The Devil in the White City

Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America

By: Erik Larson

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 14 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • 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.

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.

©2003 Erik Larson (P)2003 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

National Book Awards, Short-listed

Edgar Allan Poe Award Winner, Fact Crime, 2004

"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

“A wonderfully unexpected book. . . Larson is a historian . . . with a novelist’s soul.” —Chicago Sun-Times

Very interesting albeit too long.

This is a great book with so many interesting facts about the Worlds Fair and all the exhibitors. Tha madman is only one aspect that makes it more interesting. I think the story went into too many details, spending unnecessary time on them. It could have been told in much les time.

Did not keep my attention

I found the portions about HH Holmes interesting, but all the details and names of the people involved in the Fair's planning and construction had my mind wandering. I found it difficult to pay attention. I must be the only person who does not like Scott Brick. I find his narration too matter of fact and apparently it lulls me into a sleep after a short while. I may try listening to it again and see if it is easier to follow now that I am familar with the names and events.

Excellent book and performance

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Absolutely. It was fascinating and I learned so much. Larsen never fails to disappoint with his extensive, meticulous research of his subject, and in the way he manages to bring dry historical fact to life on the page. Brick's narration style is absolutely perfect for nonfiction-easy to listen to, neither monotonous nor overly dramatic, and nicely paced.

not bad

it didn't grab me immediately but I stuck through it and enjoyed it in the end

AWESOME!!!

I started reading the hardcopy of this book a few years ago. While reading it, I began to pack items in preparation for my move. This book was an item that was packed. I ended up not moving but didn't want to ramble through boxes to find this book even though it was a good read.

As luck would have it, I found it on Audible and I've been hooked for the last few days. I was born and raised in the west suburbs of Chicago and I've always been fascinated with Chicago's architectural history so this back story of Daniel Burnham was awesome. Then to have the information about the first noted serial killer in the US, was very intriguing. Great story. It's scary that it is true.

Amazing!

I could not "put it down." I highly recommend this book. The performance was marred only slightly by a few mis-pronunciations.

Great historical novel. if you can handle it!

The White City half can be a bit slow and the Dr. Holmes murder spree can be a bit gorey but if you can handle those extremes, it's a very compelling read (listen). Being from Chicago, I loved the whole thing.

a perfect, historical and criminal work

gorgeous, fascinating, and sad. exquisite and detailed. cinematic and epic. do lookup a map of the exposition before reading.

WOW!

Historical books like this make up one of my favorite genres and this is as good as it gets in my opinion. The content, the writing, the narration, all of it! My first intro to Erik Larson was Dead Wake and I loved that too. This was even better! HIGHLY recommend if you’re a fan of historical stuff! 5 stars well earned

Amazing story

Told very well as you snap between the groundbreaking invention of the Chicago worlds fair and the macabre serial killer. Audio repeats itself in a couple places but otherwise it is an addicting story that you can’t stop listening to for wanting to know what happens next