The Most Dangerous Animal of All

June 2, 2014
When an author purports to have uncovered the truth about a notorious unsolved series of murders, let alone that the killer was his own father, it's vital to establish credibility from the outset; unfortunately, Stewart's concession that the narrative "of father's early life" is fictionalized gets things started badly. The unreliability of those sections is a significant drawback that engenders skepticism long before Stewart presents any evidence to support his claim that his biological father, who abandoned him as an infant, was responsible for the murders that terrorized San Francisco in the 1960s. And that evidence is far less impressive than Stewart believesâa resemblance between a wanted poster's image and a picture of his father, a tortured interpretation of a coded message, some ambiguous partial fingerprint, and handwriting evidence. The motive for the crimes-ostensibly the enactment of revenge fantasies on young women resembling Stewart's motherâis also unconvincing, as the author fails to even address the killing of a cabbie that could not have been so motivated. The kicker is the decision to publish before DNA test results are available that could significantly strengthen or weaken the theory.

August 1, 2014

Adoptee Stewart started to look for his biological father. He found out eventually that some mysteries are best left unsolved. The book, written with journalist Mustafa, is broken up into two parts: the first half is the tale of Earl Van Best Jr.'s life, or, as Stewart believes, the life of the Zodiac Killer. The second part chronicles how Stewart came to this conclusion--by going through his father's journals, doing his own research, and interviewing the man's close family and friends. The result is a fascinating occupation that is unsettling as the reader sees how the author slowly realizes that the blood running in his veins likely comes from a man who terrorized the country in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Stewart makes a compelling case, and the text is certainly entertaining, but it's up to the reader to decide if his claim is convincing. He is able to tie together certain details concerning his father and the killer, but there are some leaps that readers have to make willingly, too. VERDICT This well- written work simultaneously tells the lives of two men, one potentially a serial killer. For fans of true crime, 1960s American history, and stories about families discovering lost relatives.--Ryan Claringbole, Coll. Lib. at the Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 15, 2014
An adopted Louisiana engineer's search for his biological roots results in a shocking, highly controversial connection to the Zodiac Killer.With its details legally vetted and enshrouded in pre-publication secrecy, Stewart's head-turning memoir, skillfully co-written by veteran true-crime journalist Mustafa, explores how the search for personal truth can sometimes unearth unexpected results. Though his adoptive parents loved him unconditionally, the author still felt "discarded," plagued by crippling feelings of insecurity and abandonment. At 39, Stewart writes of being contacted by his birth mother, Judy Gilford, a runaway who became pregnant by an older, seductive man. The author, ecstatic at their reunion, began journaling his experience, which soon included an intensive, obsessive search for his father, who he believes to be Earl Van Best Jr., a statutory rapist Stewart would soon discover had abandoned him in a Baton Rouge apartment building stairwell-and who he believes went on to become a notorious murderer. The narrative begins to build suspenseful momentum only after early sections that re-create Best's fractured childhood and early adulthood (heavily influenced, claims Stewart, by notorious Satanist Anton LaVey). Then the author chronicles the ensuing killing spree, encrypted communications and police-taunting media spectacle that immortalized him as the Zodiac Killer. The author painstakingly pieces together over a decade's worth of personal research and verbatim interviews with family, friends and law enforcement, then goes further to scrutinize and compare handwriting samples, police sketches and photographs, all bearing uncanny resemblances to recorded documentation from the Zodiac files. Stewart soberingly remarks that while the burden of DNA proof remains elusive, the closure he has received with his personal investigation has satisfactorily provided the "truth about my life."High-minded speculation and documented assumptions are the building blocks of Stewart's convincing memoir; whether perceived as the byproduct of shrewd spadework or a fertile imagination, the author's family history offers chilling and credible correlations.

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