Rating: 
Summary: One of the few
Review: This is/was one of the few books that actually deserved to be on the bestseller list for as long as it was. Honestly, I can't find anything wrong with it. The movie is another story--avoid it at all costs! But the book is just fantastic, with great colorful characters and of course, the main star which is Savannah itself! Very, very well done with just the right amount of suspense and intrigue. I'd give it ten stars if I could.Also recommended: McCrae's Bark of the Dogwood and In This Mountain
Rating:
Summary: Non-southerner be immersed in a different era and lifestyle.
Review: The "stereotypical" characters of a famed southern city come to life in this extraordinary book combining mesmerizing travelogue, keen social observation, and ironically humorous revelation of dark side of human nature.
Rating:
Summary: Sweet Savannah
Review: Anybody who did not grow up in the south will be amused and charmed by the characters portrayed in this book. Anyone who grew up in the south will really understand the characters because they will almost assuredly know someone in their hometown that fits the same description. I was able to put different names on several of the people portrayed in this book and thus picture them with perfect clarity. No matter where one might live in the south, if you haven't been gobbled up by the so-called new south, you will feel like you have known these people for years. The story is as intriguing as the characters in it and the reader will find themselves drawn more and more into the story. I finished the last one hundred and seventy-five pages in one sitting. I was so caught up in what was going on that I couldn't put the book down and ended up going to be around 2:30 in the morning. Berendt develops the characters so well that one really begins to care about what happens to them and what they do next. This is one amazing book. When the movie came out I really didn't think I would like it and didn't see it until a few months ago. After seeing the movie I just had to read the book and I am glad I did. There are some differences in the movie and the book and while the movie is good, the book is better. In fact, I have seldom read a book that I liked as much as this one. John Berendt had a lot of good material to start with to be sure, but his wonderful style of writing makes the story entrancing. It is clear that Berendt considers many of these people his friends and that they feel the same way about him. That he cares deeply about both the people and the story comes through very clearly and is part of the reason the reader will also begin to care. In case you haven't seen the movie I am not going to give away any of the story in this review but whether you have seen the movie or not, do not miss the book. Beg, borrow or buy, I don't care how you get this book but I highly recommend that you read it.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books ever written
Review: This book is so tightly constructed and so well paced that it kept me riveted. And it REALLY gets going after the first half. I picked it up having no idea what it was about when it first came out and it blew me away. Now, years later, I've read it again and it's still as good as it was that first time. The writing reminds me of a cross between Fannie Flagg in her FRIED GREEN TOMATOES and McCrae in his BARK OF THE DOGWOOD. Very well constructed and plotted. You can't go wrong with MIDNIGHT!
Rating:
Summary: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is Great!
Review: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by Yvette Brink
The novel I chose to review was Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt; published by Vintage Books, has 386 pages. I could not stop reading this non-fiction true crime murder mystery novel because of the way that John Berendt draws you into the lives of these Savannahians. Even casual readers will find themselves consumed by Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil because of its great detail and interesting characters.
What I found the most interesting about this novel is that it is based on true events and real characters from Savannah, Georgia. The story of how John Berendt became involved in these events seems to me, meant to be. In Chapter 2, Berendt describes how he ended up going to savannah. He writes:
I had seen it in a newspaper ad for supersaver airfares from New York to cities all across America. As I recall, the veal-and-radicchio entrée cost as much as a flight from New York to Louisville or any of six equidistant cities...A week later I passed up the veal and radicchio and flew to New Orleans...After that, every five or six weeks I took advantage of the newly deregulated airfares and flew out of New York in the company of a small group of friends interested in a change of scene. One of those weekend jaunts took us to Charleston, South Carolina...On Sunday, my traveling companions went back to New York, but I stayed on in Charleston. I had
decided to drive down to Savannah, spend the night and fly back to New York from there. (24-27)
Fortunately John stays on in Savannah for more than one night. He actually ends up staying in Savannah off and on for more than eight years following the characters and the specific event that involves one of Savannah's most prominent society figures.
John Berendt does an excellent job of introducing the characters of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Berendt splits the novel up into two parts. The first part consists of an introduction to the people of Savannah. The second part consists of a highly interesting murder mystery involving one of the main characters.
In the first part of the novel, each chapter reads as an individual story. 'A Walking Streak of Sex', 'The Sentimental Gentleman' and 'The Grand Empress of Savannah' are just an example of the interesting titles given to the stories of the unique characters of this novel. 'The Grand Empress of Savannah' is about Chablis, an African-American drag queen with lots of attitude. In 'A Walking Streak of Sex' you are introduced to Danny Hansford, a twenty-two year old who is a pothead who likes to live life a little dangerously by driving his Camaro recklessly.
The second part of Midnight revolves around the murder mystery that takes place between two characters while John Berendt is visiting Savannah. Berendt takes you along for the ride as you try to figure out if the death of one of the characters is a result of murder or self-defense. You sit in on the court case and witness the comically complex and political trial of the accused murderer.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is definitely worth your time. It is great entertainment and hard to put down. I recommend it all readers because it is so easy flowing and fast paced. I had my friend, who is not a big fan of reading anything but magazines, read it and he absolutely loved it. I could not find any other books written by John Berendt but I found out that he mainly does editing for New York magazine and is a columnist for Esquire. John Berendt does such a wonderful job portraying the events of this story that it would be a shame if he weren't in the works of another novel. With characters as interesting as those in Midnight, I don't see how you could not enjoy reading this novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Historically interesting, but rambling
Review: The book provides a nice tour of Savannah, a fascinating story and colorful characters, but at times seems rambling and gossipy.
Rating:
Summary: Should STILL be the number one bestseller!
Review: This was one of the few books on the bestseller list that I actually picked up--years ago when it first came out. Since then I've been disappointed in so many others. But not this one. Talk about satisfaction! If you saw the movie, don't worry--the book is only slightly like it, and thank God. The book is fantastic with a great plot, wonderful and memorable characters, and atmosphere for days! I'm reminded of Jackson McCrae's BARK OF THE DOGWOOD (another page-turner with a Southern theme and flavor) or FRIED GREEN TOMATOES. All three books have the Southern element, mystery, great pacing, and a satisfying ending. Also recommended: FRIED GREEN TOMATOES, BARK OF THE DOGWOOD, WELCOME TO THE WORLD BABY GIRL
Rating:
Summary: Charming and Shocking at the same time
Review: A charming book that will keep you up late into the night reading. If you haven't visited Savannah before reading this book, you will want to afterwards. The characters as eccentric and downright unbelievable as they may seem are real flesh, and it leaves you amazed. John Berendt does a good job pulling them all together into a web of oddities that will have you laughing out loud or grimacing. An excellent read.
Rating: 
Summary: Certainly one of the strangest nonfictions I've read!
Review: Everyone says that truth is stranger than fiction. This statement is certainly true in this book. The residents of Savanah provided fodder (whether they liked it or not) for this nonfiction story. Each chapter reads as a separate story, especially at first. I was not quite sure where Berendt was going with the various chapters on individuals, their idiosyncracies, their loves and dislikes even for each other, and the undercurrents of those tensions in this isolated city. It only becomes apparent in the middle of the book that Berendt is setting the reader up for the main theme of the book that is actually about a murder that happened while the author was living among these very diverse group of inhabitants. Berendt actually met with both the suspect and the victim way before the murder occurred, and it is this information concerning the personalities and the backgrounds of the people involved (including the prosecutors and the defendant's lawyers) that provide such an interesting story. I've always passed this book by, though I knew it was long on the bestsellers book, and I was always attracted by the jacket with the statue of the girl/woman holding two plates (which is kind of a virtual reminder of the statue of Justice who weighs good and evil). I suppose most little towns and cities like Savannah have good and evil sides. It should come of no surprise, especially since I read so much of Nazi Germany and bioethics and this information often involves the participation of entire towns in either assisting or ignoring what was happening to those with disabilities and differences under their very noses. Berendt does an excellent job of portraying these people, and the snobberies. I'll bet this book did not sit well with the people of Savannah, but they should find comfort in the fact that though their city was used for exposing the underbelly of what happens, I am sure most other small towns and cities have equally strange characters, and crimes that occur that involve many and display the politics and other fiascos of our criminal system. Karen Sadler
Rating:
Summary: Nonfiction reads as well as Fantasy
Review: Anyone who thinks life is boring needs to pick up this book and give it a serious read. At first I was not delighted in the book, it being assigned reading in a college history class, but following my read, I can hardly believe that the book is a real life account. Georgian as I am I have heard some crazy stories, but nothing that touches the breadth and width that is "Midnight." I read this book at a lightning pace, unable to put it down. The book is full of murder, prostitution, transexualism, homosexuality, and, of course, the one man who holds the poison that could kill everybody in Savannah. This book really does exemplify Georgian's overgrown sense of hospitality and secrecy. Berendt is a great observer of the southern, and Savannahian sense of life.
| 
