Finally, Miki writes a book review!

Reading Devil in the White City

a review by Miki Schulte

Image courtesy of Tattered Cover

Although I am often described as bubbly and always smiling, most people who know me well know that I am obsessed with forensics, serial killer stories, dark tales, and the macabre.  Well, I think I may have just the book that brings all of these not so secret obsessions together. 

The Devil in the White City was one of those books that I shelved and sold regularly, but never really got the motivation to pick up and read.  However, after reading The Alienist by Caleb Carr, I finally took the plunge.

In The Alienist, the main character is using research, newspapers, behaviors, and interviews from famous murder cases to try and catch one of the most elusive serial killers ever know to New York City.  Although The Alienist is fiction, the cases mentioned were real.  One of those cases was that of H.H. Holmes. 

Holmes, whose real last name was Mudgett, was a young man drawn to the busy bustling city of Chicago.  In the chaos of a city preparing for the World Fair, Holmes saw an opportunity, an opportunity to lure in victims and spit them out into a city unaware of his capabilities.  Because crime was so high and so many people were heading into Chicago to get a new start, Holmes was able to kill dozens of people without ever being detected.  He was also handsome and charming, so when suspicions arose among the families of the missing victims, he often put them at ease with a tale full of lies and a trail that led them to a dead end.

The story of Holmes explains the Devil part of the title, but the white city is also a huge part of the story.  This part of the title is referring to the section of Chicago that was built for the World’s Fair.  Although this part of the story is not full of murder and mayhem, it is jam packed with drama (and a body count).  Erik Larson is a historian, but he is also darn good story teller.  He shows the reader the struggles, the tragedies, and the miracles that went into creating one of the biggest events in American history.

Not only does he tell the story of the fair, but Larson introduces us to the men and women that somehow made the fair a success.  From the main architect to the inventor of the Ferris Wheel to the female architect on site, a wide range of stories are told.  So many names involved with the fair changed American history.  Not only that, but the number of lives lost working on the fair rivaled those who fell victim to the charms of H.H. Holmes. 

These two riveting stories somehow fit into this one book.  I don’t know how Erik Larson does it, but he does it fabulously.  As someone who drags their heels into reading non-fiction, I am still surprised how much I enjoyed the book and how fast I plowed through the pages.  This is a must read for any history lover, but it was also so well written, fiction lovers would enjoy it tool.