Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil | 
 enlarge | Author: John Berendt
Publisher: Vintage
Category: Book
List Price: $14.95
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Rating:  483 reviews
Sales Rank: 5942
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 400
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.1 x 5.1 x 0.9
ISBN: 0679751521
Dewey Decimal Number: 975.8724
EAN: 9780679751526
ASIN: 0679751521
Publication Date: June 28, 1999
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Amazon.com
John Berendt's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil has been heralded as a "lyrical work of nonfiction," and the book's extremely graceful prose depictions of some of Savannah, Georgia's most colorful eccentrics--remarkable characters who could have once prospered in a William Faulkner novel or Eudora Welty short story--were certainly a critical factor in its tremendous success. (One resident into whose orbit Berendt fell, the Lady Chablis, went on to become a minor celebrity in her own right.) But equally important was Berendt's depiction of Savannah socialite Jim Williams as he stands trial for the murder of Danny Hansford, a moody, violence-prone hustler--and sometime companion to Williams--characterized by locals as a "walking streak of sex." So feel free to call it a "true crime classic" without a trace of shame.
Product Description
Shots rang out in Savannah's grandest mansion in the misty,early morning hours of May 2, 1981.Was it murder or self-defense?For nearly a decade, the shooting and its aftermath reverberated throughout this hauntingly beautiful city of moss-hung oaks and shaded squares.John Berendt's sharply observed, suspenseful, and witty narrative reads like a thoroughly engrossing novel, and yet it is a work of nonfiction.Berendt skillfully interweaves a hugely entertaining first-person account of life in this isolated remnant of the Old South with the unpredictable twists and turns of a landmark murder case.
It is a spellbinding story peopled by a gallery of remarkable characters: the well-bred society ladies of the Married Woman's Card Club; the turbulent young redneck gigolo; the hapless recluse who owns a bottle of poison so powerful it could kill every man, woman, and child in Savannah; the aging and profane Southern belle who is the "soul of pampered self-absorption"; the uproariously funny black drag queen; the acerbic and arrogant antiques dealer; the sweet-talking, piano-playing con artist; young blacks dancing the minuet at the black debutante ball; and Minerva, the voodoo priestess who works her magic in the graveyard at midnight.These and other Savannahians act as a Greek chorus, with Berendt revealing the alliances, hostilities, and intrigues that thrive in a town where everyone knows everyone else.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is a sublime and seductive reading experience.Brilliantly conceived and masterfully written, this enormously engaging portrait of a most beguiling Southern city has become a modern classic.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 478 more reviews...
 Somewhat hard to follow June 26, 2008
While I enjoyed reading "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil," I had a hard time trying to keep track of all of the characters. While the number of characters add to the story, I found myself continually flipping back to pages to try and remember who is who. A great read, but you might want to have a pen and paper handy.
 Fascinating Book About a Fascinating City June 21, 2008
Wow, what a bunch of characters! And they're real, not fictional. It's hard to tell if they are eccentric because of Savannah or if the city is eccentric because of them. Whatever the case, this is a delightful book, made even more so when you realize it's non-fiction (albeit with a few storytelling nips and tucks). The book gets off to a very slow start -- due mainly to the necessity of establishing the characters. On their own, they're not very interesting. The excitement comes when they start to interface with each other. And eventually, the book gets around to the main story -- a sensational murder and the subsequent trials. That's all I'll say because what starts off dull eventually becomes intensely compelling. When you're finished, you'll feel you've lived in Savannah for years.
 Questionable Credibility Makes for Problamatic Enjoyment May 27, 2008
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: a Savannah Story, is a "nonfiction novel" which tells of the transplanted author's 8 years in society Savannah through vignettes of the people he met and his experiences with them, as well as events that led up to Savannah's big scandal--the trial of one of society's own.
John Berendt has a lovely writing style, relaxed and yet detailed, which caught my interest from the first page. He kept my attention with his stories, even while I felt guilty for reading them--feeling as if I were reading a "kiss and tell" book. What did the people involved think, I couldn't help but wonder, about having their private conversations plastered about in print. Conversations that they can't be blamed for assuming would be private.
As that seed of discontent began to grow, I began to wonder about Berendt's creditability as he recounted conversations in unbelievable detail. Did he have a notebook and pencil with him at all times, scribbling during all casual conversations in hope that it might prove useful in 10 years or so, just in case he decided to write a book?
Checking on his dates, I found in a few places, other people wondering about the same thing, going so far as to state that he wasn't even in Savannah for the pre-trial information (not arriving until after the first trial). I was unable to verify or debunk this; all I could find anywhere, (Berendt interviews included) isn't telling exact dates, just that he spent 8 years there during the 1980's. The trial in question was for a crime that happened in 1981. If he wasn't there, Berendt has deliberately misled his readers by writing as if he was privy to inside information given to him at that time.
Not being able to certify his truthfulness, I approached the rest of the book as a novel, not as nonfiction. Unfair to Berendt? Possibly, but then again, possilby not. I'd be interested in what other readers have to say about it.
Now, given all that, how to rate it? As a nonfiction writer, I don't trust him, so I can't give him a good rating (though the travelogue portion did make me quite interested in Savannah and the bit of history made me want to read more about the city as well). As a novel, it was highly entertaining, with some great prose. A conundrum that has resulted in a two star rating being applied.
 I'm embarassed for Savannah May 15, 2008
2 out of 7 found this review helpful
I am a big fan of the city of Savannah and have been to visit numerous times. It is a beautiful city with a ton of history. I love the old south as I grew up in Wilmington, NC. So I only naturally looked forward to reading a book which has received so many great reviews about this beloved city. Boy was I shocked. I hated the book. IT was full of vulgarities and filth. It made the people of Savannah seem so shallow and immoral. While no doubt that element of society exists in every city, I just cant believe people have been so quick to embrace this book. I found alot of it poorly written. I wish I had never read it as it paints Savannah so negatively. No doubt it has brought addtional fame and notoriety to Savannah, which Im sure has benefitted the tourism of the city - but at what cost?
One of those books that you won't be able to put down April 27, 2008
10 out of 11 found this review helpful
I've never been to Savannah before, but after reading this book, I really want to go there! "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" is a fantastic book about the leaders of Savannah society in the early 1980's. It's actually a work of non-fiction (although it reads very much like a novel), and it chronicles the events in author John Berendt's life when he ventures out of his New York City home and discovers the town of Savannah, Georgia. Berendt was instantly smitten with the town, and he decided to live there on a part-time basis. The book is peppered with stories about the dozens of interesting characters Berendt encountered, including Jim Williams, a charismatic yet mysterious antique dealer; Danny Hansford; a troubled young man with a dangerous streak; and Chablis, an extremely outgoing transsexual entertainer. At first the book appears to be just a series of colorful anecdotes about Savannah and its quirky residents. However, eventually a murder is committed, which results in multiple trials and chaos that spans almost an entire decade.
I really enjoyed this book. Berendt is an excellent writer, and his vivid descriptions of Savannah and its inhabitants made me feel like I was right there with these people when all these crazy events transpired. It was hard to remember that "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" is actually based on a true story: All these characters are real and this murder mystery actually happened less than 30 years ago. If you're looking for a captivating murder mystery that is brilliantly written and will keep you up reading until the wee hours of the morning, this is definitely the book for you!
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