Synopsis
Joel Rifkin was born on January 20, 1959, to young college students and was adopted at three weeks old by an upper-middle-class couple, Benjamin and Jeanne Rifkin, in Long Island, New York. His adoptive father was of Russian Jewish descent, and his adoptive mother, of Spanish descent, converted to Judaism upon their marriage. Growing up in East Meadow, a suburban town, Rifkin faced challenges that may have influenced his later actions. He struggled academically due to learning disabilities and was socially isolated, often unpopular among his peers. These difficulties persisted through his high school years at East Meadow High School, from which he graduated in 1977, and into his brief stints at various colleges, including Nassau Community College, the State University of New York at Brockport, and Farmingdale, where he failed to earn a degree. After leaving college, Rifkin worked as a self-employed landscaper, a job that provided him with solitude and flexibility, potentially enabling his later criminal activities. The book likely explores these early experiences, examining potential triggers such as his academic struggles, social rejection, and the suicide of his father in 1987 after a battle with prostate cancer, which may have deepened Rifkin’s sense of isolation.
The narrative probably contextualizes Rifkin’s early life within the broader framework of his criminal career, which began with his first murder in 1989 and culminated in his arrest in 1993 after a high-speed chase prompted by a traffic stop revealed the body of his 17th victim, Tiffany Bresciani, in his truck. Reisling’s book may highlight how Rifkin’s early life experiences contributed to his development of dark impulses, which he later acted upon by targeting vulnerable women, often dismembering their bodies to evade detection. The author likely draws on Rifkin’s own statements, as he reportedly shared some of his thoughts about his crimes, expressing a lack of clarity about why he felt compelled to kill. This introspective angle could serve as a lens to explore the psychological “war” within Rifkin, as the book’s description suggests, potentially discussing how his childhood, family dynamics, and social challenges shaped his descent into violence.