The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson (2004, Paperback, Reprint)

Absolutely fascinating - a suspenseful page-turner true story, chock-full of intriguing historic details about the fair, vignettes of the characters who made the fair happen against great odds, plus the entwined stories of two deeply disturbed men who brought violence to the beauty of The White City. A lively demonstration that truth is stranger (and more interesting) than fiction: we are purchasing his other two books on the strength of how much we admired this work. You'll find LOTS of interesting details you didn't know about American history in this work, including the origin of pledging allegiance to the flag! Highly, highly recommended.

I like books that are more non-fiction than fiction. This non-fiction title is right up my alley. Lots of facts about a period of time in American history that I find fascinating. I think that the sign of a good book is that at the end of it I feel a lot smarter than I did at the start of the book. I learned a ton from this book about this country's economy at the turn of the century, architecture, critical inventions that shaped our history, etc.

The story of Dr. Holmes makes me fully aware of the potential sinister nature of people. The interwoven account of this countries most prolific serial killer is gripping.

I am not a prolific reader, and I could NOT put this one down.

Heard a lot about this book from others. Decided to buy it and found it good.
Kept me interested all the way through. Couldn't put it down Highly recommend it

I was so swept up in this book, ITS hard to put down. IT is so unbelievable how H. H. Holmes aka Mudgett (last name), DID such horrific dastardly deeds with NO emotion or thought of another person. Also I liked reading about the Architect's worked so hard to create the "White City". Daniel Burnham, Potter Palmer the big names in Chicago. VERY interesting I recommend this book to everyone. YOU will not be able to put it down until you have read the whole book.

This book is amazing. Starts out slow, but wow. It really knocks you off your feet. History majors should read it for the history it portrayals, and anyone else should read it just for the hell of it. It is an amazing read.

This is a great read- a real look inside the period of time during which the Columbian Expostion was held, in Chicago in 1893. You get a real feel of the very young city, facing the problems of a population that is growing way too fast! It shows the industriousness of the people of the time, the very beginnings of our modern way of life. It is fun to realise how many famous people and inventions were around during this era in history-- from 'snapshot' photography to the Ferris Wheel. The darker side of the book, the accounts of sereal killer HH Holmes can make you gasp! It can also make you very glad to be living during a time in which we do have more protection, and better communication! If you enjoy history becoming real- you will enjoy this read.

Having recently visited Chicago and taken the architectural cruise on the river, I was very interested in learning about the architects involved is planning the Chicago World's Fair. This book tells that and more. The story of the callous serial killer who lived in the "White City" preyed on people he befriended is fascinating and distressing, but it gives a fuller picture of the not-so-nice side of the Windy City back then.

Fast shipping and the book is in very good shape. I purchased from this seller because they had good standing and good reviews..

Extremely well-written, well-researched, and absolutely compelling. This book contains so much fascinating history from the turn-of-the-century Chicago. I couldn't put it down. In addition to the story of the birth of the Chicago World's Fair in the 1890's, it tells the story of a deranged criminal carryout out unspeakable acts during the same time in the same city. It had been recommended to me, so I borrowed a copy from the library and read it. It was such a great read, I decided to buy a copy for my home library. One of the best books I have ever read!

I needed the book for an online class and procrastinated in buying it, but it came within a week and it remained in great shape. Thank you!

A friend recommended the book and said that it was very interesting to read. I received the book and read it in 2 days. I couldn't put it down.

I loved the book. I had never heard of H.H. Holmes until I started doing research on him. It is a fascinating book and I highly recommend that everyone read it. This seller was a pleasure doing business with and I got my book within three days. Awesome all the way around.

This was another interesting book. It gets long in parts, I think the Author is more detailed than I need but it is full of interesting bits of Chicago at that time. I am glad I read the book and have passed it on to my husband to read.

I won a book I have been looking to buy for a while. Very good condition and great price. Shipping took a little longer then expected, but I still got it fairly timely.

I bought this book because after reading it a couple years ago I enjoyed it so much that I hand out copies to people I think might like it. This was a give-to-a-friend purchase. This book was truly an enjoyable read that I had to keep reminding myself was nonfiction. Four reasons why I enjoyed the book are, one, Larson's research connects many people from the past to well known names of today. Historically it's chock-full of interesting facts. Second, it gives great insight to the history of Chicago including the slaughter houses or the general living conditions during that time. Third, the story of the murderer is facinating. I looked the killer up on the internet to get more information. And last, it was amazing to read how the expo came together with all its glitches. This book is a wonderful read that I would recommend to anyone.

Excellent book, and if you're from Chicago you have to read this book as there are many parks and buildings in the city from worlds fair that most don't know about, very interesting book, everyone i know who read it liked it, a bit hard to get through in the beginning but after awhile you won't want to put it down.Liked it so much bought a copy for son in Chicago

This book was recommended to me by a co-worker. Now that I'm about halfway thru the story (based on actual facts revolving around the Columbian Exposition held in Chicago at the turn of the century, I'm having a hard time putting it down.

I was pleased with the service.The Book was clean almost like new. I would buy books from them again in the future. They were willing to take checks which I prefer. shipping was prompt.

The book was recommended to me by a friend because she knows my interest in nonfiction. As scary as one of the characters was, the author did a great deal of research to learn and re-enact the scene of the Chicago World's Fair to the reader. I was most impressed with his research, but really enjoyed learning about other characters so prominent in history (Annie Oakley, Frank Llyod Wright)... I also enjoyed the author's ability to subtly introduce information as foreshadowing. I recommend it, but also caution those who don't enjoyed murder and gore to be prepared for a bit of it in this book... although not prominent enough of an issue to not read. I took it on a plane ride and the time when by very quickly.

Larson makes connections and brings to light surprisingly interesting historical intersections between the Chicago World's Fair and famous personalities. The murderer is almost a minor fact.
This book was recommended by my dentist.

Amazing book. Adventure, murder mystery. Architects studied in American Art Classes. Actual occurrences!

This is a very good book. It gives us history into Illinois in the early 1900s and late 1800s when the State fair was in Springfield, the monsters lurking the nonsuspecting patriots of the fair. Not only do we have monsters in this day, but they were always here.

i got exactly what i expected, thanks for being a great seller...apparently i have to write 100 characters, so i guess i'll keep typing because it won't let me submit it...ummmm thanks for sending me the book i asked for it was just what i was looking for it was a pretty weird book though...very gruesome my teacher had us read it as a summer reading and then write a 5 page book review...H.H. Holmes is a real creep!!!!

The best book about the World Fair Colombian Exposition in Chicago 1893. Erik Larson's thorough research reveals amazing true stories of the Gilded Age. If you like historical accounts on the pioneers in architectural design, the way the world used to be and also what it didn't use to be. Gruesome details about a story in parallel keep the reader on the message.