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Bringing Adam Home: The Abduction That Changed America
“Les Standiford’s account of the decades-long attempt to solve the murder of Adam Walsh is chilling, heartbreaking, hopeful, and as relentlessly suspenseful as anything I’ve ever read. A triumph in every way.”—Dennis Lehane, author of Mystic River
“The most significant missing child case since the Lindbergh’s….A taut, compelling and often touching book about a long march to justice.”—Scott Turow, author of Presumed Innocent
The abduction that changed America forever, the 1981 kidnapping and murder of six-year-old Adam Walsh—son of John Walsh, host of the Fox TV series America’s Most Wanted—in Hollywood, Florida, was a crime that went unsolved for a quarter of a century. Bringing Adam Home by author Les Standiford is a harrowing account of the terrible crime and its dramatic consequences, the emotional story of a father and mother’s efforts to seek justice and resolve the loss of their child, and a compelling portrait of Miami Beach Homicide Detective Joe Matthews, whose unwavering dedication brought the Adam Walsh case to its resolution.
“The most significant missing child case since the Lindbergh’s….A taut, compelling and often touching book about a long march to justice.”—Scott Turow, author of Presumed Innocent
The abduction that changed America forever, the 1981 kidnapping and murder of six-year-old Adam Walsh—son of John Walsh, host of the Fox TV series America’s Most Wanted—in Hollywood, Florida, was a crime that went unsolved for a quarter of a century. Bringing Adam Home by author Les Standiford is a harrowing account of the terrible crime and its dramatic consequences, the emotional story of a father and mother’s efforts to seek justice and resolve the loss of their child, and a compelling portrait of Miami Beach Homicide Detective Joe Matthews, whose unwavering dedication brought the Adam Walsh case to its resolution.
323 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2011
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About the author
Les Standiford
41 books159 followersLes Standiford is a historian and author and has since 1985 been the Director of the Florida International University Creative Writing Program. Standiford has been awarded the Frank O'Connor Award for Short Fiction, a Florida Individual Artist Fellowship in Fiction, and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in Fiction, and belongs to the Associated Writing Programs, Mystery Writers of America, and the Writers Guild.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 667 reviews
July 13, 2012
It is a well researched book, but it is not a well written book. For years I’ve watched John Walsh on America's Most Wanted without knowing the story behind the disappearance of his son Adam, so I had to give this a read. Expect to come away really angered by the shoddy police work by Detective Jack Hoffman, and impressed with Detective Joe Matthews’ tenacity in finally solving this crime. But do bear in mind Joe Matthews co-authored it, he paints himself quite prettily while demonizing everyone else. I found that a little suspect… I expected it to be gruesome, but the writing style is downright repetitive, in particular the way it kept rehashing Ottis Toole’s confession. After the 7th retelling I thought enough already! It would also have been improved by focusing more on the Walsh’s story and less on Toole & his serial killer lover Henry Lee Lucas.
February 20, 2015
The story of Adam Walsh's murder is tragic and frustrating.
I remember bits on the news at the time, but was a teenager and didn't really think much about it. But the media was different then, we didn't hear much about these type of things - they seemed distant and outside our world view really.
A boy, snatched from a sears store while his mother was in a different part of the store -- looking back NOW puts an entirely different perspective on it. When we were kids we would often hang out in the toy section while our parents were in another section. I even remember Christmas shopping with me and my younger brother shopping on our own with a meet up time and location with my parents at a food place in the mall. Oh - how times have changed. And really as a major result of this horrific crime.
A parent now would be horrified at leaving their child unattended and would come down like a hammer on poor Reve' Walsh (who probably comes down harder on herself than any other person ever could). The fact is, even though abduction/murders of children did happen, we never heard about it. And the idea of a predator like Ottis Toole who did it on a whim was just too unbelievable to comprehend.
So, this book chronicles the investigation from the beginning and tells the story of why the crime was not 'solved' and Toole charged in the killing, despite numerous confessions. It does not shine a good light on the Hollywood police department and others.
What makes it different from John Walsh's own book on the murder of his son
is that this book was written by the man who repeatedly was shut out of the case over the years, and is the one who finally put the pieces together and found the evidence to close the case once and for all.
I remember bits on the news at the time, but was a teenager and didn't really think much about it. But the media was different then, we didn't hear much about these type of things - they seemed distant and outside our world view really.
A boy, snatched from a sears store while his mother was in a different part of the store -- looking back NOW puts an entirely different perspective on it. When we were kids we would often hang out in the toy section while our parents were in another section. I even remember Christmas shopping with me and my younger brother shopping on our own with a meet up time and location with my parents at a food place in the mall. Oh - how times have changed. And really as a major result of this horrific crime.
A parent now would be horrified at leaving their child unattended and would come down like a hammer on poor Reve' Walsh (who probably comes down harder on herself than any other person ever could). The fact is, even though abduction/murders of children did happen, we never heard about it. And the idea of a predator like Ottis Toole who did it on a whim was just too unbelievable to comprehend.
So, this book chronicles the investigation from the beginning and tells the story of why the crime was not 'solved' and Toole charged in the killing, despite numerous confessions. It does not shine a good light on the Hollywood police department and others.
What makes it different from John Walsh's own book on the murder of his son
is that this book was written by the man who repeatedly was shut out of the case over the years, and is the one who finally put the pieces together and found the evidence to close the case once and for all.
February 19, 2023
Here are some observations and feelings I had as I listened to this audiobook: Exposé. Scathing indictment. Fury. Superiority complex. Bullies. Where was the oversight? A series of missteps. Outrage. Reluctance to get involved. Circling the wagons. Blood is thicker than water. Disbelief. Hubris. No infrastructure for missing children. Swept under the rug. Incompetence. Protecting the department instead of doing what's right. No cooperation.
I could keep going, but you get the gist. Bringing Adam Home is a quality piece of True Crime Non-Fic, but also a blistering and unflinching shaming of the Hollywood, Florida Police Department. Whether or not you have children, I doubt anybody could read this book and not come away furious at how this investigation was mishandled. The long and short of it is that Ottis Toole, a known rapist and murderer, was damnably guilty of Adam's kidnapping and murder. The man confessed at least 8 times to law enforcement but was never taken seriously. There are conspiracy theories out there, but this is what I believe, and this book only bolstered my conviction.
In the summer of 1981, I was seven and my family lived in Miami, less than one hour south of Hollywood, Florida. I have memories of this case being on the local tv news, and of moms of the kids I played with sitting at our kitchen table over coffee, talking to my parents about it. I remember the thick tension and disbelief over how a mother couldn't leave her child alone for a few minutes in the same store. Shock went off the charts when Adam's head was found dismembered in a drainage ditch. Adults wouldn't talk about it around me, but the neighborhood kids and my brother made sure I heard. I started having nightmares. The killer had not been caught, and police didn't even have a suspect. I was not allowed to play outside anymore. Mothers or older siblings escorted little kids everywhere. Doors started to be locked and windows stayed shut.
My parents decided we were moving, and only months after Adam was last seen alive outside a Sears in Hollywood, Florida, we relocated to north Florida. We left a beautiful home with parquet floors that seemed to glow in the light, a yard full of mature fruit trees, and a neighborhood full of close friends. I wonder how different my life would have been if I'd grown up in Miami instead.
The truth is, nowhere is safe and it never was. The murder of Adam Walsh only shined a light on an epidemic of child abduction and violence that had been going on since the dawn of time. It's hard to say this, and I feel conflicted writing it, but a tremendous amount of good came out of this horrific tragedy. Adam's parents turned out to be crusaders, forced into a role that suited them both so well and made John Walsh famous in particular. John and Revé founded the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC); they pushed for the signing of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act in 2006; and of course, John hosted America's Most Wanted - must-see-tv in the US for more than 20 years.
God bless the Walshes, and Joe Matthews, the retired Miami Beach detective who reopened this cold case as a personal favor, after Revé pleaded with him to do so. Police get a bad rap, but there are still knights in shining armor among them.
I could keep going, but you get the gist. Bringing Adam Home is a quality piece of True Crime Non-Fic, but also a blistering and unflinching shaming of the Hollywood, Florida Police Department. Whether or not you have children, I doubt anybody could read this book and not come away furious at how this investigation was mishandled. The long and short of it is that Ottis Toole, a known rapist and murderer, was damnably guilty of Adam's kidnapping and murder. The man confessed at least 8 times to law enforcement but was never taken seriously. There are conspiracy theories out there, but this is what I believe, and this book only bolstered my conviction.
In the summer of 1981, I was seven and my family lived in Miami, less than one hour south of Hollywood, Florida. I have memories of this case being on the local tv news, and of moms of the kids I played with sitting at our kitchen table over coffee, talking to my parents about it. I remember the thick tension and disbelief over how a mother couldn't leave her child alone for a few minutes in the same store. Shock went off the charts when Adam's head was found dismembered in a drainage ditch. Adults wouldn't talk about it around me, but the neighborhood kids and my brother made sure I heard. I started having nightmares. The killer had not been caught, and police didn't even have a suspect. I was not allowed to play outside anymore. Mothers or older siblings escorted little kids everywhere. Doors started to be locked and windows stayed shut.
My parents decided we were moving, and only months after Adam was last seen alive outside a Sears in Hollywood, Florida, we relocated to north Florida. We left a beautiful home with parquet floors that seemed to glow in the light, a yard full of mature fruit trees, and a neighborhood full of close friends. I wonder how different my life would have been if I'd grown up in Miami instead.
The truth is, nowhere is safe and it never was. The murder of Adam Walsh only shined a light on an epidemic of child abduction and violence that had been going on since the dawn of time. It's hard to say this, and I feel conflicted writing it, but a tremendous amount of good came out of this horrific tragedy. Adam's parents turned out to be crusaders, forced into a role that suited them both so well and made John Walsh famous in particular. John and Revé founded the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC); they pushed for the signing of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act in 2006; and of course, John hosted America's Most Wanted - must-see-tv in the US for more than 20 years.
God bless the Walshes, and Joe Matthews, the retired Miami Beach detective who reopened this cold case as a personal favor, after Revé pleaded with him to do so. Police get a bad rap, but there are still knights in shining armor among them.
March 2, 2011
This book tells the horrid true tale of 7 year old Adam Walsh’s abduction, torture and murder. It also tells the tale of his heart broken but valiant parents, John and Revi Walsh. Most people will be familiar with John’s name because of his fame from ‘America’s Most Wanted’ TV show which he was asked to host following his son’s death. With that platform John and Revi (working behind the scenes but just as determinedly as her husband) were able to pass lots of legislature that helped centralize sex offender records and helped raise public awareness when children went missing. That’s the positive side of the story. Without it this would have been an almost impossible book to get through.
It turns out the main suspect was known to the police very soon after his crime because he confessed. And he later confessed over and over to not only Adam’s abduction but to many other murders throughout several states. He did wind up going to jail for some of these other crimes but he was never tried for Adam’s murder. By the time I was getting to the end of the book my frustration level with Florida’s police ineptness, one up’s manship, over the top egos and just plain lying and sloppy work was acute though I did appreciate the author’s thoroughness both with the forensics and with the Walsh’s story.
This review was based on an egalley supplied by the publishers.
It turns out the main suspect was known to the police very soon after his crime because he confessed. And he later confessed over and over to not only Adam’s abduction but to many other murders throughout several states. He did wind up going to jail for some of these other crimes but he was never tried for Adam’s murder. By the time I was getting to the end of the book my frustration level with Florida’s police ineptness, one up’s manship, over the top egos and just plain lying and sloppy work was acute though I did appreciate the author’s thoroughness both with the forensics and with the Walsh’s story.
This review was based on an egalley supplied by the publishers.
October 8, 2018
This is most likely the most difficult book I've read. When six year old Adam Walsh was abducted and murdered in July of 1981, America changed. As a child, my sisters and I could let the screen door slam and told our mother that we would be back later. There was no fear that something could happen to us, no fear that a pedophile, and very sick man by the name of Ottis Toole would lure us into his vehicle and violently rape, chop our heads off, and partake of some of our bones while he burned and buried the remains.
But, since this occurrence, nationwide, parents learned of just what could happen if children weren't kept by their sides and kept close.
ReVee Walsh took six year old Adam to a local Hollywood, Florida Sears store. While she looked at lamps for a few minutes, Adam was left with other children who were playing video games at the Sears store. When she returned, he was gone. As she panicked and continued to call for Adam, seeking help from mangers, little did she know he was already headed ten miles away where he was tortured and murdered.
Another travesty occured when the detectives time and time again missed or buried the truth that a man on their radar was indeed the killer. Toole had bragged to numerous sources what he did to little Adam. But, the men in charge, simply refused to take Toole at his word.
When Adam's 34th birthday occurred, finally, under the direction of Detective Sergeant Joe Matthews, who painstakingly spent countless hours going over each and every document, tracing the dots and all the errors that were made and was finally, without a doubt, able to prove that Ottis Toole was indeed the man who killed Adam.
By then, Toole had died, a victim of liver failure, he cried on his death bed to God that he was so very sorry about that little boy. However, the Walsh family finally had the legal team on their side and the state attorney's office made the decision once and for all the Toole was the murderer.
Through their grief and pain, the Walsh's worked to host a TV show, America's Most Wanted, which advocated for missing children, and was responsible in bringing many of the FBI most wanted to trial. I wonder if I would have been as strong and brave as the Walshes.
The crime was horrifying, the written description of what happened to Adam was very difficult to read. But, I was reminded why to this day when my granddaughter is ten minutes later than she said she would be, I try not to panic. But, still my mind wonders What IF!
While I rate this five stars, it was indeed incredibly hard to learn the details.
But, since this occurrence, nationwide, parents learned of just what could happen if children weren't kept by their sides and kept close.
ReVee Walsh took six year old Adam to a local Hollywood, Florida Sears store. While she looked at lamps for a few minutes, Adam was left with other children who were playing video games at the Sears store. When she returned, he was gone. As she panicked and continued to call for Adam, seeking help from mangers, little did she know he was already headed ten miles away where he was tortured and murdered.
Another travesty occured when the detectives time and time again missed or buried the truth that a man on their radar was indeed the killer. Toole had bragged to numerous sources what he did to little Adam. But, the men in charge, simply refused to take Toole at his word.
When Adam's 34th birthday occurred, finally, under the direction of Detective Sergeant Joe Matthews, who painstakingly spent countless hours going over each and every document, tracing the dots and all the errors that were made and was finally, without a doubt, able to prove that Ottis Toole was indeed the man who killed Adam.
By then, Toole had died, a victim of liver failure, he cried on his death bed to God that he was so very sorry about that little boy. However, the Walsh family finally had the legal team on their side and the state attorney's office made the decision once and for all the Toole was the murderer.
Through their grief and pain, the Walsh's worked to host a TV show, America's Most Wanted, which advocated for missing children, and was responsible in bringing many of the FBI most wanted to trial. I wonder if I would have been as strong and brave as the Walshes.
The crime was horrifying, the written description of what happened to Adam was very difficult to read. But, I was reminded why to this day when my granddaughter is ten minutes later than she said she would be, I try not to panic. But, still my mind wonders What IF!
While I rate this five stars, it was indeed incredibly hard to learn the details.
Read
May 4, 2011I knew going in that this would be a hard book to read. It seems odd to say I read it for closure. Closure usually is something reserved for family or close friends when someone they love is missing or violently murdered. Though I cannot know how John and Reve’ Walsh felt, I was there right from the beginning on that horrible July day in 1981 when their son, Adam, disappeared from a Sears store in Hollywood, Florida. I was a mother of two girls under ten and I was horrified at what had happened to Adam Walsh. When some of his remains were found I was saddened that the hope for Adam’s coming home was extinguished.
Like many in our country I followed along as details about the case were revealed and the lack of a real suspect became apparent. The thought that the person who committed this crime was still out there haunted me. I also followed Walsh’s attempts to make changes in the system of reporting missing children and moves to keep our young people from being exploited. Of course, I watched America’s Most Wanted and was glad to see that TV and then the website could do some good to catch criminals. I applauded the Walsh’s efforts to make certain that what happened to them did not happen to other families and the help they gave to other families whose children were missing.
As I said in the beginning I read Bringing Adam Home for closure. I cannot say that I enjoyed this book. Given the subject matter that seems wrong. I don’t want to give it any stars…it’s not that sort of book. I did learn a great deal reading this and not all was encouraging. I am always upset by sloppy work, police work or otherwise and this case had its share of this. I was sickened to read about the disregard for life exhibited by so many in this case and others. I am disappointed that the person responsible for Adam’s death was not brought to justice. In the end though, there were some moments to bring me continued hope, that there are good people in our world, that there are dedicated persons who will give their all to their job or a cause. I am glad to know that so many people have not forgotten Adam Walsh, a boy who remains frozen in time, baseball bat, cap and smile, always in my mind. I am glad that the Walsh’s, John and Reve’, feel that Adam has been brought home.
Like many in our country I followed along as details about the case were revealed and the lack of a real suspect became apparent. The thought that the person who committed this crime was still out there haunted me. I also followed Walsh’s attempts to make changes in the system of reporting missing children and moves to keep our young people from being exploited. Of course, I watched America’s Most Wanted and was glad to see that TV and then the website could do some good to catch criminals. I applauded the Walsh’s efforts to make certain that what happened to them did not happen to other families and the help they gave to other families whose children were missing.
As I said in the beginning I read Bringing Adam Home for closure. I cannot say that I enjoyed this book. Given the subject matter that seems wrong. I don’t want to give it any stars…it’s not that sort of book. I did learn a great deal reading this and not all was encouraging. I am always upset by sloppy work, police work or otherwise and this case had its share of this. I was sickened to read about the disregard for life exhibited by so many in this case and others. I am disappointed that the person responsible for Adam’s death was not brought to justice. In the end though, there were some moments to bring me continued hope, that there are good people in our world, that there are dedicated persons who will give their all to their job or a cause. I am glad to know that so many people have not forgotten Adam Walsh, a boy who remains frozen in time, baseball bat, cap and smile, always in my mind. I am glad that the Walsh’s, John and Reve’, feel that Adam has been brought home.
September 12, 2011
I am so freaking mad at the world right now. How can these police not have been charged? Taking someones retirement away is NOT punishment. Letting someone resign is NOT punishment. This country is going to hell and apparently is has been for some time now. I knew there was a problem with our judicial system long before Casey Anthony got away with murder but I had no idea just how incompetent police really can be. Florida especially it seems. They need to fire each and ever police officer and up in that entire armpit of the earth and have another state hire a whole new police force because I have had direct experience myself with them and they're idiots. I can't put into words how utterly pissed I am right now. Excuse me if I ramble, I made notes in the book - many of them - and don't want to forget anything. I probably will anyway so you should read the book yourselves and see how badly these "police", these so-called "protectors" messed up this little boys case.
The letter that this piece of shit Toole wrote to Walsh from prison is beyond effing words. I hope he was tortured in prison every single day he was there. He had the audacity to tell Walsh he'd lead him to his son's bones if he paid him. He told Walsh his son was a "prick teaser" and that he "dumped his smelly ass into the canal". He said he was a "sweet little piece of ass". I can't believe I just typed those words in relation to this. I cannot fathom, as a parent, the hurt that would come from reading this assholes words. And yet the cops do nothing, like always.
One of the incapable detectives, Hickman, took Walsh aside and told him, after handing him a religious pamphlet, "I know how you feel. But if you'd take Jesus as your savior, your son will return."
How DARE he say anything like that to this man. He knows how he feels? Did he deal with a son being kidnapped, murdered, and then a wholly incapable police force pretending to catch the killer? Did he?
There was so much information in this case that wasn't unearthed when it could have been, that wasn't investigated thoroughly, and that was actually hidden and not entered, that it's astounding.
I guess Florida likes it's child killers to stay free and not be prosecuted. Remind me, as if I needed it, not to ever go to that armpit of a state again.
The fact that these police were not charged is as upsetting as can be. How can they have gotten away with this so easily and after keeping this going so long? Do the John and Reve Walsh have no rights as citizens of this country? Did Adam not?
These parents had to deal with the absolute worst thing that could ever happen. Just for one second - ONE SECOND - imagine having to deal with and KNOW your baby was kidnapped, raped and sodomized as he screamed for his Mommy, tortured, beheaded and thrown in a canal like a piece of damn trash. Then imagine knowing some monster - who the police couldn't care less about finding and charging - some monster THREW YOUR BABIES SEVERED HEAD ON THE FLOOR OF HIS CAR AND PROCEEDED TO DRIVE AROUND WITH IT. That if - and it's a BIG if as anyone who reads this knows - he didn't sexually abuse Adam's head after he severed it from his body. Go ahead. Imagine it.
Now imagine a police force that you have to put your trust in not doing a Goddamnned thing. How these two didn't commit suicide I'll never know. They have to be the world's strongest people in my opinion because I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I could not have handled it.
When the prosecutor was finally shown pieces of evidence, like the letter Toole wrote to Walsh so many years ago, he had never ever seen it or heard of it before. He told Walsh he could have gotten a conviction on the letter alone, never mind the volumes of other evidence the police had which was only a fraction of what they could have had with proper investigating. How freaking sad.
The picture are hard but as any t.c. reader knows, there are some hard ones out there in the midst of all the "shocking" photos of a school or house. The Sears game display is shown, where Adam was last seen by his Mother, a picture of Adam is happier times, the missing poster his parents made. The next page shows the prick Hoffman, (the detective that hindered the case the most), his prick partner Hickman, (second place in hindering IMO) and Martin, the Hollywood chief. The third page shows a picture of John and Reve leaving for Good Morning America and also at a memorial service for Adam. The next page is a pic of Toole with his stupid looking ass, a horrible picture he drew while in jail, and a piece of the letter he wrote to Walsh from prison.
The canal where Adam's head floated to the surface and was found is shown, Toole's car and the run-off road where Toole dismembered and beheaded Adam is also shown. Then it gets real bad.
Toole's machete is shown in regular light, no luminol. Nothing seen but rust and the rape he wrapped on the handle. Then we see a pic of the luminol enhanced machete with the tape having been taken off and the luminol is lit up on the handle. (Cops never once took of this tape prior to Matthews getting involved. A child would know to check for blood underneath the tape. Then we see the driver side floorboard of Toole's car, regular light, no luminol. And with luminol, we can see to clear bloody footprints.
The last photo is frightening. I haven't been able to get it out of my mind since I first laid eyes on it. The last photo is a picture of Adam's head... outlined in blood. Toole took Adam's head, threw it behind his seat and drove away before thinking better of carrying it around and threw it into the canal. While Adam's head laid there, the blood soaked into the carpet in the outline of Adam's head. I don't think I've ever seen anything more frightening than this picture. Just imagining how this image came to be is terrifying. The fact that Adam's mouth is open is can be seen, his nose and eyes can be seen. It's awful. And John and Reve Walsh have seen this photo.
There is evil in this world and if you ask me, Hoffman and Hickman and every other cop who hindered this investigation are only a half of a step down from Toole himself.
The letter that this piece of shit Toole wrote to Walsh from prison is beyond effing words. I hope he was tortured in prison every single day he was there. He had the audacity to tell Walsh he'd lead him to his son's bones if he paid him. He told Walsh his son was a "prick teaser" and that he "dumped his smelly ass into the canal". He said he was a "sweet little piece of ass". I can't believe I just typed those words in relation to this. I cannot fathom, as a parent, the hurt that would come from reading this assholes words. And yet the cops do nothing, like always.
One of the incapable detectives, Hickman, took Walsh aside and told him, after handing him a religious pamphlet, "I know how you feel. But if you'd take Jesus as your savior, your son will return."
How DARE he say anything like that to this man. He knows how he feels? Did he deal with a son being kidnapped, murdered, and then a wholly incapable police force pretending to catch the killer? Did he?
There was so much information in this case that wasn't unearthed when it could have been, that wasn't investigated thoroughly, and that was actually hidden and not entered, that it's astounding.
I guess Florida likes it's child killers to stay free and not be prosecuted. Remind me, as if I needed it, not to ever go to that armpit of a state again.
The fact that these police were not charged is as upsetting as can be. How can they have gotten away with this so easily and after keeping this going so long? Do the John and Reve Walsh have no rights as citizens of this country? Did Adam not?
These parents had to deal with the absolute worst thing that could ever happen. Just for one second - ONE SECOND - imagine having to deal with and KNOW your baby was kidnapped, raped and sodomized as he screamed for his Mommy, tortured, beheaded and thrown in a canal like a piece of damn trash. Then imagine knowing some monster - who the police couldn't care less about finding and charging - some monster THREW YOUR BABIES SEVERED HEAD ON THE FLOOR OF HIS CAR AND PROCEEDED TO DRIVE AROUND WITH IT. That if - and it's a BIG if as anyone who reads this knows - he didn't sexually abuse Adam's head after he severed it from his body. Go ahead. Imagine it.
Now imagine a police force that you have to put your trust in not doing a Goddamnned thing. How these two didn't commit suicide I'll never know. They have to be the world's strongest people in my opinion because I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I could not have handled it.
When the prosecutor was finally shown pieces of evidence, like the letter Toole wrote to Walsh so many years ago, he had never ever seen it or heard of it before. He told Walsh he could have gotten a conviction on the letter alone, never mind the volumes of other evidence the police had which was only a fraction of what they could have had with proper investigating. How freaking sad.
The picture are hard but as any t.c. reader knows, there are some hard ones out there in the midst of all the "shocking" photos of a school or house. The Sears game display is shown, where Adam was last seen by his Mother, a picture of Adam is happier times, the missing poster his parents made. The next page shows the prick Hoffman, (the detective that hindered the case the most), his prick partner Hickman, (second place in hindering IMO) and Martin, the Hollywood chief. The third page shows a picture of John and Reve leaving for Good Morning America and also at a memorial service for Adam. The next page is a pic of Toole with his stupid looking ass, a horrible picture he drew while in jail, and a piece of the letter he wrote to Walsh from prison.
The canal where Adam's head floated to the surface and was found is shown, Toole's car and the run-off road where Toole dismembered and beheaded Adam is also shown. Then it gets real bad.
Toole's machete is shown in regular light, no luminol. Nothing seen but rust and the rape he wrapped on the handle. Then we see a pic of the luminol enhanced machete with the tape having been taken off and the luminol is lit up on the handle. (Cops never once took of this tape prior to Matthews getting involved. A child would know to check for blood underneath the tape. Then we see the driver side floorboard of Toole's car, regular light, no luminol. And with luminol, we can see to clear bloody footprints.
The last photo is frightening. I haven't been able to get it out of my mind since I first laid eyes on it. The last photo is a picture of Adam's head... outlined in blood. Toole took Adam's head, threw it behind his seat and drove away before thinking better of carrying it around and threw it into the canal. While Adam's head laid there, the blood soaked into the carpet in the outline of Adam's head. I don't think I've ever seen anything more frightening than this picture. Just imagining how this image came to be is terrifying. The fact that Adam's mouth is open is can be seen, his nose and eyes can be seen. It's awful. And John and Reve Walsh have seen this photo.
There is evil in this world and if you ask me, Hoffman and Hickman and every other cop who hindered this investigation are only a half of a step down from Toole himself.
March 12, 2019
The abduction and brutal murder of Adam Walsh went unsolved for 27 years. This is the story of the determination of one dedicated detective who would not let the case rest until a monster was brought to justice.
A powerful, well written account that is heartbreaking, infuriating, horrifying and finally inspiring.
Highly recommended.
A powerful, well written account that is heartbreaking, infuriating, horrifying and finally inspiring.
Highly recommended.
September 5, 2016
I picked this book up from the library and perused it from an unusual position of ignorance regarding the subject, as I don't think I'd ever heard of Adam Walsh, have never watched America's Most Wanted, and had no idea that its presenter was anything other than a TV personality. (I am several years younger than Adam Walsh would be, so I suspect my parents have heard of him and simply didn't discuss it with me.)
So, to fill in anyone similarly clueless, Adam Walsh was abducted from a Sears store in Florida in 1981 and his severed head was found in a canal several week later. As his parents found a new calling as advocates for missing and exploited children, the case of his murder went cold--even though a man implicated in a number of other murders repeatedly confessed to having killed Adam and knew details of the case that had never been publicly aired.
This book was cowritten by a detective frustrated by the mishandling of the case and it describes problems with the investigation. In particular, the local police department was disorganized (taking notes on a matchbook cover, for example) and the lead detective seemed more interested in proving the most likely suspect couldn't have committed the crime than in capitalizing on the circumstantial evidence that was accumulating. The problem is that no explanation is ever given for why the lead detective would behave that way, other than him being an incompetent jerk. Meanwhile, the detective who cowrote this book--who worked for a neighboring jurisdiction and was initially called in as a polygraph expert--comes off as a man superior in skills, intelligence, and morals. It doesn't take a strict editor to start asking questions about this: What were the lead detective's motives? Is there another side to this story?
Several blurbs talk about the marvelous writing in this book. I disagree--it's plodding and sometimes maudlin, and the author hasn't discovered a nice turn of phrase that he won't use three times in the space of a few pages. I've made a few previous forays into the true-crime genre and then, as now, I found myself wondering what the point was. After all, reading this analysis isn't going to cause me to make changes in the way I investigate murder cases. Meanwhile, the book lionizes the Walsh family for their efforts on behalf of the Center for Missing and Exploited Children (fair enough) but also for their role in creating a world where children are watched by eagle-eyed parents and not allowed to wander off to play alone. I'm not sure the latter part of that is actually a good thing.
So, to fill in anyone similarly clueless, Adam Walsh was abducted from a Sears store in Florida in 1981 and his severed head was found in a canal several week later. As his parents found a new calling as advocates for missing and exploited children, the case of his murder went cold--even though a man implicated in a number of other murders repeatedly confessed to having killed Adam and knew details of the case that had never been publicly aired.
This book was cowritten by a detective frustrated by the mishandling of the case and it describes problems with the investigation. In particular, the local police department was disorganized (taking notes on a matchbook cover, for example) and the lead detective seemed more interested in proving the most likely suspect couldn't have committed the crime than in capitalizing on the circumstantial evidence that was accumulating. The problem is that no explanation is ever given for why the lead detective would behave that way, other than him being an incompetent jerk. Meanwhile, the detective who cowrote this book--who worked for a neighboring jurisdiction and was initially called in as a polygraph expert--comes off as a man superior in skills, intelligence, and morals. It doesn't take a strict editor to start asking questions about this: What were the lead detective's motives? Is there another side to this story?
Several blurbs talk about the marvelous writing in this book. I disagree--it's plodding and sometimes maudlin, and the author hasn't discovered a nice turn of phrase that he won't use three times in the space of a few pages. I've made a few previous forays into the true-crime genre and then, as now, I found myself wondering what the point was. After all, reading this analysis isn't going to cause me to make changes in the way I investigate murder cases. Meanwhile, the book lionizes the Walsh family for their efforts on behalf of the Center for Missing and Exploited Children (fair enough) but also for their role in creating a world where children are watched by eagle-eyed parents and not allowed to wander off to play alone. I'm not sure the latter part of that is actually a good thing.
November 15, 2021
A really excellent, if grim, read. Fills in all the gaps left by TEARS OF RAGE and explains a great deal about how the investigators into Adam Walsh's hideous murder dropped the ball, not once but over and over. This also serves as a kind of study in how to fcrew up a police 8nvestigation without really trying. Well worth your time.
September 22, 2024
Riveting!
I hesitated to read this tragic story because I knew the story -- or I thought I did!
As a former homicide detective, I was pissed if throughout the entire book at the so-called efforts by Hoffman and the other bafoons at Hollywood (Florida) P.D. What a joke those clowns were! Even the administrators (until the end) were incompetent, narrow minded, and bordering on corrupt. I hope Hoffman, especially, has lived out his life in shame. What a tool!
As for Joe Matthews, God bless you, brother. You are the absolute epitome of a homicide cop. Thank you for your service, dedication, and resolve to bring closure to this horrific case.
My heart breaks for the Walsh family. There is no worse tragedy than what they've endured.
And finally, Mr. Standiford, you did a terrific job writing the story with clarity and courage. Thank you!
I hesitated to read this tragic story because I knew the story -- or I thought I did!
As a former homicide detective, I was pissed if throughout the entire book at the so-called efforts by Hoffman and the other bafoons at Hollywood (Florida) P.D. What a joke those clowns were! Even the administrators (until the end) were incompetent, narrow minded, and bordering on corrupt. I hope Hoffman, especially, has lived out his life in shame. What a tool!
As for Joe Matthews, God bless you, brother. You are the absolute epitome of a homicide cop. Thank you for your service, dedication, and resolve to bring closure to this horrific case.
My heart breaks for the Walsh family. There is no worse tragedy than what they've endured.
And finally, Mr. Standiford, you did a terrific job writing the story with clarity and courage. Thank you!
January 8, 2011
My opinion: Wow, where to begin. I think it's safe to say everyone knows about the Adam Walsh case; I remember hearing about it growing up and I used to watch America's Most Wanted all the time. However, I really never knew the details of the case. I was under the assumption that all of those years there were just no clues as to who might have kidnapped and murdered that 6 year old boy. Obviously I was wrong, because about 2 years after he was murdered, a man by the name of Ottis Toole confessed to the murder, numerous times in fact. Due to mistakes or just blatant negligence on the part of the police department this man escaped being tried for this crime for over 25 years. There were many detectives and officers that were guilty of ignoring or destroying evidence, but none so much as Detective Hoffman. I was outraged by all of the things he overlooked, the interviews that were not thorough enough, the interviews that were ignored completely, and evidence that either disappeared or was never looked at. The fact that the Walshes had to suffer all of these years, not knowing for sure what happened to their son (the police department hardly ever kept them informed on any progress, or lack there-of). If it were not for Detective Matthews continued effort to solve this case and bring peace and justice for the Walshes, it might never have been solved. Even at the beginning, it seemed as though Matthews was the only one interested in actually solving the case, instead of just pinning it on the first suspicious person. Over 25 years went by with the case not going anywhere because they didn't have "hard" evidence that Toole actually commited the crime. Finally the Walshes personally ask their now friend Detective Matthews to personally investigate and find out once and for all who murdered their little boy. And so Detective Matthews sets out to help bring some sort of closure to this family.
This book was amazing! It brought me to tears at parts, a few parts made me laugh, but mostly I was shaking my head asking "why?" Why wasn't more done to put the killer away, especially after he confessed to the murder multiple times? It's like they didn't want to go through all of the trouble to follow up on it, so they just swept it under the rug. Of course like any loving parents, the Walshes could not let this go and because of their efforts through all of these years, many new laws and alerts have been developed to help protect and find lost children. As a mom, I can't imagine what Mrs. Walsh went through after Adam disappeared; I'm sure she felt responsible, but like the book says, at that time people weren't worried about their kids being taken, it just didn't happen. Everyone should read this story; it was an amazing read, horrifying and enlightening at the same time.
My rating: 5/5 stars
This book was amazing! It brought me to tears at parts, a few parts made me laugh, but mostly I was shaking my head asking "why?" Why wasn't more done to put the killer away, especially after he confessed to the murder multiple times? It's like they didn't want to go through all of the trouble to follow up on it, so they just swept it under the rug. Of course like any loving parents, the Walshes could not let this go and because of their efforts through all of these years, many new laws and alerts have been developed to help protect and find lost children. As a mom, I can't imagine what Mrs. Walsh went through after Adam disappeared; I'm sure she felt responsible, but like the book says, at that time people weren't worried about their kids being taken, it just didn't happen. Everyone should read this story; it was an amazing read, horrifying and enlightening at the same time.
My rating: 5/5 stars
January 31, 2011
I was barely a toddler when Adam Walsh was abducted and murdered, but I remember the vigilance it instilled in parents. Though I grew up with John Walsh on my television, I never knew the gruesome details of what drove him to be an advocate for missing and exploited children. What happened to his son Adam is horrific, but even more terrifying is the disastrous job the local law enforcement did in trying to solve the crime and bring the perpetrator to justice. The Hollywood, Florida police department in 1981 was an inefficient, unorganized mess, and Detective Jack Hoffman, the lead investigator on the case, was more concerned with his own reputation than achieving any results. Admittedly, the lack of technology and modern practices was a deficit at the time, but Hoffman’s inflexibility and defensiveness were more damaging to the investigation. Ottis Toole, the man thought responsible was behind bars, convicted in three other murders, but despite his confessions, he was never charged with Adam’s grisly murder.
Twenty-five years later, at the personal request of the Walshes, it was up to Miami Detective Joe Matthews to examine the immense case file and gather circumstantial evidence against Toole to put the case to rest once and for all. The Hollywood police department finally underwent a much needed change in leadership, allowing Matthews to uncover key evidence that Hoffman either ignored or dismissed. By then, Toole had died in prison and other key witnesses were also deceased, but his remarkable investigative skills allowed him to prove Toole’s guilt and give the Walsh family peace of mind after almost three decades.
While the story was disturbing at times, the book itself was incredibly well written. I was hooked from the first page and devoured the book in a day. As co-author, the insight that Matthews gave was invaluable. I was deeply moved by the tragedy that the Walshes faced over the course of twenty-seven years, but I was also inspired by all they had done to ensure that Adam’s fate would be a lesson to the nation.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the Amazon Vine program.
Twenty-five years later, at the personal request of the Walshes, it was up to Miami Detective Joe Matthews to examine the immense case file and gather circumstantial evidence against Toole to put the case to rest once and for all. The Hollywood police department finally underwent a much needed change in leadership, allowing Matthews to uncover key evidence that Hoffman either ignored or dismissed. By then, Toole had died in prison and other key witnesses were also deceased, but his remarkable investigative skills allowed him to prove Toole’s guilt and give the Walsh family peace of mind after almost three decades.
While the story was disturbing at times, the book itself was incredibly well written. I was hooked from the first page and devoured the book in a day. As co-author, the insight that Matthews gave was invaluable. I was deeply moved by the tragedy that the Walshes faced over the course of twenty-seven years, but I was also inspired by all they had done to ensure that Adam’s fate would be a lesson to the nation.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the Amazon Vine program.
December 2, 2011
I still remember when Adam Walsh was abducted, and seeing the news coverage, watching his distraught parents on television and hearing them plead for his life. I also watched the TV movies about it and recall the ensuing crusade for a center to advocate for missing children.
Like most people, I also recognize John Walsh from "America's Most Wanted" and watched many interviews with him on television, some of which revolved around his young son's abduction and murder.
So I didn't think this book would have much to say that was new.
Holy crap, was I wrong. I didn't realize that for YEARS, the Walshes and some authorities pretty much knew who it had been who had killed Adam. The book talks about how this killer was finally held responsible for the boy's death. But because of massive and horrible cover-ups, laziness, screw-ups and plain incompetence on behalf of law enforcement, the killer was dead before officials acknowledged that he had been the one to take the life of that adorable little boy.
The book does a great job of portraying the agony of the parents while keeping outrage simmering over the feelings of helplessness as they begged those in positions of power to help them, to do something with information they had.
The Walsh family has done more to advance the cause of advocating for missing and exploited children than anyone in our country - the book is a real eye opener about how lax the system used to be and how much better it is now. 10-19
Like most people, I also recognize John Walsh from "America's Most Wanted" and watched many interviews with him on television, some of which revolved around his young son's abduction and murder.
So I didn't think this book would have much to say that was new.
Holy crap, was I wrong. I didn't realize that for YEARS, the Walshes and some authorities pretty much knew who it had been who had killed Adam. The book talks about how this killer was finally held responsible for the boy's death. But because of massive and horrible cover-ups, laziness, screw-ups and plain incompetence on behalf of law enforcement, the killer was dead before officials acknowledged that he had been the one to take the life of that adorable little boy.
The book does a great job of portraying the agony of the parents while keeping outrage simmering over the feelings of helplessness as they begged those in positions of power to help them, to do something with information they had.
The Walsh family has done more to advance the cause of advocating for missing and exploited children than anyone in our country - the book is a real eye opener about how lax the system used to be and how much better it is now. 10-19
September 7, 2012
Adam Walsh was a big deal when I was a kid. He was kidnapped a few days after my 5th birthday, an hour and a half south of where I lived with my mom. His head was found a few weeks after that an hour north of where I lived. I've thought about it since -- about this lone car, driving through my town late at night while I was sleeping, with a little boy in the trunk.
There was a change after that, in my mom and in the parents of my friends. They watched us closer. We were always made sure doors and windows were locked. When we went shopping, they were on us like hawks. We knew all about stranger danger and had special guests come to class to talk to us about strangers. There's a picture of my in my grade school yearbook getting my fingerprints taken as part of such an initiative by the local police force. Things changed.
I knew what all this was from a kid's point of view -- I'm really looking forward to reading this book from an adult's point of view, and espeically by such a great author as Les Standiford. His non-fiction work is spectacular, and I know I won't be disappointed.
There was a change after that, in my mom and in the parents of my friends. They watched us closer. We were always made sure doors and windows were locked. When we went shopping, they were on us like hawks. We knew all about stranger danger and had special guests come to class to talk to us about strangers. There's a picture of my in my grade school yearbook getting my fingerprints taken as part of such an initiative by the local police force. Things changed.
I knew what all this was from a kid's point of view -- I'm really looking forward to reading this book from an adult's point of view, and espeically by such a great author as Les Standiford. His non-fiction work is spectacular, and I know I won't be disappointed.
March 10, 2012
Very good book giving the details behind the murder of Adam Walsh and his killer Ottis Toole. My heart ached for the Walsh's, especially Reve and the enormous guilt she must have felt as a mother wondering "what if" or "only if". I was absolutely disgusted and furious with the inept bungling by Jack Hoffman (he should be ashamed of himself if his enormous ego would let him) and the Hollywood, Florida police department. If any so called good came out of this it's John Walsh's tenacity in bringing laws into the books protecting children and by putting scum into jail. I have no words for a lowlife like Toole. It's just scary knowing there are monsters out there like him.
July 8, 2011
starting a little slow, with details about the area & cops involved. i am promised it will pick up (SUSAN!) ...
7/4-- getting into the story more. alot of what is reported is not as i remember it happening, but I was so young... the lead det. hoffman, i despise. working my way through...
7/8--one of the most poorly written true crime books ever. Fascinating case, and a real study on the politics of police work and the media. But, I'd LOVE to re-write all his research into a book that was actually interesting to read...
7/4-- getting into the story more. alot of what is reported is not as i remember it happening, but I was so young... the lead det. hoffman, i despise. working my way through...
7/8--one of the most poorly written true crime books ever. Fascinating case, and a real study on the politics of police work and the media. But, I'd LOVE to re-write all his research into a book that was actually interesting to read...
Read
April 3, 2014Read only half of it in a normal pace but the second part I fast forwarded. Yes you can read fast forward ;) because I had already read a lot about this case.So I am not going to give this one a rating. I did like the writing of the first part.
November 19, 2018
I would have thrown this book about 146 times except it was on my Nook. Probably the most inept investigation I've ever read about. The Walshes should have never suffered as much or for as king as they did but for the Royal idiots who were in charge of finding Adam and his kidnapper.
February 22, 2022
I don't exactly love the way this book was written but the story inside was fascinating. I've somehow never watching a youtube video on the death of Adam Walsh, despite how much true crime I've watched on youtube. So this was all new information.
I just can't tell if the author wrote this removed any mystery to the outcome, or if the story itself had no mystery. Just insane police incompetence. I would have preferred the mystery.
It also would have been really nice if the book gave ways "the abduction changed america" other than "woe is the US child for they are no longer able to return home when the street lights turn on" which is all the book really did to cover that subtitle.
I just can't tell if the author wrote this removed any mystery to the outcome, or if the story itself had no mystery. Just insane police incompetence. I would have preferred the mystery.
It also would have been really nice if the book gave ways "the abduction changed america" other than "woe is the US child for they are no longer able to return home when the street lights turn on" which is all the book really did to cover that subtitle.
April 30, 2011
Bringing Adam Home is a grisly unflinching account of six-year old Adam Walsh's murder and the long jinxed investigation that followed. Many of you might be familiar with the name Adam Walsh - son of America's Most Wanted host, John Walsh and his wife, Revé. He was abducted one day in 1981 from Sears, where his mother left him for a few minutes at an arcade stall and came back to find him missing. He was then murdered by a serial killer, Otis Toole. What follows is a badly put investigative effort that should have solved the case in 1983, but instead neglects evidence, abandons proper interviewing techniques and has an incompetent detective who is more worried about his reputation than in solving crimes. This book details much of that evidence - Otis Toole himself coming forward multiple times to confess, the crime scene photos that were never printed (the biggest evidence of all was in these photos), and not following up with or giving any importance to the eyewitnesses that came forward.
Right from the first page, this book hooked me in. I like reading about true crime - I've thoroughly enjoyed reading In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, which features a cold-blooded killer, Perry Smith. Columbine by Dave Cullen was a favorite read from last year, it featured two teen misfits, who went on to make Columbine a household word forever. Otis Toole, Adam's murderer is a drifter and a very "strange man" with "strange eyes" - he has a very low IQ, several learning disabilities, and a troubled upbringing. He was the only suspect in the murder right from when he first confesses, but he was never charged. Detective Sgt Joe Matthews was pulled in to help on the case initially but Jack Hoffman, the arrogant detective in charge dismissed him soon. Since then, Matthews' repeated attempts to help were always botched, even though he always made some new finding.
Les Standiford writes a well-researched book, that never once reads like a boring crime report. Instead, although the reader already knows the outcome of the whole investigation right in the first few pages of this book, I never once could put the book down - and took to reading it at every spare minute I got. Les Standiford attributes Detective Sgt. Joe Matthews for all the research, but it cannot be denied that he has shared all that research with the readers in a compelling style. This book is a reader's dream - a true crime, psychopathic or remorseless killers, the anxious wait for justice. This book is also a person's nightmare - a true crime, psychopathic or remorseless killers, the anxious wait for justice.
Adam Walsh's murder is another one of those defining events that can be said in terms of before and after. Before the murder, children enjoyed plenty of freedom, they would play out all day without adult supervision and be back as promised before dinner. Parents hardly batted an eyelid when their child requested if he/she could play someplace else in a mall, while they went shopping. After Adam Walsh's murder, though, "Few parents would ever again leave their children alone or unattended in public places". I belong to the After era. I've never known life otherwise, so some parts of this book evoked plain disbelief in me. I wanted to ask many times, how Revé and a lot of parents left their children unattended. I grew up hearing every day from my parents - there are bad people out there, don't talk to strangers, don't go anywhere without telling us. That's the same thing I've told every younger cousin of mine and also my nieces and nephews. I had to suspend my current conditioning to accept that times used to be safer for kids at one point. There weren't any pedophiles or serial killers who targeted kids, rapists or abductors then, like there are plentiful now.
As I mentioned earlier, this book is a grisly and unflinching account of the murder. There are many aspects described vividly (Adam Walsh is the only child Toole murders. But he confesses to it many times.) There is supposedly a photo shared in this book (it was absent in my review copy, but I saw it online), that I couldn't stop staring at. It was horrifying once you understood what the picture was but it wasn't obvious (a layman glance didn't help me much). But this book is not so much about the grisly murders as it is about the investigation. It is also a testament to the Walshes' work towards ensuring stronger laws and legislation to protect kids. In Matthews' words, their work made sure that "From the moment a child goes missing, no matter what, everybody drops what they're doing". It is also an ovation to Sgt. Matthews for finally providing the Walshes an answer to the twenty-five year old question regarding what happened to their child. In the end, this is an impressive documentation of how things changed so much - from the days when kids could easily go anywhere so long as they promised to be back before dark, to the current unwritten rule of never leaving a child unattended.
Right from the first page, this book hooked me in. I like reading about true crime - I've thoroughly enjoyed reading In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, which features a cold-blooded killer, Perry Smith. Columbine by Dave Cullen was a favorite read from last year, it featured two teen misfits, who went on to make Columbine a household word forever. Otis Toole, Adam's murderer is a drifter and a very "strange man" with "strange eyes" - he has a very low IQ, several learning disabilities, and a troubled upbringing. He was the only suspect in the murder right from when he first confesses, but he was never charged. Detective Sgt Joe Matthews was pulled in to help on the case initially but Jack Hoffman, the arrogant detective in charge dismissed him soon. Since then, Matthews' repeated attempts to help were always botched, even though he always made some new finding.
Les Standiford writes a well-researched book, that never once reads like a boring crime report. Instead, although the reader already knows the outcome of the whole investigation right in the first few pages of this book, I never once could put the book down - and took to reading it at every spare minute I got. Les Standiford attributes Detective Sgt. Joe Matthews for all the research, but it cannot be denied that he has shared all that research with the readers in a compelling style. This book is a reader's dream - a true crime, psychopathic or remorseless killers, the anxious wait for justice. This book is also a person's nightmare - a true crime, psychopathic or remorseless killers, the anxious wait for justice.
Adam Walsh's murder is another one of those defining events that can be said in terms of before and after. Before the murder, children enjoyed plenty of freedom, they would play out all day without adult supervision and be back as promised before dinner. Parents hardly batted an eyelid when their child requested if he/she could play someplace else in a mall, while they went shopping. After Adam Walsh's murder, though, "Few parents would ever again leave their children alone or unattended in public places". I belong to the After era. I've never known life otherwise, so some parts of this book evoked plain disbelief in me. I wanted to ask many times, how Revé and a lot of parents left their children unattended. I grew up hearing every day from my parents - there are bad people out there, don't talk to strangers, don't go anywhere without telling us. That's the same thing I've told every younger cousin of mine and also my nieces and nephews. I had to suspend my current conditioning to accept that times used to be safer for kids at one point. There weren't any pedophiles or serial killers who targeted kids, rapists or abductors then, like there are plentiful now.
As I mentioned earlier, this book is a grisly and unflinching account of the murder. There are many aspects described vividly (Adam Walsh is the only child Toole murders. But he confesses to it many times.) There is supposedly a photo shared in this book (it was absent in my review copy, but I saw it online), that I couldn't stop staring at. It was horrifying once you understood what the picture was but it wasn't obvious (a layman glance didn't help me much). But this book is not so much about the grisly murders as it is about the investigation. It is also a testament to the Walshes' work towards ensuring stronger laws and legislation to protect kids. In Matthews' words, their work made sure that "From the moment a child goes missing, no matter what, everybody drops what they're doing". It is also an ovation to Sgt. Matthews for finally providing the Walshes an answer to the twenty-five year old question regarding what happened to their child. In the end, this is an impressive documentation of how things changed so much - from the days when kids could easily go anywhere so long as they promised to be back before dark, to the current unwritten rule of never leaving a child unattended.
May 17, 2011
I am one of the few people on the planet who don't think In Cold Blood is the definitive true crime classic - - in fact, I didn't finish it because it simply didn't live up to expectations for me. So I cannot compare Bringing Adam Home directly to it although I will say that this recent book on the noteworthy and law changing Adam Walsh case left me disappointed.
The writing itself was well done and I found no fault with author Les Standiford, who with more than twenty books under his belt is indeed a professional. However, the book felt both anemic and strangely bloated. While reading through the text I felt that much of the informaton was repeated ad nauseaum. It is fact that suspect Ottis Toole gave more than eight confessions to this horrific crime to various detectives but I didn't feel it was necessary to recount each and every confession unless his recounting had significantly changed.
I wish more emphasis had been placed on the Walshes themselves, and the wonderful work they did in the aftermath of this incredible tragedy, rather than so much of the spotlight being placed on Toole and his lover and fellow serial killer Henry Lee Lucas. As a long time reader of true crime I know that the majority of books dealing with crime focus extensively on the perpetrators, out of necessity, and the victims themselves often lose their individual voices but I felt this book had a prime opportunity to really present this case from the victims' standpoints and it didn't quite do that in my opinion.
In addition to disappointment, the book left me frustrated and angry on behalf of the Walshes. In recounting the case it's glaringly obvious that the case should have been officially solved and closed back in 1983, two years after the murder, when Lead Detective Jack Hoffman was given the multiple confessions of Toole. However, for reasons probably best known to him, he stubbornly refused to believe Toole guilty of the murder, much less arrest and charge him. Granted, it was 1981 but the way the Hollywood Police Department handled the Walsh case is a textbook example of how not to handle missing and murdered children.
Given its graphic subject matter and descriptions, Bringing Adam Home is not for the sensitive or squeamish reader. There is violence aplenty and rude language so reader beware. However, Bringing Adam Home is a fascinating study of law enforcement and detecting gone wrong and should be required reading for any person looking into the field of law enforcement.
The writing itself was well done and I found no fault with author Les Standiford, who with more than twenty books under his belt is indeed a professional. However, the book felt both anemic and strangely bloated. While reading through the text I felt that much of the informaton was repeated ad nauseaum. It is fact that suspect Ottis Toole gave more than eight confessions to this horrific crime to various detectives but I didn't feel it was necessary to recount each and every confession unless his recounting had significantly changed.
I wish more emphasis had been placed on the Walshes themselves, and the wonderful work they did in the aftermath of this incredible tragedy, rather than so much of the spotlight being placed on Toole and his lover and fellow serial killer Henry Lee Lucas. As a long time reader of true crime I know that the majority of books dealing with crime focus extensively on the perpetrators, out of necessity, and the victims themselves often lose their individual voices but I felt this book had a prime opportunity to really present this case from the victims' standpoints and it didn't quite do that in my opinion.
In addition to disappointment, the book left me frustrated and angry on behalf of the Walshes. In recounting the case it's glaringly obvious that the case should have been officially solved and closed back in 1983, two years after the murder, when Lead Detective Jack Hoffman was given the multiple confessions of Toole. However, for reasons probably best known to him, he stubbornly refused to believe Toole guilty of the murder, much less arrest and charge him. Granted, it was 1981 but the way the Hollywood Police Department handled the Walsh case is a textbook example of how not to handle missing and murdered children.
Given its graphic subject matter and descriptions, Bringing Adam Home is not for the sensitive or squeamish reader. There is violence aplenty and rude language so reader beware. However, Bringing Adam Home is a fascinating study of law enforcement and detecting gone wrong and should be required reading for any person looking into the field of law enforcement.
February 23, 2023
That's enough of that!
I reached for non-fiction to try to ease the fiction book hangover I had. This was buried somewhere in my TBR pile; I can't even remember adding it. But I'd read Standiford's Last Train to Paradise some years back and enjoyed it. I figured I was in good hands.
I was a kid in the 80s and remember the TV show "America's Most Wanted" very well. Over the years, I was kind of aware that the man who created that show had a son who'd gone missing. Truth be told, I never knew what had happened ultimately. As this book is titled Bringing Adam Home, I halfway thought I was going to learn that they'd discovered his whereabouts, and actually reunited him with is family after many years. (Spoiler: Uh-uh.)
In the first chapter, this book discloses (for the few people who didn't know already) that Adam had been abducted and killed, a fact everyone involved found out within weeks of his disappearance. The point of this book then, was to outline the sloppy police work which caused a 20-something-year delay in bringing the killer to justice.
I made it to the 30% point, but by then I had read the killer's gruesome confession at least three times, and was also told all about this psychotic man's, erm, habits, before he became incarcerated (for other crimes as well).
The book suffers from poor writing, and the fact that it is co-authored by the one cop who was doing everything right doesn't help. I'm sure there's some truth to it; it's not a leap to imagine a department of blow-hard turf protectors who instinctively thwart the efforts of the specialist called in to help with the case. But the way this was presented was repetitive and a chore to read.
Just couldn't stick this one out.
I reached for non-fiction to try to ease the fiction book hangover I had. This was buried somewhere in my TBR pile; I can't even remember adding it. But I'd read Standiford's Last Train to Paradise some years back and enjoyed it. I figured I was in good hands.
I was a kid in the 80s and remember the TV show "America's Most Wanted" very well. Over the years, I was kind of aware that the man who created that show had a son who'd gone missing. Truth be told, I never knew what had happened ultimately. As this book is titled Bringing Adam Home, I halfway thought I was going to learn that they'd discovered his whereabouts, and actually reunited him with is family after many years. (Spoiler: Uh-uh.)
In the first chapter, this book discloses (for the few people who didn't know already) that Adam had been abducted and killed, a fact everyone involved found out within weeks of his disappearance. The point of this book then, was to outline the sloppy police work which caused a 20-something-year delay in bringing the killer to justice.
I made it to the 30% point, but by then I had read the killer's gruesome confession at least three times, and was also told all about this psychotic man's, erm, habits, before he became incarcerated (for other crimes as well).
The book suffers from poor writing, and the fact that it is co-authored by the one cop who was doing everything right doesn't help. I'm sure there's some truth to it; it's not a leap to imagine a department of blow-hard turf protectors who instinctively thwart the efforts of the specialist called in to help with the case. But the way this was presented was repetitive and a chore to read.
Just couldn't stick this one out.
December 23, 2015
Anyone who was living in 1981 probably remembers the horror of the abduction and murder of Adam Walsh. Parts of this book were very hard to read, but I was surprised at all the things I did NOT know about what occurred in the investigation of this murder. The Hollywood Florida police department and particularly the lead investigator chose to ignore mounds of evidence and refused to solve a very solvable crime. Had the man who did this not been guilty of so many other heinous crimes for which he was jailed for the remainder of his life, he might have gotten away with this murder and never been punished.
What is so remarkable to me is that John Walsh took this unimaginable tragedy and transformed it into a life of helping others who were victims of the same kinds of horrors he and his wife, Reve, had lived through. He was instrumental in founding almost every piece of legislation and every major step toward tracking and finding missing children in this country. That they had to wait so many years to know the truth about what happened to their son when the proof was in the hands of police within two years of the murder is appalling.
I cannot say I enjoyed this book, it was too heartbreaking to ever employ that word to describe what I felt, but I can say that I was enlightened by it. My heart goes out to everyone who has ever had to suffer to loss of a loved one in such a way and especially to those who do not know what happened to their children and never will. The Walshes did not let this tragedy stop them from living, raising children, and having a meaningful life. They did a great deal of good that they never would have done otherwise, and in the end they won an almost impossible battle. They looked evil in the eye and didn't flinch.
What is so remarkable to me is that John Walsh took this unimaginable tragedy and transformed it into a life of helping others who were victims of the same kinds of horrors he and his wife, Reve, had lived through. He was instrumental in founding almost every piece of legislation and every major step toward tracking and finding missing children in this country. That they had to wait so many years to know the truth about what happened to their son when the proof was in the hands of police within two years of the murder is appalling.
I cannot say I enjoyed this book, it was too heartbreaking to ever employ that word to describe what I felt, but I can say that I was enlightened by it. My heart goes out to everyone who has ever had to suffer to loss of a loved one in such a way and especially to those who do not know what happened to their children and never will. The Walshes did not let this tragedy stop them from living, raising children, and having a meaningful life. They did a great deal of good that they never would have done otherwise, and in the end they won an almost impossible battle. They looked evil in the eye and didn't flinch.
March 11, 2011
Les Standiford's book about the Adam Walsh kidnapping-murder, written with Joe Matthews, the retired police detective who finally tracked down all the results from nearly 30 years of slipshod investigations and lost evidence and proved that the man who first confessed to killing Adam in 1983 was indeed his killer.
This book is engrossing not just because of the horror of Adam's murder or even the hard work of his parents in creating The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and his father's TV program, America's Most Wanted. The very minutia of the investigation, the thousands of phone calls, the hundreds of interviews, the shoeleather required to gather information in a case like this is engrossing in itself. Add to that the gross incompetence of some of the people who ran the investigation over the years, including its cold case re-examination, and the failure to develop film from the car in which the murdered boy was transported and you find yourself rooting for the detective to finally settle for the Walsh family what happened to their son and who was responsible.
The book is cleanly and tightly written with no sentimentality and no attempt to titilate the reader with details about the obviously horrible murder. It settles for good a crime that should have been settled in 1983 or 84 and brings to an end the particular suffering of the boy's parents that comes from not knowing for so long who did this dreadful crime. It satisfies our quest for justice when the law enforcement and judicial system pronounce the case truly closed.
2011 No 45
This book is engrossing not just because of the horror of Adam's murder or even the hard work of his parents in creating The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and his father's TV program, America's Most Wanted. The very minutia of the investigation, the thousands of phone calls, the hundreds of interviews, the shoeleather required to gather information in a case like this is engrossing in itself. Add to that the gross incompetence of some of the people who ran the investigation over the years, including its cold case re-examination, and the failure to develop film from the car in which the murdered boy was transported and you find yourself rooting for the detective to finally settle for the Walsh family what happened to their son and who was responsible.
The book is cleanly and tightly written with no sentimentality and no attempt to titilate the reader with details about the obviously horrible murder. It settles for good a crime that should have been settled in 1983 or 84 and brings to an end the particular suffering of the boy's parents that comes from not knowing for so long who did this dreadful crime. It satisfies our quest for justice when the law enforcement and judicial system pronounce the case truly closed.
2011 No 45
June 21, 2011
I wanted to read this because I remember the day Adam Walsh went missing, and I remember when they discovered that he had been murdered. It was a horrible experience that his family had to suffer, and I was really affected by the details of the case. I never knew much of the logistics of the case until reading this book. As I read and learned more and more details, I became so angry at the Hollywood (Florida) and surrounding area police departments! Investigators cared more about their careers and how they personally looked to the public than finding who was responsible and bringing them to justice. The Walsh family had to wait over 30 years after Adam's death for a formal declaration to be made as to who was the murderer---and yet the one responsible confessed shortly after the murder itself, and then continually confessed multiple other times! Not only were the Florida investigators inept, but the police chiefs were there to cover their backs and bury much needed evidence that could have ended so much suffering many years sooner. I am sure this kind of lunacy occurs all over the US and even world. I also know there are good cops and investigators, and the good investigators are the ONLY reason the Walsh's family was able to put Adam's death to rest with any sort of amount of closure. It was really, really eerie to see the pictures from the case that were included in the book----especially the last picture---easily the most horrifying of them all.
October 28, 2014
27 Years of Legal & Police Incompetent Bungling
Almost everyone who watches TV is aware of the famous celebrity, John Walsh, and the well-publicized disappearance of his young son, Adam. However, it’s doubtful that many know the horrific fatal circumstances that the child was subjected to and the details of how he was found, as well as why it took so many years before the murderer finally was officially determined, while“getting away” with the crime. This extremely shocking well-written book explains it all in novelistic prose that’s hard to interrupt as you read with growing anger and teary eyes. The story is horrifyingly gut wrenching, leaving you seething not only over what happened to the boy but also for the prolonged agony his parents endured during the unnecessarily long years of law enforcement pussyfooting before final closure. The brutality in this book is somewhat reminiscent of “The Iceman,” by Philip Carlo but that nonfiction story involves numerous adult victims while Adam Walsh was just an innocent, helpless, beautiful child, which makes “Bringing Adam Home” even more upsetting.
August 21, 2017
Not a complete telling of the Walsh case but a decent recap of how the investigation was bungled. The chapter told from Toole's perspective is lurid garbage; it could easily be left out. There is also not enough explanation of the presence/absence of the relevant prosecutor's offices in the years evidence against Toole was gathered but no charges filed (the author seems to misunderstand the concept of corpus delecti; there were mountains of evidence against Toole and the decision not to prosecute clearly had nothing to do with sufficiency of evidence). Still worth reading.
August 17, 2011
This was just a really difficult read b/c of the subject matter...but I love true crime stuff..find it very interesting and just have memories of hearing Adam's kidnapping referenced to throughout my life, although I never really knew the story. That's why I picked up the book. I find it unbelievable that this case went unsolved for so long but am amazed by the perseverance of the Walsh family and the work they have committed their lives to.
July 17, 2017
There is so much to be said about this case, I don't know where one would begin. From the broken hearts of John and Reve Walsh to the perseverance of those who worked endless hours to the psychopaths involved with the abduction and dismemberment of an innocent child... What does one say? This book was a very detailed account of the numerous memorable moments, good and bad, both inside and outside of the legal system of the Adam Walsh case. Definition: PAGE TURNER.
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