Occult America in 1920's

Jaher, David.  The Witch of Lime Street: Seance, Seduction, and Houdini in the Spirit World. 
         New York: Crown Publishers, 2015.  ISBN: 978-0-307-45106-4

In 1920's America, jazz, bootleggers, and the occult filled the headlines.  Arthur Colin Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes, visited America several times in the 1920's, preaching the gospel of Spiritualism.  The Ouija board was a popular parlor device.   Visits to mediums were common among many who had lost loved ones to the Great War or the influenza epidemic.  A number of scientists were investigating the occult trying to prove scientifically whether spirits were real or just fakes perpetrated by the mediums.  In the midst of this fervor, Scientific American magazine put up a purse of $2,500 for documented physical phenomena and a matching purse for spirit photography.  It was this contest that brought Harry Houdini, escape artist and stage magician, together with Margaret Crandon, one of the most heralded mediums of the time.

David Jaher does an excellent job of introducing the characters and setting the stage for his tale of 1920's occult America.  He lets the details of the story slowly unfold so that the reader is caught up in the atmosphere of the 1920's.  Only then does the build-up for the struggle between Houdini and Margaret commence.  The final section of the book closes with a synopses of Harry Houdini's and Margaret Crandon's latter years.  Selected sources are provided along with the location of more extensive collections on the topics covered in the List of Sources.  If 1920's America, the occult, Harry Houdini, or Margaret Crandon peaks your interest, The Witch of Lime Street is likely to satisfy.