The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

July 6, 2006 -- The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson (nonfiction)

Meeting Location: Suite 49 at 6:30

Here's the Random House link for the book.

taken from 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

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Judy, Marci, Larry, Pam and I met on the patio for drinks, dinner, and dessert.... and of course to discuss the book. I was pleasantly surprised with this historical work and that view was shared by most. Initially the book was recommended to Larry by a student, and I actually purchased this a few months ago for my father, not even realizing it was nonfiction.

We all agreed that this book is like "a spoonful of sugar" when it comes to learning about history, not that we are opposed to that either. But as Judy said, the book asked "little of us as readers" and was a pleasant read. I would guess that many students would enjoy this glimpse into our history. I had never realized how this one event--The Chicago World's Fair of 1893-- did so much to shape our world... From Cracker Jacks to the Ferris Wheel, from Buffalo Bill to Frank Lloyd Wright, so many new ideas, products, people were introduced or cited within the pages of this book which focuses on a fairly narrow slice of history.

Marci shared excerpts from Failure is Impossible, a book about Susan B. Anthony, that included the speech she gave (alluded to in our book) rejecting the idea of closing public places on the sabbath,

"It seems to me the common sense thing that all public places of art, science and learning should be open to suit the convenience of all classes of people; the ten hours of each week-day for such as have leisure, the evenings and Sundays for those whose bread-winning employments occupy every one of those ten hours of each of the six week-days."

I was particularly struck by the suggestion that Walt Disney's father who worked on creating the "White City" would later tell stories about it to his sons, possibly planting an idea for what would come to be Disneyland.

We discussed the idea of the two stories.... how they ran side by side and yet never converged and what we though about that aspect of the narrative. Larry reiterated his distaste for stories that jump from one perspective to another and I guess this is the second book we've read this summer to do that. I am not nearly so troubled by that sort of thing and I actually thought the storyline of Holmes, the serial killer, provided an element that broke up some of the dense detail of the city and its construction.

Pam created a list of dynamite questions suitable for book club trivia or perhaps to be used at our trivia group on Saturday nights. This book is oozing with little known facts that appeal to to folks like us. It was noted that the beginning and the ending of the book with the sea voyage of Burnham on the Olympic was a clever way to bookend the story.

This is one we'd recommend.