Sin in the Second City by Karen Abbott
Book Title: Sin in the Second City
Author: Karen Abbott
Genre: Embellished Non-Fiction, American History, Chicago
My Grade: B
# of Pages: 309
Week Read: Week #22 (5/28 - 6/4/10)
Summary: Step into the perfumed parlors of Chicago's Everleigh Club, the most famous brothel in American history - and the catalyst for a culture war that rocked the nation. Minna and Ada Everleigh, the two sisters who operated the Club at the dawn of the last century, were unlike other madams: The Everleighs made sure their girls dined on gourmet food, were examined by an honest physician, and were even tutored in the literature of Balzac. But not everyone appreciated the sisters' attemps to elevate the industry. Progressive Era reformers, spouting lurid tales of "white slavery," ignited a furor that shaped America's sexual culture and had repercussions all the way to the White House, even leading to the formation of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. With a cast of characters that includes Jack Johnson, John Barrymore, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., William Howard Taft, "Hinky Dink" Kenna, and Al Capone, Sin in the Second City provides a vivid snapshot of America's journey from Victorian-era propriety to twentieth-century modernity.
My Thoughts: I hope people understand what I mean when I say "embellished non-fiction." It basically means what it says, a non-fiction book has descriptions and narrative added in that no one could say really happened or not, it's been added in to make it more of a story, to make it more of a novel-type read rather than a straight through monologue on what happened during a period of change in America's history. Karen Abbot did say in her author's note, "I want to stress that this is a work of nonfiction; every character I describe lived and breathed, if not necessarily thrived...Anything that appears in quotation marks, dialogue or otherwise, comes from a book, archival collection, article, journal, or government report." Clearly Abbott did extensive research to maintain historical accuracy in this book, but it's also apparent she added her own flair to help make it a good story. Thankfully it never was in sacrifice of the truth.
Sin in the Second City was totally enthralling from page one. It's a subject I'm not familiar with (the 19th-20th century brothel/prostitution system), nor the history and changes that were made in our laws because of it. Therefore all these people, places and events had me hooked and I wanted to know more. I, personally, was most interested in the life of the Everleigh sisters and I had hoped that the book would focus mostly on them with the reformers and politicians and laws staying on the periferary. It was an even split actually and as everything and everyone effected everything and everyone else it made sense to do it that way. But it did get a little dry and a bit boring when it came to the talk of politicians and laws.
The book lost steam near the end, only one thing (which I will not disclose as it will spoil the read) really keeping it going. That, and the dryness in the political sections, were what I found to be the only downfalls of the book. Abbot's writing was fantastic, every character that came to the page came to life. She managed to find the drama and intrigue in all her research and share it with the reader, which will keep the reader hooked. If you're interested in the lesser known, "darker" and "seedier" side of American history and you also want a good read, Sin in the Second City would be a good choice for you.
Next Book: Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden • review
Back to the Book List.
Author: Karen Abbott
Genre: Embellished Non-Fiction, American History, Chicago
My Grade: B
# of Pages: 309
Week Read: Week #22 (5/28 - 6/4/10)
Summary: Step into the perfumed parlors of Chicago's Everleigh Club, the most famous brothel in American history - and the catalyst for a culture war that rocked the nation. Minna and Ada Everleigh, the two sisters who operated the Club at the dawn of the last century, were unlike other madams: The Everleighs made sure their girls dined on gourmet food, were examined by an honest physician, and were even tutored in the literature of Balzac. But not everyone appreciated the sisters' attemps to elevate the industry. Progressive Era reformers, spouting lurid tales of "white slavery," ignited a furor that shaped America's sexual culture and had repercussions all the way to the White House, even leading to the formation of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. With a cast of characters that includes Jack Johnson, John Barrymore, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., William Howard Taft, "Hinky Dink" Kenna, and Al Capone, Sin in the Second City provides a vivid snapshot of America's journey from Victorian-era propriety to twentieth-century modernity.
My Thoughts: I hope people understand what I mean when I say "embellished non-fiction." It basically means what it says, a non-fiction book has descriptions and narrative added in that no one could say really happened or not, it's been added in to make it more of a story, to make it more of a novel-type read rather than a straight through monologue on what happened during a period of change in America's history. Karen Abbot did say in her author's note, "I want to stress that this is a work of nonfiction; every character I describe lived and breathed, if not necessarily thrived...Anything that appears in quotation marks, dialogue or otherwise, comes from a book, archival collection, article, journal, or government report." Clearly Abbott did extensive research to maintain historical accuracy in this book, but it's also apparent she added her own flair to help make it a good story. Thankfully it never was in sacrifice of the truth.
Sin in the Second City was totally enthralling from page one. It's a subject I'm not familiar with (the 19th-20th century brothel/prostitution system), nor the history and changes that were made in our laws because of it. Therefore all these people, places and events had me hooked and I wanted to know more. I, personally, was most interested in the life of the Everleigh sisters and I had hoped that the book would focus mostly on them with the reformers and politicians and laws staying on the periferary. It was an even split actually and as everything and everyone effected everything and everyone else it made sense to do it that way. But it did get a little dry and a bit boring when it came to the talk of politicians and laws.
The book lost steam near the end, only one thing (which I will not disclose as it will spoil the read) really keeping it going. That, and the dryness in the political sections, were what I found to be the only downfalls of the book. Abbot's writing was fantastic, every character that came to the page came to life. She managed to find the drama and intrigue in all her research and share it with the reader, which will keep the reader hooked. If you're interested in the lesser known, "darker" and "seedier" side of American history and you also want a good read, Sin in the Second City would be a good choice for you.
Next Book: Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden • review
Back to the Book List.