Well, I’m back after my vacation and I have a lot to write about but let’s start with a book I read while at home in Oshkosh, Wis.

“Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America” by Erik Larson looked appealing to me even though it’s non-fiction.

I tend to stay away from non-fiction seeing that’s what I write everyday, but this book was about an expanding Chicago and America’s first serial killer, so I dove right in.

Comprised mostly of written correspondence and memoirs it paints a detailed picture about the Columbian Exposition and H.H. Holmes.

Daniel Burnham was the great mind behind the fair and had a challenge in virtually creating a city in a few years. He dealt with opposition on different levels and in the end helped construct one of the wonders of the world.

Holmes posed as a charming doctor and built a death castle with dimly lit hallways, doors to nowhere, air tight gas chambers, a crematorium, disguised as a hotel.

I don’t want to go into too much detail except that it’s a great read that’s hard to put down and you’ll learn quite a bit. Sun reporter Keith Norman also read the book a few years back and recommends it as well.

If you’ve read this book sound off and let me know your thoughts.