Critics' Opinion:
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Published Mar 2012
224 pages
Genre: Graphic Novels
Publication Information
You only think you know this story. In 1991, Jeffrey Dahmer - the most notorious serial killer since Jack the Ripper - seared himself into the American consciousness. To the public, Dahmer was a monster who committed unthinkable atrocities. To Derf Backderf, "Jeff" was a much more complex figure: a high school friend with whom he had shared classrooms, hallways, and car rides.
In My Friend Dahmer, a haunting and original graphic novel, writer-artist Backderf creates a surprisingly sympathetic portrait of a disturbed young man struggling against the morbid urges emanating from the deep recesses of his psyche - a shy kid, a teenage alcoholic, and a goofball who never quite fit in with his classmates. With profound insight, what emerges is a Jeffrey Dahmer that few ever really knew, and one readers will never forget.
"Starred Review. The tone is sympathetic and enraged ('Where were the damn adults?'), while not excusing or making the story unduly fascinating. Backderf's writing is impeccably honest in not exculpating his own misdeeds... and quietly horrifying. A small, dark classic." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. An exemplary demonstration of the transformative possibilities of graphic narrative." - Kirkus Reviews
"A well-told, powerful story. Backderf is quite skilled in using comics to tell this tale of a truly weird and sinister 1970s adolescent world." - R. Crumb
"Anyone who opens My Friend Dahmer to satisfy a morbid curiosity, and likewise anyone who expects to find no more than a cynical publishing venture here, is bound for disappointment. It is a horrifying read, yes, not so much for what it reveals about the sad early (and inevitably terrible) life of Jeffrey Dahmer, but because of what it reveals about the bland emotional landscape of Middle America, in this vision a petri dish for psychoses in many degrees and forms.It wasn't easy reading this book, but I'm glad I did." - David Small, author and illustrator of Stitches, a National Book Award finalist and #1 New York Times bestseller
"Stunning. Horrifying. Beautifully done." - Alison Bechdel, author and illustrator of Fun Home, a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist
This information about My Friend Dahmer was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Derf Backderf has been nominated for two Eisner Awards and has received a host of honors, including the prestigious Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award for political cartooning. His weekly comic strip, The City, has appeared in more than 100 newspapers over the past 22 years. Backderf lives in Cleveland, Ohio. Read his blog online at www.derfcity.com.
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