so-soDefinitely not my favorite narrative history, I'm not sure that I liked the alternating chapters. I think I would have preferred two different books- one about the Chicago World's Fair and another about the murders. I get that they tie together in settings and influx of victims but I think they could have stood alone. Anyway, I'll definitely look at the area of Chicago differently the next time I visit The Museum of Science & Industry.
bailedI hardly ever quit books, especially when I‘m a quarter of the way through, but this serial killer dude is just too awful for me and after this week in the News, I cannot read about someone treating women like this and maintain my thin grasp on hope for humanity. Very very well done, wrong subject matter for me.
pickA friend bought me this set years ago. Titled "Lost Buildings" (not in database) it contains a DVD of a live recording of This American Life discussing the architect Louis Sullivan and the demolition of his buildings in Chicago. The book is a companion to the video, detailed photographic records of the buildings discussed. I don't have many thoughts on architecture, but this project makes it easy to see what was so special about these buildings.
The rise of gay political power is part of a history of queer incorporation into municipal politics, as well as a history of building projects that leave intact the extraordinary legacy of racial apartheid, or even embed it in the built environment. The shift…of lesbian and gay activism away from the classic focus on civil liberties and freedom from police harassment…increased the visibility and power of Chicago's gay minority, but at a cost.
so-soThis book is really two separate novels about the same time period in the same city. This is the only connection between the architects of The 1893 World‘s Fair and the serial killer H.H. Holmes. The book is well researched. The chapters on Holmes were intriguing. The chapters on The World‘s Fair were tedious but informative. I started out reading linearly, but eventually read it as two books. Anyone interested in Chicago history will love it.
