Devil in a Blog

I'm about half way through one of the best books I've ever read: Devil in the White City: Magic and Madness at the Fair that Changed America.

It's a suspenseful book chronicling the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. I knew nothing of this fair, but it apparently introduced to the world the Ferris wheel, hamburgers, shredded wheat, the pledge of allegiance, and Columbus Day (that's the old name of what is now known as Indigenous People's Day ;-).

It's primary narrative arch is about a young architect, David Burnham who lead the design team for the fair. He led the construction this immense city along the city's lakefront (the Museum of Science and Industry is the only surviving building). It had lagoons, large building, electric lights and notables like Susan B. Anthony, Thomas Edison, Cady Standton, Fredrick Douglas, Clarence Darrow, Buffalo Bill, and many more notables. There's also pigmies and a crazy Irishman who I'm certain will kill someone by the time the book's over. It's amazing.

Interwoven within this narrative is the story of a young, attractive doctor who later said, "I was born to be a murder. I had to kill, just like a painter needs to paint." The portrait of this man who killed at least 27 people, possibly over a hundred, is chilling. He preyed on young women and built a huge, elaborate building he used to employ, house, and eventually kill women...all the while appearing to be an outstanding, reputable businessman.

If this book were a novel, its prose and style would probably earn it the title of "Best Historical Novel." But, what's crazy is it's based on true events. I'm sure you could convince people that the story is too crazy to be true.

Check out the links in this post...there's a lot of interesting stuff in those pages. Also, check out this book. It's a pretty intense, yet enjoyable read. I guess Cruise/Wagner has the adaptation in development and in a separate project, DiCaprio is developing a movie about the serial killer.