In Devil in the White City, Erik Larson describes the importance of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.  The book is a work of non-fiction with extensive research.  Larson draws from a massive amount of sources to bring us back to the World’s Fair.He introduces the Fair as being one of the single most important events in US history. He says that it had “a transformative power nearly equal to that of the Civil War.”  That’s a pretty bold statement, yet he diligently makes the case for it.  He attributes many things to the fair, among them:  the Ferris Wheel, the promotion of Tesla’s alternating current over Edison’s direct, Disney Land, the Pledge of Allegiance and that song that school children sing “there’s a place in France where the naked ladies dance” to the tune of. 

He unravels the story by describing the lives of two very different men.  One brought to the city to destroy and the other that sets out to create the “White City.”  The first is the architect behind the fair.  The other is a maniacal doctor. 

The descriptions of the architecture and the processes involved are very interesting.  Chicago was struggling for prominence in the United States as a sophisticated city, just as the United States was trying to prove that it wasn’t just a lawless frontier compared to the metropolises of Europe.  The architects try to show off their talents and refinement while still proving distinctly American. 

The author does over-do it a bit with his foreshadowing.  Every chapter ends with an ominous warning of things to come.   “The challenge ahead looked more daunting than ever,” “For Marion and the boys, it promised to be a dream journey; for Olmsted it became something rather more dark”, “Such peaceful intervals never lasted long,” and my favorite, “Only Poe could have dreamed the rest.”  You can see the author pronouncing each word slowly in the dark with a flashlight under his chin.

I would recommend the book. Though there are some excessive and tedious details to wade through, it was a fast and enjoyable read. Three and a half stars.