In the Garden of Beasts?

[readyin07]

I picked this up really wanting to get into something a little more educational and i ended up returning it to the library right after they arrived in Germany. I just couldn't get into it, couldn't keep up with all the main characters' names, had a hard time keeping up with all the unfamiliar German names. Does it pick up? Should I try again?

Also, Devil in the White City was recommended to me too...do you think I may like that better? Narrative fiction/non-fiction is not typically my favorite genre but I do like it from time to time.

[msmerymac]

No, I actually preferred In The Garden of Beasts to Devil in the White City. I think it went a little quicker.

I think his writing can be a bit... pompous in a way, at times. That's the danger of some non-fic writing. Like, he'll have this long paragraph, not telling you who he's describing, and then he'll end it with what he thinks is a bombshell, like, "That man was Adolf Hitler." No shit, sherlock. But I think a lot of authors do that. It's just annoying because by trying to be suspenseful, he draws attention to the writing style and not the content.

Also, I think he could have concentrated more on German policy. I mean, part of the narrative is that the American ambassador was a bit ineffective, but the author ends up concentrating more on the ambassador's daughter's sexual liasons than what Hitler is up to.

Overall, I liked it fine and thought it was good. I think it was on a more popular topic (the prelude to WWII) than Devil in the White City (the Chicago World's Fair). Historians who jump around to different times and places sort of confuse me and make me think they aren't very serious or deep into any one period, although Devil in the White City seemed pretty well researched.

[Deleted]

H

[aurora]

I ended up giving up on In the Garden of Beasts. I think I could have finished it if I had been in a different frame of mind, but it wasn't captivating and I agree the narration was a little odd.

[mrshandy]

I've read both. I enjoyed Devil in the White City more I think. Although the ending was kind of abrupt in my opinion.

I read The Garden of Beasts last year so my memory is a little fuzzy. I think it does get better, especially as things get worse and worse in Germany.

[duckduck]

I listened to In the Garden of Beasts on audio and wasn't nuts about it. It got better after a while but it was definitely a slog at times.

I read Devil in the White City and thought it was great, though-- much more suspenseful. I wasn't crazy about the chapters that followed the World's Fair, but the sections about the serial killer had me riveted.

[sessy]

I loved Devil in the White city. The history of the world fair was fascinating to me and then the juxtaposition with the serial killer. Great book. I haven't tried the other one yet, but I just bought a copy.