Read It and Debate It
Review by Kim Cantrell
Gail Katz was a roller coaster of emotions. She bickered constantly with her parents about her flightiness and nonexistent ambitions. Gail was often the life of the party, but she was also prone to be secreted away some place attempting suicide.
When Gail became engaged to the young Dr. Robert “Bob” Bierenbaum, her parents thought her troublesome life was behind her.
Marriage did little to change Gail. The couple frequently bickered about Bob’s long hours preventing him from spending time with his new bride. She retaliated by having multiple affairs and shared the intimate details with friends. Gail often taunted Bob because he still wasn’t earning a “Doctor’s salary” and Gail was anxious to live the Doctor’s wife life.
Then suddenly Gail disappeared. Bob was hesitant to report her missing. After all, his wife did have a reputation as being moody and prone to disappear, especially if she was on one of drug binges. But finally, he relented and told police he and his wife had had a fight, she walked out of their apartment saying she was going to Central Park to cool off, and never returned.
At first, police believed she was simply another runaway wife in a city of millions. But as Gail’s family continued to insist that Bob was responsible, one New York Police Department detective came to believe that Bob had indeed his wife.
For fourteen years the detective worked to the get the man he believed was a wife killer; following a trail of seemingly faked flight logs, statements from bitter ex-girlfriends, a warning from a media-loving psychiatrist, and a girl-watching young man who claimed to notice Gail in a deli. From New York City to Las Vegas, Mexico to North Dakota, the twists and turns in the case of the missing Doctor’s wife are fascinating.
Author Kieran Crowley did thousands of hours of intensive research and untold scores of interviews for his 2001 true crime book on this case titled The Surgeon’s Wife Intense and extremely detailed, there isn’t a facet of Gail’s disappearance or Bob’s life left untold.
But the best part, in my opinion, is that Crowley provides all the information about the “crime” without injecting his personal opinion. While a New York jury spoke loud and clear, Crowley remains neutral and allows readers to think for themselves.
Taking my cue from Crowley, I’ll too keep my opinions to myself although I’m chomping at the bit to give my two cents worth. But The Surgeon’s Wife is too good to ruin. So you read and come back to share your opinions, and we’ll see if we agree.
BUY THIS BOOK:
UPDATES FROM THIS BOOK:
Whether Janet Chollet remains married to Bob is a mystery to me. I couldn’t locate any divorce filings. Janet currently practices Gynecology and Obstetrics in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania while the couple’s daughter attends middle school a Boston, Massachusetts, suburb.
Bob Bierenbaum is currently incarcerated at New York’s Attica Correctional Facility and will eligible for parole in June 2020.
