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Informative,
Interesting,
Dramatic

4 reviews

Empire of Sin: A Story of Sex, Jazz, Murder, and the Battle for Modern New Orleans
by Gary Krist

Published: 2014-10-28
Hardcover : 432 pages
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Recommended to book clubs by 3 of 4 members
From bestselling author Gary Krist, a vibrant and immersive account of New Orleans’ other civil war, at a time when commercialized vice, jazz culture, and endemic crime defined the battlegrounds of the Crescent City
 
     Empire of Sin re-creates the remarkable story of New ...
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Introduction

From bestselling author Gary Krist, a vibrant and immersive account of New Orleans’ other civil war, at a time when commercialized vice, jazz culture, and endemic crime defined the battlegrounds of the Crescent City
 
     Empire of Sin re-creates the remarkable story of New Orleans’ thirty-years war against itself, pitting the city’s elite “better half” against its powerful and long-entrenched underworld of vice, perversity, and crime. This early-20th-century battle centers on one man: Tom Anderson, the undisputed czar of the city's Storyville vice district, who fights desperately to keep his empire intact as it faces onslaughts from all sides. Surrounding him are the stories of flamboyant prostitutes, crusading moral reformers, dissolute jazzmen, ruthless Mafiosi, venal politicians, and one extremely violent serial killer, all battling for primacy in a wild and wicked city unlike any other in the world.

Editorial Review

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Excerpt

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Discussion Questions

Suggested by Members

What themes, if any, do you take from this account that appear to repeat in other periods of history?
Do you think jazz music would have developed without the conflicts that occurred in New Orleans from the 1890's tto the 1920's?
by DavidTrice (see profile) 11/27/14

Notes From the Author to the Bookclub

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Book Club Recommendations

do your homework
by DavidTrice (see profile) 11/27/14
This is a good book, but if you choose it for your club know that \\\"pre-canned\\\" discussion questions are scant, so you need to come prepared with points to talk about on your own. Otherwise, you will most likely spend most of your meeting time on unrelated tangents and relatively little discussion of the book itself.

Member Reviews

Overall rating:
 
 
by Megan Z. (see profile) 08/31/15

 
  "Empire of Sin"by Wenda C. (see profile) 01/22/15

More like a thesis than a real story. I learned a lot about New Orleans and the period before and after the Civil War, but it was more a list of facts from other sources than a story.
Our
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by David T. (see profile) 11/27/14

 
  "EMPIORE OF SIN"by Judy M. (see profile) 11/26/14

I liked the book especially the historical parts.

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