Column | Book Review of 'Devil in the White City'

  Book review time.
This week’s title is in the historical nonfiction genre.
What’s the historical nonfiction genre?
That means the book describes real historical people and
events. The author quotes actual letters, documents and
newspaper articles but tells the story in the manner of a novel.
“The Devil in the White City,” by Eric Larson is a best-selling
tutorial in historical nonfiction and a real page turner.
    The book is set in 1890’s Chicago.
    It tells two stories. The first is the story of the 1892 World’s Fair.
    This fair was held at Jackson Park at 63rd street and the lakefront
on Chicago’s south side.
    The fair attracted more than 35 million visitors from across the
world and featured events and innovations that shaped modern
life.
    Larson’s book details the story of famous architects Sullivan,
Adler, Burnham, Olmstead and their Herculean task of building the
fairgrounds.
The buildings were all painted white and the fairground became
known as the “white city.”
    This story is interspersed with the tale of suave mass murder
Robert Holmes. He was credited with scores of killings during the
time.
Holmes ‘the devil’ was a doctor and shady businessman who
lived near the fairgrounds.
    He preys on young women living alone in the city and the throngs
of strangers swarming to Chicago for the fair.
    The chilling story of Holmes gives the reader a feel for the grit of
nineteenth-century life in Chicago. The daily habits of 1892 life
makes one wonder at the strives made in law enforcement,
medicine and technology since that time.
    The World Columbian Exposition was held to honor the 400th
anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ voyage to the new world.
It was slated four years after a world fair in France where architect
M. Eiffel unveiled his famous tower.
    One big 1892 question: How could Chicago out-Eiffel Eiffel?
    A Cleveland man named George Ferris had one idea.
    This book teaches a lot about the rise of modern building
practices and the headaches of nineteenth-century architects
developing modern skyscrapers.
1890’s Chicago is a perfect setting for this genre of historical
fiction and the reader is treated to exquisite details such as
banquet menus that bring the reader back in time.
    So — its two thumbs up for “Devil in the White City.”

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