Buried Dreams: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer [Hardcover]

Tim Cahill (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1986

This account examines the case of John Wayne Gacy, a successful and respected member of the community who cheered up sick children in hospital dressed as a clown, but who was also one of the most prolific serial killers in criminal history. Inside his scrupulously tidy suburban home, in 1978 police found the remains of 29 teenaged boys, all brutally tortured, violated and strangled. The author explores the complex personality, compulsions, inadequacies and torments of a profoundly disturbed human being.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This is the absorbing and disturbing story of John Wayne Gacy, the suburban Chicago businessman sentenced to death in 1980 for the murders of 33 young boys, most of whose bodies were buried in the crawlspace under his home. Cahill, aided in his research by TV reporter Ewing, recreates Gacy's unhappy childhood with a violent father; his seemingly respectable life as a successful contractor and civic leader; and his five-year spree as a murderer who raped and tortured his victims. The book is told mainly from the vantage of the homosexual Gacy, a "creature of lies, internal contradictions, misrepresentations, and false idealism," who claims utter confusion over the crimes. Jurors dismissed an insanity plea, finding Gacy complex, antisocial and rational. Cahill includes graphic accounts of torture and sexual acts. Major ad/promo; first serial to Us magazine; author tour.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

John Gacy, sentenced to death for the Chicago-area slayings of 33 young men, has been the subject of prior bookssee, for example, Terry Sullivan's Killer Clown ( LJ 9/1/83). None, however, has explored the depths of Gacy's aberrant psychology, his childhood, and daily life as well as Buried Dreams. With Gacy's cooperation, albeit often contradictory and self-serving, and a four-year-long investigation, Cahill has managed the difficult task of unmasking, to the extent that it can be done, the motivation of a horrific killer. Readers should be warned that this book contains explicit details of sexual torture and murder. It is as riveting as it is disturbing. Gregor A. Preston, Univ. of California Lib., Davis
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 372 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (February 1, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553051156
• ISBN-13: 978-0553051155
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,036,300 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book on Gacy, April 15, 2006

By 

midwest bookworm - See all my reviews

This review is from: Buried Dreams: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer (Hardcover)

I don't know how anyone my age or near my age who grew up in Chicago or the outlying suburbs could not remember the Gacy case. I had just turned 14 and was a freshman in high school when news first broke of his crimes. I remember my mother turning off the television for the 5:00 PM local news because of the lurid footage showing the remains being carried out of the house in bags. And I remember the Chicago Tribune running a full page showing individual pictures of all of the identified victims; the yearbook and school pictures of the boys looked like most of my classmates.

I first read this book back in 1987. I recently read it again, almost 20 years later, and I still believe it to be the most thorough, comprehensive book on Gacy. Cahill, an excellent journalist, has done an excellent job of presenting a complete picture of the man and his crimes. He managed to "get inside Gacy's head" (an unhealthy place) to give the reader a clear look of Gacy's personality, views on life, attitude towards his victims and reactions to his trial.

Along with covering the crimes, investigation, arrest and trial of Gacy, Cahill also delves into Gacy's childhood and early years, including his relationship with his abusive father. The book is detailed, and Cahill writes with the kind of insight that only comes from having a complete understanding of his subject. It's also clear that Cahill researched Gacy thoroughly, and he notes in his introduction that he culled his information from a number of sources.

As can be expected, this book is scary stuff, with two chapters in particular being extremely disturbing and frightening to read. Cahill doesn't merely describe, he casts the reader in the role of witness to one of Gacy's murders, showing Gacy's core of pure evil. That said, this is also the type of book that is tough to put down, and also the type that stays with you long after having finished it.

I too could not disagree more with the reviewer who accused Cahill of plagiarising "Killer Clown." They are two very different books. And while "Killer Clown" is a good book, written largely from a legal/trial and punishment perspective, the better of the two by far is "Buried Dreams." The best overall book on Gacy.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best in Print!, November 18, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Buried Dreams: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer (Hardcover)

I read this book years ago and I've never forgotten it. Flawless writing and thorough research puts this book marginally ahead of "Killer Clown:The John Wayne Gacy Murders by Terry Sullivan,Peter T Maiken" and miles ahead of the homophobic "The Man Who Killed Boys:The John Wayne Gacy,Jr. Story by Clifford L. Linedecker which is written with a to the point, cheap, sleazy flair.(like those awful Pinnacle True crime books with their hack writers) What makes this book so much better is it doesn't rely on cheap shocks and sordid discriptions to get it's point across and has a much more thorough account of what took place both before, during and after the murders. I felt at the end I knew more about Mr. Gacy than I ever really wanted to know...Truly Sick and bloodcurdling! If this book interests you try a few of these: The Man with Candy-Jack Olsen, Freed to Kill:The True Story of Serial Murderer Larry Eyler-Gera Lind Kolarik,Wayne Klatt, Angel of Darkness-Dennis McDougal they are really good! and really scary! They're about less Known but equally prolific serial killers who targeted the male gender.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Writing!, February 28, 2003

By 

Lenny (San Jose, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Buried Dreams: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer (Hardcover)

I couldn't disagree more with the "Borderline Propaganda" review below. On the contrary, Cahill's writing was nothing short of masterful -- a chilling glimpse into the mind and motivations of a true sociopath.

I've never read "Killer Clown," so I can't speak to the charges of plagiarism. But I must take exception to the comment that the book doesn't tell us what Gacy is thinking. In fact, it basically tells the story from Gacy's point of view, exposing him -- using his own words -- as a liar, a manipulator and a malingerer without equal. I always imagined Cahill writing this book with a nod and a wink to the reader, as if to say "Can you believe this guy?" Far from being a Gacy dupe or apologist, Cahill simply doles out the rope, and Gacy dutifully wraps it around his neck and ties the noose.

It's a fascinating, and sometimes macabre, journey into a sick and twisted mind, and I haven't found anything since that comes close to matching the style or insight offered by this book.