The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America
by Erik Larson
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Book Summary Information
Author: Erik LarsonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2004-02-10
ISBN: 0375725601
Number of pages: 447
Publisher: Vintage
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780375725609
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America
Book Review: The Devil in the White City
Summary: 5 Stars
"In Chicago at the end of the nineteenth century amid the smoke of industry and the clatter of trains there lived two men, both handsome, both blue-eyed, and both unusually adept at their chosen skills." One, an architect, saw the city as a place to construct his dreams; the other, a murderer, saw the city as a place to quench his thirst for victims. Both saw the Columbian Exposition of 1893 as an opportunity. Erik Larson's, The Devil in the White City, tells the story of these two men and the great event that linked their fates. It is a story of "the ineluctable conflict" between dreams and reality, good and evil, "the White City and the Black."
On Monday, February 24, 1890 a congressional vote secured the city of Chicago as the host of the Columbian Exposition. For the many citizens of Chicago who had endeavored passionately for this honor the news sparked corporeal excitement. If the exposition could be pulled off, if buildings could be constructed, attractions designed, and countless other tasks completed, the event would bring incredible honor not only to Chicago but to the entire nation. The burden of such a task was placed on a pair of architects, Daniel Burnham and John Root. With time such a critical factor the two men gathered around them the engineering experts of the time: architects including Richard Hunt, Charles McKim, Francis Millet and Louis Sullivan; and master landscaper Frederick Olmsted. The problems facing the men were immense, with labor strikes, complex governmental issues, and a general lack of time, but a dream of the "White City" hung before them and enticed their efforts.
The exposition's organization and construction proved arduous, many times bordering impossible. Following the tragic death of his partner, Root, Daniel Burnham assumed as much control over the preparations as possible. A passionate, but practical man, Burnham became the keystone figure whose strength was needed to support the colossal undertakings. Burnham spurred the architects into action, settled disputes at all levels and urged sensibly for the necessary, but often overlook aspects of the exposition, including a firefighting crew and a massive security force.
The fair opened with ceremonies and lengthy pomp and circumstance on a rainy April 30, 1893. Though not entirely complete, the transformation that had occurred in three short years was miraculous. With the aid of Burnham and his architects, Chicago changed from the "Black City" of smoke, ash and degradation into a city of shining brilliance. Hundreds of buildings of varying dimensions had been constructed, including the Court of Honor, a group of enormous white buildings around a clear lake. In the months after the opening the fair attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the nation. Men, women and children came to stare at the magnificent architecture, listen to music from London through a telephone, and stroll through the Midway (a huge street filled with model towns and exhibits from countless countries.) Many daring visitors even took rides on George Ferris's gigantic wheel, a structure whose construction was meant to outshine Alexandre Eiffel's tower in Paris. Perhaps the most miraculous aspect of the fair came to life each night when thousands of electric lights illuminated every walkway and building. To visitors, many of whom had never before encountered electricity, the brilliant scene was like "a sudden vision of heaven." Though the exposition closed on October 30th, 1893 it left a lasting impact on American society. It enabled Americans to view cities in a way they never had before. No longer did cities have to be dark, soiled and unsafe. The fair revealed to people the "possibilities of social beauty, utility, and harmony of which they had not been able even to dream."
As Daniel Burnham was erecting the grand structures of the fair, another man was also busy constructing a building of his own just a few miles away. Dr. H.H. Holmes came to the city of Chicago just as initial preparations for the fair were being arranged. A man of many faces and names, Holmes quickly and fraudulently established himself and purchased a small town block on which to create the World's Fair Hotel. Holmes and his hotel shared many characteristics. Both were appealing to others (Holmes had his charm and the hotel had its location) and both had dark, deadly secrets. Holmes used his allure to begin relationships with young, ignorant woman, only to murder them with the hotel's help and no remorse. Gas jets in walls, airtight closets and a body shaped kiln in the basement all assisted Holmes in ending the lives of more than ten people-including children.
With a vast supply of victims drawn to Chicago by the fair, Dr. Holmes' killing spree may have continued indefinitely had it not been for a New York detective who revealed to the nation the mad doctor's horrific deeds. Holmes claimed innocence but eventually produced a convoluted confession of the murders. "I was born with the devil in me. I could not help the fact that I was a murderer, no more than the poet can help the inspiration to sing."
Architect Daniel Burnham and murderer H.H. Holmes had almost nothing in common-one created, the other destroyed. The only link between the men was one awe-inspiring event, the Columbian Exposition, and even this link is not very substantial. Burnham was the mastermind behind the fair's construction while Holmes simply utilized the fair to fill his thirst for victims. Yet for some reason, Erik Larson chose to place the men side by side and intertwine their lives. Two plot lines, two series of conflicts, two climactic events, all twisted together. The resulting product is an enveloping story that masterfully balances grisly horror with the pursuit of splendor.
In The Devil in the White City, Larson analyzes the lives and motivations of Daniel Burnham and Dr. Holmes. Simultaneously, he evaluates the Columbian Exposition and its overall effects on both Chicago and the nation as a whole. With an ardent attention to detail Larson brings the events and people to life, like a novelist describing characters and setting. The charming façade of the malicious Holmes can be seen perfectly as Larson provides nightmare-inducing descriptions of the murderer's actions. "I...returned to the house where the children were imprisoned, and ended their lives by connecting the gas with the trunk, then came the opening of the trunk and the viewing of their little blackened and distorted faces, then the digging of their shallow graves in the basement of the house." Also, by loading the tales of Holmes with foreshadowing (a unique technique for a non-fiction work) even a reader without a penchant for the macabre details cannot help but continue turning the pages.
The story of Burnham and the exposition lacks the intense, gripping aspects of Holmes' mystery but delves deeply into the driving forces surrounding the fair. Larson provides necessary diversions into the histories of the leading men, such as Burnham and Olmstead, offering a solid base and allowing each man's view to be understood with clarity. He also changes moods depending on the historical situation, a technique that easily goes unnoticed while reading but still adds an interesting effect. When Burnham struggles desperately to make progress in the first years of construction Larson's descriptions are lengthy and lack vibrancy, but when the wonders of the fair are revealed to the public there is humor and exuberance in every detail.
The flowing style and incredible specificity of the information makes The Devil appear to be a fictional novel, invented completely in the head of Erik Larson. But, once the reader accepts the reality-that this is indeed a non-fiction book-the true magnitude of Larson's feat becomes evident. Meticulously researching an event and more importantly two individuals from a century ago, Larson compiled thousands of intricate details from hundreds of sources. The book even includes menus from dinners attending by the leading architects and lists of injuries sustained by fair-goers. The only two instances in the book that show signs of possible distortion (which Larson admits) are two murders performed by Holmes that are re-created with chilling description.
Erik Larson's unique writing style transforms a historical account into a thrilling adventure. The attention to detail and overall thoroughness create a story that can entertain and enlighten any reader. For the reader with prior knowledge of the era, Larson succeeds in affirming the cultural importance of events the Gilded Age. It is a book that can be read with ease, but not set down with ease until Holmes hangs from the gallows and the fair draws to a close.
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Summary of The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America
Erik Larson?author of #1 bestseller In the Garden of Beasts?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.
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
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