My Friend Dahmer: A Graphic Novel in Oly Reads

Jun 07, 2012 Raina rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfic, adult, historical, lgbt2q, graphicnovel, graphic-memoir, biographical, psychological

Wow, what a monster.

And yes, I'm talking about the book.

Derf gives his perspective on the youth of a future serial killer. Dahmer was one of his classmates in high school, a "mascot" for his group of friends as Derf puts it. Derf's story about Dahmer was published first in a shorter version, a decade or so ago. Now, Derf gives it the full treatment. 200 pages, to be (almost) exact.

Here's what I liked about it...

1. It was completely subjective. And it's completely transparent in its subjectivit Wow, what a monster.

And yes, I'm talking about the book.

Derf gives his perspective on the youth of a future serial killer. Dahmer was one of his classmates in high school, a "mascot" for his group of friends as Derf puts it. Derf's story about Dahmer was published first in a shorter version, a decade or so ago. Now, Derf gives it the full treatment. 200 pages, to be (almost) exact.

Here's what I liked about it...

1. It was completely subjective. And it's completely transparent in its subjectivity. Derf is honest about this being his perspective. He places blame (on the adults surrounding Dahmer), excuses himself from responsibility (in that way that we adults so often do when thinking about ourselves at a younger age), and makes clear what he saw versus what was only rumored.

2. The illustrations worked SO WELL. I read Punk Rock and Trailer Parks by Backderf, and thought it was fine and enjoyed the content, but didn't really jive with the overall style in such a goofy setting. With this subject matter, Backderf's cartoony, robot-like characters add some lightness that a traumatizing topic like this needs. It also communicates the subjectivity well in a subtle way.

3. Backderf tells the story so well. You can tell this guy has honed his craft and worked this over many times. I freaking adored the end material with notes and extra information about the context. This is the treatment the story deserves. I am able to view the world through another pair of eyes in a way they are inviting me to.

4. It's about deconstructing darkness and tracing the origins of destructive personalities. Dahmer as a teen wasn't so different from kids we all knew in high school. As a youth services librarian, I read a lot of books for and about teens. And a lot of them (perhaps especially the ones I gravitate to) are about outsiders. Dahmer could have been just another outsider kid - one with a messed up family, one with repressed sexuality, one who made jokes out of things that are not funny. Exploring his history helps me to think about how I can influence teens for the good. About how I can influence humanity for the good. And how close we all are to the darkness. To letting our own destructive tendancies to go too far.

It makes me think. And I love that.

P.S. Oh yeah, and I doubt many other books will come with the subject heading "Dahmer, Jeffrey -- Comic books, strips, etc." This makes me chuckle.

Which, I guess, shows my own dark side. ;) ...more

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Jun 08, 2012 jess rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, graphic-novels

This graphic novel is about the high school years of Jeffrey Dahmer, serial killer, as told by a high school acquaintance, Derf. Derf and his pals formed the "Dahmer Fan Club," hung out with Dahmer over the years and witnessed a lot of his strange behavior, including high school alcoholism, unsettling impersonations of his mom and animal taxidermy. The story is dark and upsetting, like you'd probably expect it to be. Derf's perspective is so interesting - knowing that something is weird about Da ...more

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May 16, 2012 David Raffin rated it liked it

This book is a very quick read. It is basically a remembrance of the high school years of Jeffrey Dahmer in comic book format, written by an acquaintance. It is not a very pleasant story. The comic form is fitting for this story.

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Feb 12, 2016 Kit rated it really liked it

I originally had this rated 5 stars, but when I remembered Backderf had a huge hissy fit over my friends' opinions on his approach and sent us a MASSIVE EMAIL about how he was simply TOO BUSY AND IMPORTANT to be contacting us that went on for paragraphs and paragraphs, I went ahead and lowered it a bit for him being a massive diva about it. ;)

I still chuckle every time I see this circulate at work and think about it.

Here is a podcast with a bunch of young hobbyists talking about comics in a non- ...more

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