The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed

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Item specifics

Condition
Acceptable: A book with obvious wear. May have some damage to the cover but integrity still intact. ...
ISBN
9780375725609
Book Title
Devil in the White City : Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
Publisher
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Item Length
8 in
Publication Year
2004
Format
Trade Paperback
Language
English
Illustrator
Yes
Item Height
1 in
Author
Erik Larson
Genre
True Crime, Architecture, Social Science, History
Topic
Murder / General, United States / 19th Century, Murder / Serial Killers, Individual Architects & Firms / General, United States / State & Local / MidWest (IA, Il, in, Ks, Mi, MN, Mo, Nd, Ne, Oh, Sd, Wi), Sociology / Urban
Item Weight
12.8 Oz
Item Width
5.2 in
Number of Pages
464 Pages
Category

About this product

Product Identifiers

Publisher
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
ISBN-10
0375725601
ISBN-13
9780375725609
eBay Product ID (ePID)
4606076

Product Key Features

Book Title
Devil in the White City : Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
Number of Pages
464 Pages
Language
English
Topic
Murder / General, United States / 19th Century, Murder / Serial Killers, Individual Architects & Firms / General, United States / State & Local / MidWest (IA, Il, in, Ks, Mi, MN, Mo, Nd, Ne, Oh, Sd, Wi), Sociology / Urban
Publication Year
2004
Illustrator
Yes
Genre
True Crime, Architecture, Social Science, History
Author
Erik Larson
Format
Trade Paperback

Dimensions

Item Height
1 in
Item Weight
12.8 Oz
Item Length
8 in
Item Width
5.2 in

Additional Product Features

Intended Audience
Trade
LCCN
2002-154046
TitleLeading
The
Reviews
"Engrossing . . . exceedingly well documented . . . utterly fascinating." Chicago Tribune "A dynamic, enveloping book. . . . Relentlessly fuses history and entertainment to give this nonfiction book the dramtic effect of a novel. . . . It doesn't hurt that this truth is stranger than fiction." --The New York Times "So good, you find yourself asking how you could not know this already." Esquire "Another successful exploration of American history. . . . Larson skillfully balances the grisly details with the far-reaching implications of the World's Fair." USA Today "As absorbing a piece of popular history as one will ever hope to find." San Francisco Chronicle "Paints a dazzling picture of the Gilded Age and prefigure the American century to come." Entertainment Weekly "A wonderfully unexpected book. . . Larson is a historian . . . with a novelist's soul." Chicago Sun-Times, "Engrossing . . . exceedingly well documented . . . utterly fascinating." -- Chicago Tribune "A dynamic, enveloping book. . . . Relentlessly fuses history and entertainment to give this nonfiction book the dramatic effect of a novel. . . . It doesn't hurt that this truth is stranger than fiction." -- The New York Times "So good, you find yourself asking how you could not know this already." -- Esquire "Another successful exploration of American history. . . . Larson skillfully balances the grisly details with the far-reaching implications of the World's Fair." -- USA Today "As absorbing a piece of popular history as one will ever hope to find." -- San Francisco Chronicle "Paints a dazzling picture of the Gilded Age and prefigure the American century to come." -- Entertainment Weekly "A wonderfully unexpected book. . . Larson is a historian . . . with a novelist's soul." -- Chicago Sun-Times, "Engrossing . . . exceedingly well documented . . . utterly fascinating." -- Chicago Tribune "A dynamic, enveloping book. . . . Relentlessly fuses history and entertainment to give this nonfiction book the dramatic effect of a novel. . . . It doesn't hurt that this truth is stranger than fiction." -- The New York Times "So good, you find yourself asking how you could not know this already." -- Esquire "Another successful exploration of American history. . . . Larson skillfully balances the grisly details with the far-reaching implications of the World's Fair." -- USA Today "As absorbing a piece of popular history as one will ever hope to find." -- San Francisco Chronicle "Paint[s] a dazzling picture of the Gilded Age and prefigure[s] the American century to come." -- Entertainment Weekly "A wonderfully unexpected book. . . Larson is a historian . . . with a novelist's soul." -- Chicago Sun-Times, "Engrossing . . . exceedingly well documented . . . utterly fascinating." -Chicago Tribune "A dynamic, enveloping book. . . . Relentlessly fuses history and entertainment to give this nonfiction book the dramtic effect of a novel. . . . It doesn't hurt that this truth is stranger than fiction." --The New York Times "So good, you find yourself asking how you could not know this already." -Esquire "Another successful exploration of American history. . . . Larson skillfully balances the grisly details with the far-reaching implications of the World's Fair."-USA Today "As absorbing a piece of popular history as one will ever hope to find."-San Francisco Chronicle "Paints a dazzling picture of the Gilded Age and prefigure the American century to come."-Entertainment Weekly "A wonderfully unexpected book. . . Larson is a historian . . . with a novelist's soul."-Chicago Sun-Times From the Trade Paperback edition.
Dewey Edition
22
Dewey Decimal
364.1523092
Synopsis
This New York Times bestseller intertwines the true tale of the 1893 World's Fair and the cunning serial killer who used the fair to lure his victims to their death. Combining meticulous research with nail-biting storytelling, Erik Larson has crafted a narrative with all the wonder of newly discovered history and the thrills of the best fiction. Two men, each handsome and unusually adept at his chosen work, embodied an element of the great dynamic that characterized America's rush toward the twentieth century. The architect was Daniel Hudson Burnham, the fair's brilliant director of works and the builder of many of the country's most important structures, including the Flatiron Building in New York and Union Station in Washington, D.C. The murderer was Henry H. Holmes, a young doctor who, in a malign parody of the White City, built his "World's Fair Hotel" just west of the fairgrounds--a torture palace complete with dissection table, gas chamber, and 3,000-degree crematorium. Burnham overcame tremendous obstacles and tragedies as he organized the talents of Frederick Law Olmsted, Charles McKim, Louis Sullivan, and others to transform swampy Jackson Park into the White City, while Holmes used the attraction of the great fair and his own satanic charms to lure scores of young women to their deaths. What makes the story all the more chilling is that Holmes really lived, walking the grounds of that dream city by the lake. The Devil in the White City draws the reader into a time of magic and majesty, made all the more appealing by a supporting cast of real-life characters, including Buffalo Bill, Theodore Dreiser, Susan B. Anthony, Thomas Edison, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, and others. Erik Larson's gifts as a storyteller are magnificently displayed in this rich narrative of the master builder, the killer, and the great fair that obsessed them both., #1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER * NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST * From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Splendid and the Vile comes the true tale of the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago and the cunning serial killer who used the magic and majesty of the fair to lure his victims to their death. "As absorbing a piece of popular history as one will ever hope to find." -- San Francisco Chronicle A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the Century * A Los Angeles Times Best Nonfiction Book of the Last 30 Years Combining meticulous research with nail-biting storytelling, Erik Larson has crafted a narrative with all the wonder of newly discovered history and the thrills of the best fiction. Two men, each handsome and unusually adept at his chosen work, embodied an element of the great dynamic that characterized America's rush toward the twentieth century. The architect was Daniel Hudson Burnham, the fair's brilliant director of works and the builder of many of the country's most important structures, including the Flatiron Building in New York and Union Station in Washington, D.C. The murderer was Henry H. Holmes, a young doctor who, in a malign parody of the White City, built his "World's Fair Hotel" just west of the fairgrounds--a torture palace complete with dissection table, gas chamber, and 3,000-degree crematorium. Burnham overcame tremendous obstacles and tragedies as he organized the talents of Frederick Law Olmsted, Charles McKim, Louis Sullivan, and others to transform swampy Jackson Park into the White City, while Holmes used the attraction of the great fair and his own satanic charms to lure scores of young women to their deaths. What makes the story all the more chilling is that Holmes really lived, walking the grounds of that dream city by the lake. The Devil in the White City draws the reader into the enchantment of the Guilded Age, made all the more appealing by a supporting cast of real-life characters, including Buffalo Bill, Theodore Dreiser, Susan B. Anthony, Thomas Edison, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, and others. Erik Larson's gifts as a storyteller are magnificently displayed in this rich narrative of the master builder, the killer, and the great fair that obsessed them both., #1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER - NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST - From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Splendid and the Vile comes the true tale of the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago and the cunning serial killer who used the magic and majesty of the fair to lure his victims to their death. "As absorbing a piece of popular history as one will ever hope to find." -- San Francisco Chronicle A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the Century - A Los Angeles Times Best Nonfiction Book of the Last 30 Years Combining meticulous research with nail-biting storytelling, Erik Larson has crafted a narrative with all the wonder of newly discovered history and the thrills of the best fiction. Two men, each handsome and unusually adept at his chosen work, embodied an element of the great dynamic that characterized America's rush toward the twentieth century. The architect was Daniel Hudson Burnham, the fair's brilliant director of works and the builder of many of the country's most important structures, including the Flatiron Building in New York and Union Station in Washington, D.C. The murderer was Henry H. Holmes, a young doctor who, in a malign parody of the White City, built his "World's Fair Hotel" just west of the fairgrounds--a torture palace complete with dissection table, gas chamber, and 3,000-degree crematorium. Burnham overcame tremendous obstacles and tragedies as he organized the talents of Frederick Law Olmsted, Charles McKim, Louis Sullivan, and others to transform swampy Jackson Park into the White City, while Holmes used the attraction of the great fair and his own satanic charms to lure scores of young women to their deaths. What makes the story all the more chilling is that Holmes really lived, walking the grounds of that dream city by the lake. The Devil in the White City draws the reader into the enchantment of the Guilded Age, made all the more appealing by a supporting cast of real-life characters, including Buffalo Bill, Theodore Dreiser, Susan B. Anthony, Thomas Edison, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, and others. Erik Larson's gifts as a storyteller are magnificently displayed in this rich narrative of the master builder, the killer, and the great fair that obsessed them both.
LC Classification Number
HV6248.M8 L37 2003

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4.7
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  • by vicki12323
    Sep 08, 2016Top favorable review

    Excellent true story and how America has benefited from the Chicago's World Fair.

    This is an accurate account of the task set before Chicago and it's architects to show the world that they could build a World's Fair within a short period of time. It is absolutely intriguing at every step of it progress and the lives of the people that helped bring this major event happen. It also brings to light all the products and inventions that the world still benefits from today. It tells the story of a diabolical, smooth talking murderer who used this opportunity to kill mass amounts of people for his enjoyment and profit. Many of his victims were lured to Chicago by the hopes of employment, adventure and possibilities. It is a book that you can not put down!! Great author. This is the second book that I have read by Erik Larson and he is an exceptional author who brings to ...

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: YHO7mlwnTe6@Deleted

  • by nevadaclark
    Sep 14, 2018

    How much fun can one reader take?

    This is a story that is well written and actually fun to read! This is more a history book made into story form. There is no plot as the theme follows the history line of actual facts. The facts and points of interest are wondrous and simply staggering. All of which make this read that more enjoyable. Furthermore, adding this book to your library, for future reference, can actually make your library worthy of showing off. It will be a constant source of confirmation to one's sense of being educated. Eric Larson (the author) has written several books in a like manner but I have not actually read them. However, if "The Devil..." is any indication of the level & amount of enjoyment available, then the series is a year's worth of entertainment waiting to be explored!

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: thrift.books

  • by ahelene
    Aug 04, 2019

    Amazing read

    This is the 2nd time I’ve purchased this book after my dog mistook it for a chew toy. But will be the 3rd time I’ve read it. Why? Because it’s amazing. The writer mixes fiction and history so wonderfully you forget it is a story about a horrible man doing horrible things but yet also a story about the making of an enchanted city of years gone past. Makes me wish I was born 80 years earlier. And for the price vs purchasing new ..... it’s a wonderful deal

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: second.sale

  • by frozentundra1998
    Mar 13, 2019

    Fascinating history of the Chicago world’s fair and a serial killer

    If you are looking for a book just about the 1893 Chicago World‘s Fair *or* just about a serial killer, this isn’t it. The book recounts how the fair came about as well as a gruesome history of a madman. There is great detail in both stories. I really enjoyed this book ( I like history). The book made me search eBay for more artifacts from that era which I happily found. The book is compelling and not difficult to read. Should have been made into a movie.

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: betterworldbooks

  • by 123debaggis
    Jan 08, 2020

    The Devil in the White City

    Describes the Chicago Columbian Exhibition (world's fari) and includes parallel chapters of mass murderer H.H.Holmes. The world's fair featured beautiful buildings and landscape including canals and islands, and the first mass demonstration of electric lighting, Holmes murdered using gruesome measures. His body count, impossible to pinpoint, was between 29 and 200, mostly young women. He did them in at his personal chamber of horrors.

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: thrift.books

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