The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. Think of your favorite public spaces—squares, libraries, parks, schools, courts, or beaches. Why are these places important? Why are they worth investing in?  

Teaching Suggestion: This question orients students to the topic of civic architecture and design, one of the main threads of The Devil in the White City. As the text details, a team of architects, engineers, designers, and landscape architects created a vast public gathering space full of beauty and significance. Readers might briefly brainstorm other well-known public spaces such as Olmstead’s Central Park in New York City; alternatively, students might discuss the importance of community gathering spaces on a local level, such as the public library facilities in your hometown, and the elements, such as functionality and aesthetics, that architects must explore in designing them.

• “New York’s High Line Park” – This five-minute video from Time shows the successful civic renovation of New York’s High Line Park and demonstrates how beautiful public spaces can benefit a city.
• The Congress for New Urbanism has created a list of principles for urban development and city planning known as