Rating: 
Summary: Big Frights, Bright City
Review: "The Devil in the White City" is certainly the non-fiction "buzz" book of 2003. Erik Larson's work is two books in one as the author weaves the stories of two very different types of architects: Daniel Burnham, the mastermind behind the 1893 World's Fair/Columbian Exposition (later dubbed the White City) and H.H. Holmes, a serial killer whose crimes extend well-beyond dozens of gruesome deaths. "Devil" is truly a study in contrasts: the triumph of the human spirit coupled with the embodiment of evil in a mere flip of a page.Larson does an excellent job capturing the pioneering spirit of the country in the late 19th century. The book is littered with dozens of "guest appearances" from such American icons as Thomas Edison, Annie Oakley, Susan B. Anthony, and Frank Lloyd Wright as well as many commonplace items/products of today that debuted on grounds of the Exposition. Winning out over New York and Washington DC, Chicago faced the daunting task of topping the wildly successful Paris Exposition -- the hallmark of that Fair being a little creation called the Eiffel Tower. The implications were clear -- the Windy City would either become one of the premier American cities or the laughing stock of the world. As inspiring as the Fair portion of the book is, the Holmes parts are equally as chilling. The only criticisms of "Devil" may be Larson's speculations on some of Holmes' activities (he justifies these fictional moments in the footnotes) and the fairly tidy wrap-up of Holmes' story in the closing chapters of the book. But this certainly does not detract from the work as a whole. Will Burnham's Exposition be a success and Holmes' heinousness be brought to an end? The answer may be evident but the stories of Burnham's sheer tenacity and Holmes' cold-blooded audacity keep readers rapidly turning the pages of this very readable and well-researched work.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the best this year
Review: Absolutely loved this book! It's a page turner about the 1893 Chicago World's Fair that read likes fiction but is incredibly true. I can't wait for the movie and I can't wait to read Erik Larson's other best seller, Issac's Storm.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Historical Rollercoaster Ride!
Review: This has to be one of the most interesting and well written books I have read in a long time.History buffs will love it and so will my fellow Thriller-Mystery readers.There are so many surprises in this book that it is impossible to put it down.When it billed itself as" Murder,Magic,And The Fair That Changed America"I had no idea how truthful it would turn out to be.My only regret is that that the book came to an end.
Rating:
Summary: a pretty good book
Review: The Devil In The White City is a very interesting book. I knew nothing about the World Fair in Chicago in 1893, so I can honestly say I learned a lot. I found this to be a very entertaining book too. This book is about two real life characters. The first character is an ambitious architect named Daniel Burnham who had a dream to create the world's greatest visual spectacle. The other main character is a young doctor named H.H. Holmes. who had the ability to charm any woman. Holmes operated a drugstore, a retail store, and a hotel. However, under Holmes' facade as a hard working citizen, he was a ruthless murderer who killed scores of women, men, and children. The World Fair of 1893 lasted just 6 months but had over 27 million visitors when the country's population was only 65 million people at the time. It attracted people of great influence like Susan B. Anthony who fought for the equality of women in voting and labor rights. The fair also drew inventors like Thomas Edison and entertainers like Buffalo Bill. It is really amazing to read how Burnham and his partners spent 3 years and transformed a swampy park into a fair that filled over 200 buildings. During the duration of the fair, the hospital treated 11,602 people, 64 people a day for the injuries and ailments caused by the fair like headaches, fainting, diarrhea, foreign objects in the eye. The Fair of 1893 in Chicago also introduced the world to many inventions like the incandescent light bulb, the automatic dishwasher, the zipper, moving pictures, shredded wheat cereal, and the main attraction of the fair called the Ferris Wheel. It also introduced a device that made plates for printing books in Braille. The World Fair made a powerful impression on the Disney family, because Elias Disney helped build the White City which was the name for the fair. His son Walt Disney was inspired many years to create Disneyland as a result. The Devil in the White City is a very enjoyable book. The characters are well researched, and the setting of the fair is so vivid.
Rating:
Summary: History is memorable
Review: This book deserves all the praise it has received. It makes the stories of 1893 Chicago come to life and interweaves two major ones with a few minor twists. The development of the 1893 World's Fair and the personalities involved are portrayed in a way that makes the events seem much more recent. The story of H.H. Holmes is told very well without gruesome or gory details and is fascinating to read. The minor twists of Mayor Harrison and the intersections between the fair and various people who would later become famous make the book seem even better. I read the 390 pages in less than two days and highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: PEERLESS VOICE PERFORMANCE
Review: With matchless voice and peerless inflection Tony Goldwyn renders an outstanding reading of Erik Larson's superb spellbinder, which only proves that truth is much, much stranger than fiction. Goldwyn, who boasts numerous feature film, television and theatre credits, ably segues between the struggles of Daniel Burnham, head architect of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, and the murderous machinations of serial killer H. H. Holmes whose diabolical plotting made Jack the Ripper look like an amateur. America was on the brink of a new century, and Burnham faced the daunting task of turning of turning a rundown area of Chicago into the sparkling, magical World's Fair. He worked with Frederick Olmsted, the designer of NYC's Central Park, and others to achieve the impossible within two years. Achieve it he did - and more, creating a place that drew the most important people of their day: Thomas Edison, Helen Keller, Jane Addams, and Buffalo Bill. The Fair became a mecca of innovation with the Ferris Wheel and the introduction of Cracker Jack and Juicy Fruit gum. At the same time Holmes was methodically murdering young single women in his horrific creation, a house of acid vats, a gas chamber, and even a crematorium. With impeccable research and astounding detail Larson has recreated a momentous time in our country's history. - Gail Cooke
Rating: 
Summary: History As Trashy Romance
Review: "The Devil In The White City" is to history what trashy romance novels are to literature. It's certainly entertaining enough and engagingly written -- but don't think you're really getting history. Erik Larson interweaves two stories: that of Daniel Burnham and the 1893 World's Fair, and that of H.H. Holmes, a serial killer who claimed many victims in Chicago at the time of the Fair. The Burnham/Fair story is probably accurate enough since it was a major public event and very well documented -- although even in this part of the story thoughts and feelings are sometimes reported that Larson could not have had access to. But big chunks of the Holmes story are essentially made up. For example, there is evidence in letters that Holmes took Minnie and Anna Williams to the Fair -- but the route they took through the Fair and the postulated first stop at the Stockyards are completely speculative. To his credit, Larson makes this fairly clear in his endnotes, but you wouldn't know it from the text. Larson believes his reconstruction is accurate (psychologically at least) and it may well be -- but the point is that we'll never know. In both stories, there is a lot of imagination at work, filling in gaps and details. This certainly makes for a more dramatic telling, but a lot of it is pure fiction. Larson never really draws any connection between his two stories -- they happened at the same time, but what are we to make of that? Early on, Larson suggests that the 1890s were a period of change, when moral boundaries were shifting. Assuming that this made it easier for Holmes to find the young women living on their own who were his primary victims (because clearly moral boundaries never shifted so far as to accommodate Holmes' activities themselves), what exactly does this have to do with the World's Fair? This lack of connection makes the transitions between the two stories abrupt and jarring -- each interrupts the flow of the other, and I found I had to keep going back to figure out where I was. In the best trashy romance tradition, many of the sections end with foreshadowing -- "if only she had known then what she learned later on." This is particularly tiresome when you already know what's going to happen. Overall, a fast read and entertaining, but I wish I'd spent my time on something else.
Rating:
Summary: This engrossing tale is simply impossible to put down!
Review: If someone had told me that I would spend an entire Sunday, from morning to night, engrossed in a history of the creation of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, I would have...well, I would have doubted it. Architecture is not exactly my thing, nor are fairs, or Chicago for that matter. Yet THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY, which concerns all of these elements and more, is so engrossing a tale that it is impossible to put down. Much --- all --- of this has to do with Erik Larson, creator of this work. The subtitle of THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY is "Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America." As Larson demonstrates so brilliantly, the Fair did just that. From the way electricity is delivered into homes, to the length of our workweek, to amusement park rides, to cultural icons, there is a brief but fascinating link between the Fair and Mickey Mouse --- the influence of this Fair is felt in the United States to this day. Larson takes his readers from the original inspiration for the Fair --- the impetus, interestingly enough was the creation and erection of a tower in Paris, France, by a gentleman named Alexande Gustave Eiffel --- through the excruciating planning, building and ultimate creation of the Fair. The Fairgrounds, dubbed The White City as a result of the gleaming white color of the buildings, was believed to be impossible to construct due not only to time constraints but also to the adverse soil conditions present throughout the Chicago area. The political machinations of determining the location, structure and contents of the Fair would be fascinating enough reading on its own to constitute an entire book. What Larson does, however, is run this story parallel to the account of the fiend --- no other word will do --- who called himself Henry H. Holmes and who preyed upon the unsuspecting who had come to Chicago for various and sundry purposes. Holmes --- he rarely used his given name, Herman Webster Mudgett --- came to Chicago shortly before the creation of the Fair and, with meticulous planning and aforethought, built a "World's Fair Hotel" just west of the fairgrounds. Only part of the hotel, however, was given over to offices and lodging. The portion of the building given over to a dissection table, gas chamber and crematorium was an area that was generally known to the public until it was far too late for Holmes' many victims, most of whom were young women. Larson, in researching the enormous detail that is the hallmark of THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY, directly perused contemporaneous documents, such as diaries, police reports and notes of the principals who are his subject matter. Rather than a dry recitation of the facts or regurgitation of the documentation, Larson makes late-19th century Chicago come alive in a way that many would not even attempt to accomplish and only a very few have equaled. His style is so compelling and his subject matter so interesting that this work may well become this decade's MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL. Highest possible recommendation. --- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
Rating:
Summary: Nice Follow-Up
Review: Erik Larson had a tough job ahead of him. He had to find a follow-up to the successful, fascinating and entertaining Isaac's Storm. He selected the same decade of history but an entirely different story in The Devil in the White City. This is truly a worthy successor to the previous volume. This time the story is shared by two main protaganists, the architect Daniel Burnham and the serial killer, Dr. H. H. Holmes, although the main character is the White City itself, the Chicago World's Fair. The author paints his portraits breathlessly and moves the reader quickly along leaving no odd or interesting fact unstated as he weaves the narratives together. This pop history is without a doubt entertaining, while not being overly enlightening. Sometimes the writing follows set repeated patterns, such as the constant reference to several personalities startingly blue eyes that, after a while, may make the reader feel those eyes must actually even have glowed in the dark. Overall though, it is a fascinating read that will keep the reader up into the dark themselves. The author met his own challenge set up by Isaac's Storm.
Rating:
Summary: No photos?
Review: This is the fascinating story of how the world's fair in Chicago in 1893 came into being, despite incredible obstacles. It's like a thriller,even the bulk of the book that is not about the "devil" in the title. But, unfortunately, for whatever reason (cost?), the publisher decided not to put any pictures of the fair in the book, except for a small, meaningless photo at the start of each section. Where are the pictures of the magnificent buildings,the lagoon, the "wooded island," the world's first ferris wheel, Buffalo Bill's sideshow, the recreated villages from throughout the world. The publisher should be ashamed.
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