that I picked up the book, as I had heard about him through a podcast on Stuff You Missed in History Class a ...more

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Nov 26, 2020 Donna rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction

This book sets the standard for narrative nonfiction in the twenty-first century. The fact that it is set in Chicago, my hometown, is a beautiful bonus.

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Jan 18, 2024 Chelsea rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: book-club, non-fiction

Larson’s deep dive into Chicago’s World Fair may not appeal to all readers. This bit of American history is made more appealing (for some) by adding the story of a serial killer operating in and around the city during this time. Though little of Holmes’s crimes is actually known, his victims are, and they come to life on the page. He was a white man pretending to be a dr. so nobody questioned the many suspicious disappearances in his life.

All this to say, I enjoyed the sections on the World Fair ...more

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Dec 09, 2015 Sharon rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, history

I finished this on an extended reading tour ... and in true M. Twain style (though reported he never made it to the fair, just to Chicago), truth is certainly stranger than fiction. Utterly fascinating to learn of the design process and architectural feats that led to Chicago's World Fair in 1893 intertwined with the grossly horrific planning that serial killer H. H. Holmes undertook to succumb his victims in this fact- and action-packed account by E. Larson. I will forever see colorful Chicago ...more

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