The Devil in the White City in The Complete Idiots Guide to the Ultimate Reading List

Oct 15, 2012 Lisa (Harmonybites) rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime, non-fiction, history, ultimate-reading-list

This weaves together two parallel stories: "The White City" is the 1893 Chicago World's fair, and "The Devil" a serial killer who preyed on visitors. Larson tells both stories beautifully, encapsulating the dark and bright of the Gilded Age. I knew nothing of either story and soon was astonished I didn't--especially about that historic world's fair. The fair was designed by the leading American architects of the day, landscaped by the designer of New York City's Central Park, Frederick Law Olmst This weaves together two parallel stories: "The White City" is the 1893 Chicago World's fair, and "The Devil" a serial killer who preyed on visitors. Larson tells both stories beautifully, encapsulating the dark and bright of the Gilded Age. I knew nothing of either story and soon was astonished I didn't--especially about that historic world's fair. The fair was designed by the leading American architects of the day, landscaped by the designer of New York City's Central Park, Frederick Law Olmstead, opened by President Grover Cleveland, and visited by Archduke Francis Ferdinand, Houdini, Tesla, Edison, Joplin, Clarence Darrow, Woodrow Wilson, Susan B. Anthony, Teddy Roosevelt, Diamond Jim Brady, Lillian Russell, Helen Keller, Theodore Dreiser among other luminaries. It debuted the Pledge of Allegiance, introduced such products as Shredded Wheat and Cracker Jack, helped establish AC over DC as the standard for electricity, influenced the design of the United States capitol Federal Mall and the institution of Columbus Day. Walt Disney's father worked on it and Larson credits the impression it made with inspiring Disney's Magic Kingdom as well as inspiring visiting L. Frank Baum's Oz. It also had another innovative feature built to "out Eiffel, Eiffel" whose tower led glamor to the 1884 Paris World's Fair. Larson builds so beautifully to the reveal on that one I'll let you discover that great attraction for yourself. Larson in this book gives a great panorama of Americana. Oh, and the serial killer, H.H. Holmes? He makes Jack the Ripper look like a slacker.

I can't complain about the pacing or the prose--both are first rate. If anything holds me back from a fifth star, it's that this is creative non-fiction, a genre that makes me wary. Truman Capote claimed to have invented that genre, what he called "the non-fiction novel," with In Cold Blood. In other words, creative fiction is a work that, though based on a true story, takes liberties with the facts and invents details, dialogue, and even entire events. Larson even cites In Cold Blood as an inspiration. There's just so much sensory detail and thoughts of historical figures in the book for me to find its facts reliable. One can suppose such details could be taken from contemporary newspaper articles, letters and diaries to some extent, but I don't find that plausible in many instances. On the other hand, I'll give Larson this, unlike Capote, he does supply notes--thirty pages of them. But I can't quite settle into this as a novel, and yet can't quite trust it as history as a result of his approach. ...more

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Aug 21, 2009 Heidi Hehnly rated it really liked it

This was a great read. I don't usually read non-fiction or books about architects, but this one was really a delight. Not only did it keep me entertained, but I felt like I learned a lot about Chicago and american history in general. ...more

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Dec 15, 2009 Ridan rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction

I really enjoyed this book - especially the historical parts about the fair itself and all that came out of it. The murder aspects were fine but I think I just enjoyed getting in touch with a time and place of years gone by.

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Apr 25, 2010 Dan rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Must. Vistit. Jackson. Park! I visited Chicago for the fist time a couple of years ago and fell in love with the city. I can't wait to go again and be the tour guide for the people I know that live there... even though I will probably bore them to death with my newly acquired knowledge of the city that they might consider trivial. If only I can convince them to read this book!!! I was entirely enthralled throughout the whole book. ...more

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