My Friend Dahmer ~ Derf Backderf

My Friend Dahmer was the book I received from Claire in our Christmas Book Swap. I had recently picked this graphic novel up when we were in Waterstones and was very intrigued by the fact it was a graphic novel rather than your standard book. Serial Killers is a weird fascination of mine and when the film of the same name came out a few years ago I was interested in to read the material it had been based on.

Admittedly, I had never read a proper graphic novel before so this was a refreshingly new experience for me. I thoroughly enjoyed reading with the added detail of the amazingly drawn cartoon that went alongside the story. It gave another layer to the story which ultimately explores the human psyche.

This story is definitely not the one that is told of Dhamer. Backderf, who went to high school with Dahmer, shows you who he was before he killed. What his childhood was like and maybe an insight into why he became the monster he did. Deep down I feel it shows that Dahmer probably could have been saved with the right treatment and care. 

However, Backderf in his introduction clearly states that ‘It’s my belief that Dahmer didn’t have to wind up a monster, that all those people didn’t have to die horribly, if only the adults in his life hadn’t been so inexplicably, unforgivably, incomprehensibly clueless and/or indifferent. Once Dahmer kills, however – and I can’t stress this enough – my sympathy for him ends. He could have turned himself in after that first murder. He could have put a gun to his head. Instead he, and he alone, chose to become a serial killer and spread misery to countless people.’

This extract above I think perfectly depicts how I felt during this convoluted read. Reading about Dahmer’s childhood and what his parents were like does make you sympathise with him. However, when you reach the end and remember what he then went on to do to those poor men and boys those feelings that this graphic novel build star to fade rather quickly.

Overall, I gave My Friend Dahmer a 4.5 out of 5 star review. I honestly couldn’t think of a better book to finish my reading for 2020.

M🌸