Reviews
'What is the chief end of man?' Mark Twain asks. 'To get rich. In what way? Dishonestly if we can, honestly if we must.' Add sex and ego as two more goals and the self-destructive means to those ends (lusted after by women, too) are re-examined in Ms. Cummings's Saving Sin City . Ms. Cummings focuses on Jerome, the Manhattan district attorney, in a methodical, but engrossing account., Like the public at the time of the murder, I craved fresh details. Indeed, I thought I knew it all, which is why Saving Sin City is so much fun. The fine reporter that she is, Ms. Cummings sets a scene with an economy of words and sly metaphors. Cummings shifts from ballrooms, to louche art studios and restaurants, to crime scenes and courtrooms. Not only do those scenes convey a strong sense of this extraordinary bygone era, they crackle with authenticity., A rich, gorgeously woven tapestry of capitalism, anarchy, riots, organized crime, literary feuds, con artists, hippies, hipsters, beatniks, deadbeats, punks, revolutionaries, drag queens, chaos, and thrilling, only-in-New York adventure. With a reporter's eye for detail and a poet's flair for language, Ada Calhoun has crafted a lush love letter to America's most fascinating street., Mary Cummings breathes new and exciting life into the White-Thaw-Nesbit case, turning the eternal triangle into a dramatic pentagon with an ambitious D. A. and suave defense lawyer locked in a battle of images stronger than facts. She tells it all: flawed personalities, a range of motivations, and sensational behind-the-scenes revelations that keep us eager for more. She narrates this page-turner as if it had happened yesterday 'at a time not unlike our own., This work of narrative nonfiction offers a richly detailed plunge into the excesses of the Gilded Age, as revealed in one infamous love triangle. Journalist Cummings adds a new dimension to a case thats often been written about, that of the murder of famed New York society architect Stanford White by Harry K. Thaw, a psychopathic millionaire playboy. Cummings gift for the odd detail and for describing physical settings make this latest account of the Stanford White murder a standout., Saving Sin City is The Age of Innocence meets Dominck Dunne. Mary Cummings is a wonderful storyteller and brings to life a rich, fascinating era at the turn of the last century, from ballrooms to courtrooms, with a fascinating cast of characters, high and low., "In Saving Sin City, Mary Cummings shows us a view of Gotham that is more like a Great Ball of Fire, exploding in decadence, secret politics, and the tickle of unavenged, sensationalized murder. Though there is always an endless supply of candidates for the "Crime of the Century," the author makes a grand and compelling case for this one: the murder of playboy architect Stanford White on the rooftop of Madison Square Garden by a jealous and vindictive madman. This story--of a Gilded Age love triangle gone bloody and dark-- has been told before, but not like this. Cummings finally magnifies the story and role of William Travers Jerome, the district attorney, revealing at last how an open-and-shut murder--in front of witnesses, no less-- became a truly unforgettable case for the ages. At the end, a kind of justice would finally be reached, but at great personal and political cost. True crime readers and courtroom aficionados alike will absorb Cummings' quick, journalistic style as if they were reading a newspaper in 1906, following every typeset word with hyperactive flurry in an attempt to reach the truth.", Mry Cummings breathes new and exciting life into the White-Thaw-Nesbit case, turning the eternal triangle into a dramaticpentagon with an ambitious D. A. and suave defense lawyer lockedin a battle of images stronger than facts. She tells it all: flawedpersonalities, a range of motivations, and sensational behind-the-scenesrevelations that keep us eager for more. She narrates thispage-turner as if it had happened yesterday 'at a time not unlike our own.'", What an entertaining and exhilarating read. Deeply researched and thought-provoking, this book is a joyride through the history of New York., Saving Sin City is The Age of Innocence meets Dominick Dunne. Mary Cummings is a wonderful storyteller and brings to life a rich, fascinating era at the turn of the last century, from ballrooms to courtrooms, with a fascinating cast of characters, high and low., "In Saving Sin City, Mary Cummings shows us a view of Gotham that is more like a Great Ball of Fire, exploding in decadence, secret politics, and the tickle of unavenged, sensationalized murder. Though there is always an endless supply of candidates for the "Crime of the Century," the author makes a grand and compelling case for this one: the murder of playboy architect Stanford White on the rooftop of Madison Square Garden by a jealous and vindictive madman. This story--of a Gilded Age love triangle gone bloody and dark-- has been told before, but not like this. Cummings finally magnifies the story and role of William Travers Jerome, the district attorney, revealing at last how an open-and-shut murder--in front of witnesses, no less-- became a truly unforgettable case for the ages. At the end, a kind of justice would finally be reached, but at great personal and political cost. True crime readers and courtroom aficionados alike will absorb Cummings' quick, journalistic style as if they were reading a newspaper in 1906, following every typeset word with hyperactive flurry in an attempt to reach the truth. ", 'What is the chief end of man?' Mark Twain asks. 'To get rich. In what way? Dishonestly if we can, honestly if we must.' Add sex and ego as two more goals and the self-destructive means to those ends (lusted after by women, too) are re-examined in Ms. Cummings's Saving Sin City. Ms. Cummings focuses on Jerome, the Manhattan district attorney, in a methodical, but engrossing account., A story of a time not unlike our own, when New Yorkers were swept up in a 'contagious lust for riches.' A fabulously entertaining tale, well told--and sobering, Cummings brings the Gilded Age to vivid life, with the barest suggestion of connections to today's click-bait news culture and epidemic of 'affluenza.' For popular history buffs as well as true crime fans., Fascinating...through exhaustive research and vivid storytelling, Calhoun recounts the happenings and personalities that dotted both the literal and metaphorical landscape of the iconic East Village Street.
