My Friend Dahmer - by Derf Backderf (Paperback)

About the Book

In 1991, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer seared himself into the American consciousness. To Backderf, "Jeff" was a high school friend. In this haunting and original graphic novel, Backderf creates a surprisingly sympathetic portrait of a disturbed young man struggling against the morbid urges emanating from the deep recesses of his psyche.

Book Synopsis

A national bestseller, Derf Backderf's Alex Award winner My Friend Dahmer is the bone-chilling graphic novel that inspired the major motion picture.

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 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 Derf Backderf creates a portrait of a disturbed young man struggling with the morbid urges emanating from the deep recesses of his psyche.

With profound insight, what emerges is a Jeffrey Dahmer that few ever really knew, and one readers will never forget.

Also available by Derf Backderf:

• The Dissidents
• Trashed
• Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio

Review Quotes

"A powerful, unsettling use of the graphic medium to share a profoundly disturbing story . . . An exemplary demonstration of the transformative possibilities of graphic narrative."-- "Kirkus Reviews"

"Carefully researched and sourced with ample back matter, Backderf's tragic chronicle of what shouldn't have been is a real butt-kicker for educators and youth counselors as well as peers of other potential Dahmers. Highly recommended for professionals as well as true crime readers."-- "Library Journal"

"One of the best graphic novels I've read this year."-- "USA Today's PopCandy"

"One of the most thought-provoking comics released in a long time."-- "Slate.com"

"Quietly horrifying. A small, dark classic."-- "Publishers Weekly"

About the Author

Derf Backderf is an Eisner Award-winning cartoonist and graphic novelist whose books include My Friend Dahmer, Trashed, Punk Rock & Trailer Parks, The Dissidents, and Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio. Before focusing on graphic novels, he created the long-running comic strip The City, published in alternative newspapers nationwide. His work draws on first-hand experience to explore working-class life, history, and overlooked systems through dark humor and narrative storytelling. He lives and works in Cleveland, Ohio.