The Devil in White City by Erik Larson

Posted on July 16, 2009 
Filed under Books, Crime, Non-Fiction and tagged , , , , , ,

MURDER, MAGIC, AND MADNESS AT THE FAIR THAT CHANGED AMERICA.

devil white city The Devil in White City by Erik Larson

This is the first non fiction book that I’m reviewing here on Book Review Babes.  The Devil in White City is an engrossing story that reads like a novel.  Indeed, the facts within are extraordinary, and with such a tale, it is difficult to believe how infrequently this story has been told over the years.  There are actually two narratives in this book.  One explores the fantastic Chicago World’s Fair of 1893, and the other is the story of America’s first serial killer, but both stories are entwined in incredible ways.

Daniel Burnham was the architect responsible for organizing the World’s Fair.  His is a tale of political intrigue, determination, and the realization of a dream. Burnham crosses paths with some very notable characters, including Thomas Edison, Annie Oakley, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Buffalo Bill, just to name a few.  But along the way he also faces corruption, deceit, and tragedy.

This Fair highlighted the best and worst of a budding American landscape entering a modern age.  It showed how teamwork and common purpose could come together against all odds to accomplish a feat of near perfection.  Something of this magnitude is a testament to the mentality of that age, I think.  I wonder if we could pull something like this off today with the same result.  However, even such a noble undertaking can have its dark side, and the World’s Fair of 1893 had a decidedly dark underbelly.

Many people saw the Fair as a sort of American Mecca… a place where they’d be able to seize their destiny and start anew.  This naive idealism is what caused young women to flee from their rural homesteads and farms to Chicago, in hopes of finding a job, and eventually a sophisticated and well to do husband.  Of course, these women generally lacked the survival skills to navigate life in the big city, and often found themselves lost and disoriented.

This set of circumstances sets the stage for our other tale, that of  Dr. H. H. Holmes, who preyed on these vulnerable young women.  He pretended to be very wealthy, highly educated, and quite sophisticated.  He was also extremely forward with his sexual advances.  He would meet women and promise them everything…marriage, children, stability…. understandably he was able to charm countless unsuspecting women.  Keep in mind, the concept of a serial killer was foreign to America at the time.  It wasn’t part of the psyche.

Holmes carried out his killings in awful fashion.  He put Jack the Ripper to shame.  He would gas, rape, torture, mutilate, burn, dismember, and dissect his victims.  He even bought an entire building where he carried out these awful deeds, and no one suspected him.  Even though the evidence was right there, he continued to get away with his wicked deeds.  These are the parts of the book where you want to scream at the cops that Holmes befriends…you want to shout at his creditors to investigate…you want to shake some sense into the unsuspecting women and tell them he isn’t what he seems.  It is a difficult story, made more visceral in the fact that it is all true.

Larson is a grand story teller.  There isn’t a lot of dialogue to rely on, as the book is told in narrative fashion, and Larson really did his homework.  But, he manages to captivate you with his incredible descriptions that make everything seem urgent and real.  One of my favorite literary devices is the metaphor, and Larson is a master.  With phrases like, “the heat rose with the intensity of a child’s fever” and “sentences wandered through the report like morning glory through the picket of a fence”,  I was instantly swept up in the sights and sounds of the place and time, which enhanced not only the beauty, but also the horror.

I loved the way The Devil in White City alternated between the two plots.  Juxtaposing Burnham’s feats of the impossible and magical against Holmes’ diabolical deeds at the same place and time was brilliant, leaving conflicting feelings of wishing to have been present to witness “Eighth Wonder of the World”, and thankful to have been spared the temptation to partake in such an event.  Avoiding Holmes’ advances may have been more difficult in reality than in the imagination of the reader.

If I had to name a flaw with the book, it would have to be the almost mind numbing detail presented.  It seems that nearly every nail and board and hammer is accounted for in Larson’s research, and some of these details became a bit overwhelming.  But don’t let that deter you.

The Devil in White City is a book that is full of the rapture of a magical time in history, and the terror of a twisted mind set free in a playground of innocence.

Natalina

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Comments



3 Responses to “The Devil in White City by Erik Larson”

  1.  Jo on July 16th, 2009 10:47 pm

    I’ve never heard of this book. I love non-fiction and telling two stories at once sounds intruiging.

  2.  cheryl on July 17th, 2009 4:09 am

    Wow, there’s a serial killer I’ve never read about!
    This sounds pretty cool.

    I love your eclectic taste :)

  3.  natalina on July 17th, 2009 10:39 am

    Jo, it is intriguing. The stories of the two men are told in alternating chapters, so it’s almost like reading two books at once.

    Cheryl, I know I’d never heard of Holmes before either, which is shocking given how notorious he was!

    I’m cute. :)

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