My Friend Dahmer

 1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Backderf, Derf. 2012. My Friend Dahmer. New York, NY: Abrams ComicArts. ISBN: 9781419702174

2.      PLOT SUMMARY

Backderf recalls his odd friendship with the infamous serial killer Jeffery Dahmer, referred to as Jeff by Backderf, throughout their years in middle and high school together. It recalls their relationship centered around making fun of a person with cerebral palsy and performative imitation. It also takes a personal look into the Dahmer’s difficult childhood and young adulthood. This includes the difficult relationship his parents had, his mother’s illness, and the loneliness he experiences through his desires. He delt with these things by taking an interest in decomposing flesh and an addiction to alcohol. There is a compassion illustrated in the pages for Dahmer as a child that ends once Dahmer decides to murder.

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

One of the really incredible parts of this graphic novel that really set it apart was the attention to detail. Each of the pages was discussed by Backderf at the end, and the sources that were used were shared in detail. Some of the sources were personal accounts and others were interviews. The way that Backderf chose to intertwine these sources to create a story that flowed seamlessly was really great. The story followed a chronological order that stayed as true to the timeline of events as possible. This really helped the reader to understand what Dahmer must have been going through at various points of his life. The illustrations compliment the story well. The dark outlines and the grey and white set the mood of the story really well. The graphic novel design helps the reader to understand more about what the author is referring to and it adds an element of making the story more personal. The author makes sure to show the reality of the situation and in that, compassion is shown, but her also makes the point of sharing that none of what is shared justifies in anyway the murders that took place.

4.      REVIEW EXCERPTS

Reviewed in Booklist: “Backderf tellingly depicts adolescent ennui in the 1970s as well as the uncaring obliviousness of the adults in Dahmer’s life. The blunt, ungainly drawings, with their robotically stiff figures, effectively convey the drab suburban milieu.”

Starred review in Kirkus Reviews: “A powerful, unsettling use of the graphic medium to share a profoundly disturbing story. If a boy is not born a monster, how does he become one?”

Reviewed in Library Journal: “Backderf's intentionally ungainly black-and-white art underscores the universal awkwardness of adolescence, and the approach has emotional resonance even if Dahmer must have been rather nice looking, judging from later photos.”

Starred review in Publisher’s Weekly: “Backderf's writing is impeccably honest in not exculpating his own misdeeds (the sections about how he and his friends encourage Dahmer's spaz shtick while still excluding him make for brutal reading) and quietly horrifying. A small, dark classic.”

Alex Award

Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

5.      CONNECTIONS

*Invite students to write a letter to Backderf asking any questions they still have about the story or sharing their favorite parts.

*Encourage students to create their own personal narrative using text and images.

*Other graphic novels created by Derf Backderf:

Backderf, Derf. Kent State. ISBN: 9781419765469

Backderf, Derf. Trashed. ISBN: 9781419714535