On February 24th, 1890, Chicago was chosen to host a world’s fair that celebrated the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ discovery of the New World. Daniel H. Burnham — who later designed New York City’s famous Flatiron Building — was chosen to put together and lead the group of designers and architects responsible for building the…
Tag: non-fiction
Review: The Midnight Assassin
In the early 1880s, the city of Austin, Texas was on the rise. The backwater at the edge of the United States was officially a boom town, complete with over 11,000 citizens, an air-cooled ice cream parlor, and an opera house. The town coffers were full, and the new Capitol building (under construction since 1882)…
Review: Unmentionable
If you’ve always thought that a clean, simple frock is better than low-rise jeans, that you would enjoy living in the time of Charlotte Bronte, or that the centuries before ours were simpler and better…this book is not for you. Unmentionable: The Victorian Lady’s Guide to Sex, Marriage, and Manners will disabuse you of the…
Quickie Reviews: Personal Stories
My 2017 reading started off slow, but I’ve kicked things into high gear in the last few weeks. So of course I have a review backlog. Let’s hit the high (and low) points, shall we? Work Rules! The subtitle on this is a mouthful: Insights from Inside Google That Will Transform How You Live and…
Review: The Scarlet Sisters
Victoria Woodhull and Tennessee Claftin were two of the children of a backwater snake oil salesman. The sisters spent their childhoods telling fortunes and handing out quack cures. They were not destined for great things. But the Gilded Age had a habit of propelling the least likely people to unimaginable heights. In a time when…