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3.49 AVERAGE
3.49 AVERAGE
informative
medium-paced
I was disappointed in the quality of writing of this book. It seems like Olsen had to try really hard to make a story as interesting as this one as dry as he did.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
I usually gobble historical non-fiction like this up, but its so boring! I think it needed better editing and structure. You're sort of just dropped in without background first and then the author has to keep going back to explain stuff that should've already been explained.
I enjoyed the story, and the writing was good. However, the construction of the book could have benefited from a better editor. I found the timelines out of whack, the wrong names were used several times, and more verbiage then necessary was used in telling the tale.
‘Starvation Heights’ is as much about the general human capacity for self-delusion as it is about a particularly spectacular and charismatic lunatic criminal. It will be easy, I suspect, for most of us to wonder at the credulity and gullibility of people, especially young women, in reading about this amazing true crime story which occurred at the turn of the century (1910). Deadly health cures were being touted as fabulously effective by so-called ‘scientists’ and ‘doctors’, most of whom did not even have a high school diploma. Unfortunately, there were no shortage of willing victims any more than there were lawyers willing to prosecute or police officers wanting to do arrests.
As usual in such cases where victims hold some responsibility for their fleecing and/or destruction, even if not anything near as much responsibility for it all as their beloved villainous crook, courts are reluctant to spend much time and especially money prosecuting these bad guys even today unless evidence is overwhelming and dead bodies are piling up. Sham health cures and fake doctors who lure in hypochondriacs and ‘beautiful people’ wannabes are low on the list for those pursuing criminal action against lawbreakers, especially in poor counties or states. Purveyors of illegal, dangerous and unproven weight-loss schemes for improving health and beauty easily would overwhelm every court in the world if prosecutors vigorously pursued convictions. Advertised health-improvement claims from ‘legitimate’ spas, meditation centers, health resorts and fat farms of today do not raise from most people hardly a passing doubt despite their obvious hokum. So, looking back at a time where social media consisted of newspapers only, and education was either shallow or nonexistent, think of how much easier it would be to convince customers of the health benefits of unproven practices when knowledge was spread by mostly gossip and rumor, ads and fads.
Sisters Dorothea and Claire Williamson were orphaned while young, but in 1910 they were in their mid-thirties. Unmarried, wealthy, having gone to the best finishing schools in Europe and England, they were traveling first across Canada to Vancouver, British Columbia, and then down to the United States and Seattle, Washington. Although they had relatives, money and property all over the world, they yet were naive and trusting, especially Claire. Their journey was ostensibly about visiting relatives, but they were also very much interested in improving their digestive health by visiting popular health institutes for the upper classes which were all the rage at the time. (For an excellent satirical, but well-researched, fictional novel about the 1900’s fad of ‘healthy’ cleansing of one’s digestive tract in America, read T. C. Boyle’s [b:The Road to Wellville|24738|The Road to Wellville|T.C. Boyle|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1389560948s/24738.jpg|880446].)
The sisters had already stopped at several famous and small sanitariums, institutions and ‘hospitals’ that promised to cure many kinds of aches, pains and nebulous, scientifically described, diseases which haunted the bored and inactive moneyed classes. At the turn of the century, most of the health institutes of the time cured their patients of excess money through the most recent fad of expensive treatments of cleansing diets and enemas. Women of wealth often went to these digestive health and diet clinics for such ‘diseases’ as occasional discomforts of the uterus, diagnosed by mercenary fake and real medical doctors.
One such ‘doctor’ was at work in Seattle. ‘Dr.’ Linda Burfield Hazzard advertised in the local Seattle newspaper about her institution in Olalla, Washington, and offered her book, Fasting for the Cure of Disease. She was well-respected, politically and socially powerful with highly-placed supporters and deep pockets. Under her care, people often fasted for over 30 days and more. Her treatments involved ‘meals’ of ‘fresh’ tomato and asparagus juice, with gallons of hot water enemas which lasted hours. Her patients were apparently so grateful to her for curing all of their bodily cares, they sometimes signed over all of their worldly goods to her
Many of those who survived truly were grateful to Linda, utterly convinced that having been reduced to 60 pounds helped their health improve.
It took awhile, but reporters, witnesses and detective work eventually revealed Linda and her husband, the handsome Sam, were not exactly what they claimed. Who were they, really?
Did Dora and Claire survive? Read the book. It is fascinating, and all true.
The author Gregg Olsen, an investigative reporter, wrote the book in the style of a fact-based fiction novel. It sometimes led him into creating assumed but logical scenes. I get it - he wanted to humanize the victims of the Hazzards. While the story is backed up with research, actual documents and newspaper reports of the time, and he does really try to keep to the story as told by witnesses, I felt sometimes he wandered too much into fictional territory. Nonetheless, what an incredible true crime!
As usual in such cases where victims hold some responsibility for their fleecing and/or destruction, even if not anything near as much responsibility for it all as their beloved villainous crook, courts are reluctant to spend much time and especially money prosecuting these bad guys even today unless evidence is overwhelming and dead bodies are piling up. Sham health cures and fake doctors who lure in hypochondriacs and ‘beautiful people’ wannabes are low on the list for those pursuing criminal action against lawbreakers, especially in poor counties or states. Purveyors of illegal, dangerous and unproven weight-loss schemes for improving health and beauty easily would overwhelm every court in the world if prosecutors vigorously pursued convictions. Advertised health-improvement claims from ‘legitimate’ spas, meditation centers, health resorts and fat farms of today do not raise from most people hardly a passing doubt despite their obvious hokum. So, looking back at a time where social media consisted of newspapers only, and education was either shallow or nonexistent, think of how much easier it would be to convince customers of the health benefits of unproven practices when knowledge was spread by mostly gossip and rumor, ads and fads.
Sisters Dorothea and Claire Williamson were orphaned while young, but in 1910 they were in their mid-thirties. Unmarried, wealthy, having gone to the best finishing schools in Europe and England, they were traveling first across Canada to Vancouver, British Columbia, and then down to the United States and Seattle, Washington. Although they had relatives, money and property all over the world, they yet were naive and trusting, especially Claire. Their journey was ostensibly about visiting relatives, but they were also very much interested in improving their digestive health by visiting popular health institutes for the upper classes which were all the rage at the time. (For an excellent satirical, but well-researched, fictional novel about the 1900’s fad of ‘healthy’ cleansing of one’s digestive tract in America, read T. C. Boyle’s [b:The Road to Wellville|24738|The Road to Wellville|T.C. Boyle|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1389560948s/24738.jpg|880446].)
The sisters had already stopped at several famous and small sanitariums, institutions and ‘hospitals’ that promised to cure many kinds of aches, pains and nebulous, scientifically described, diseases which haunted the bored and inactive moneyed classes. At the turn of the century, most of the health institutes of the time cured their patients of excess money through the most recent fad of expensive treatments of cleansing diets and enemas. Women of wealth often went to these digestive health and diet clinics for such ‘diseases’ as occasional discomforts of the uterus, diagnosed by mercenary fake and real medical doctors.
One such ‘doctor’ was at work in Seattle. ‘Dr.’ Linda Burfield Hazzard advertised in the local Seattle newspaper about her institution in Olalla, Washington, and offered her book, Fasting for the Cure of Disease. She was well-respected, politically and socially powerful with highly-placed supporters and deep pockets. Under her care, people often fasted for over 30 days and more. Her treatments involved ‘meals’ of ‘fresh’ tomato and asparagus juice, with gallons of hot water enemas which lasted hours. Her patients were apparently so grateful to her for curing all of their bodily cares, they sometimes signed over all of their worldly goods to her
Spoiler
shortly before they disappeared forever, leaving her institute feet first, carried out by the Hazzards’ favorite discreet local funeral director, perhaps, or their bodies may have been cut up and the flesh boiled away in kitchen pots.Many of those who survived truly were grateful to Linda, utterly convinced that having been reduced to 60 pounds helped their health improve.
It took awhile, but reporters, witnesses and detective work eventually revealed Linda and her husband, the handsome Sam, were not exactly what they claimed. Who were they, really?
Did Dora and Claire survive? Read the book. It is fascinating, and all true.
The author Gregg Olsen, an investigative reporter, wrote the book in the style of a fact-based fiction novel. It sometimes led him into creating assumed but logical scenes. I get it - he wanted to humanize the victims of the Hazzards. While the story is backed up with research, actual documents and newspaper reports of the time, and he does really try to keep to the story as told by witnesses, I felt sometimes he wandered too much into fictional territory. Nonetheless, what an incredible true crime!
The book was a little long, but in a way it's okay because you could tell the author really wanted it historically accurate. I loved to read about Seattle and WA state in the early 1900's. Very interesting how one person can be so influental over another and practically make them do anything.
I read this for a writing project, but I have to say that STARVATION HEIGHTS is pretty gripping. It’s the story of Linda Hazzard, a woman who took advantage of medical licensing loopholes to pose as a doctor in early 1900s Washington. She would prescribe fasting cures to her patients and then as they were dying, take control of their money.
The book is a well-researched look into what she did and why she did it, as well as the history of many of her victims. I do wish it had delved more into the psychology of why she might have done this, but it’s still a great read.
The book is a well-researched look into what she did and why she did it, as well as the history of many of her victims. I do wish it had delved more into the psychology of why she might have done this, but it’s still a great read.
** 2.5 Star rating**
I heard about Starvation Heights from a podcast called My Favourite Murder one of the hosts, Karen Killgariff, went over the case and mentioned the book, which sparked my interest and resulted in adding the book to my TBR.
The book itself I found the wording a bit hard to understand to begin with since this was my first time reading a true crime book solely dedicated to a single case, and sometimes I got a little confused on who some people were outside the main group like Claire, Dora, Margaret and Linda and Sam Hazzard. Other than that, I really enjoyed reading the book. I can't get over how this is real and not a figment of Gregg Olsen imagination cause it just seems impossible to have happened and how Linda got away with it for so long just fathoms me. Really good book would recommend if you like true crime.
*Read a 539 paperback version*
I heard about Starvation Heights from a podcast called My Favourite Murder one of the hosts, Karen Killgariff, went over the case and mentioned the book, which sparked my interest and resulted in adding the book to my TBR.
The book itself I found the wording a bit hard to understand to begin with since this was my first time reading a true crime book solely dedicated to a single case, and sometimes I got a little confused on who some people were outside the main group like Claire, Dora, Margaret and Linda and Sam Hazzard. Other than that, I really enjoyed reading the book. I can't get over how this is real and not a figment of Gregg Olsen imagination cause it just seems impossible to have happened and how Linda got away with it for so long just fathoms me. Really good book would recommend if you like true crime.
*Read a 539 paperback version*
Based on a true story; I can not comprehend the bulls*** people believe and that those who knew better stood around and let it happen. The antagonist in this story is unbelievable but really lived. The sad fact is that this story, while gripping and emotionally involving, kept reminding me of today's diet industry.