Sin in the Second City Book Review

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"Prominent Americans viewed the prince's trip as an opportunity to showcase the country's brightest thinkers and shrewdest capitalists, and to flex its developing imperial muscle" (Abbott, 73). Having set the stage brilliant vis-a-vis the official nature of the prince's visit -- and mentioning the recent American acquisitions (Hawaii and Puerto Rico) to give an international political perspective -- Abbott further raised the stakes and value of the prince's visit to the Everleigh Club. The author notes (74) the American superstars of business (J.P. Morgan, Adolphus Busch, and Charles Schwab) and the world famous American inventors (Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison) that the prince was introduced to in New York City prior to his Chicago visit.

As well crafted as Abbott's build-up to the prince's attendance at the Everleigh Club is, it pales in comparison to the "slipper sipping" of champagne and the other wild goings-on at the club (76-77).

Abbott takes care to describe every event with carefully chosen narrative, and brings empathy from readers when she introduces a "virginal nymph" (133) and elicits a chuckle from readers when she quotes Minna, "A girl in our establishment is not a commodity with a market price, like a pound of butter or a leg of lamb" (198).

Section FOUR: This is a very enjoyable book, and I found it hard to put the book down and give attention to other assignments. Abbott is to be given kudos for the great descriptions of the Everleigh sisters, their employees, the high-visibility (and low-visibility) customers, the scenes that were created within the brothel and the moral movement that shoved them out of the South Side of Chicago.

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I had not known there was open prostitution in Chicago during this era and did not know about the "white slavery" issues either. Abbott's research is very impressive, and while buying into the nonfiction aspect of the book, a reader has to admire the deep digging Abbott did to gather the quotes from various characters. Especially in light of recent sex / prostitution scandals involving secret service members, the governor of New York, and others, and the many investigative reports of the ongoing international sex slave trade, this book is a breath of fresh air. It covers more than the life and times of two business women who had a great idea and made it work while making a lot of money; it covers some American history centered in Chicago.

In conclusion, journalist Abbott's well-crafted nonfiction narrative covering the eleven-year run of the Everleigh Club in Chicago, with its high-profile customers and its extravagant trappings, is a trip back in American history. A reader learns about the city of Chicago, and about how powerful politicians and gangsters alike have the same attraction to illicit sex. The most important points in this book: How the Levee district thrived and was later shut down; how two women entrepreneurs made history on the South Side; and how morality (seemingly) triumphed over sin.

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