I have a macabre curiosity about serial killers, cult leaders, and other bizarre crimes. I have spent many hours on TruTv’s atrocious, desperately needing a copy editor website reading up on several of these incidents. When I first heard about My Friend Dahmer, my interest was piqued. I checked out the preview pages here http://www.derfcity.com/comix/MFD/MFD1.html and was instantly hooked. This is one of the most unsettling, enthralling books I have ever read. Dahmer is one of the most notorious serial killers ever, the one everyone knows by name and comes to peoples minds first, and Backderf gives you a first hand account of aspects of his life that were not generally known. He makes you almost feel bad for Dahmer, because on top of already having deep rooted psychological problems, the guys life was just completely horrible. And you know what? We’ve all been there. We’ve been bullied. Our parents have fought. We’ve been rejected, had friends move on past us, and felt isolated. Not only have we all been in those situations, we’ve all known that kid too. There was a kid I was in classes with back in middle school that fits these profiles, and he definitely came to mind while I was reading this. Backderf takes this story of Jeffery Dahmer that we’ve all heard over the years, and makes him a real person instead of a boogeyman legend. I honestly would have plowed through this in one night had I not had to get up early for work, because it is so visceral. I had to force myself to put it down.

At the end, Backderf cited his sources, page per page, to give credence to his work. The book never relied on sensationalism to me, and this listing of sources just backs it up. The story of Jeffery Dahmer may be completely surreal to you and I, but imagine being in the role of Backderf and his friends, and finding out the news that that weird kid you knew in school committed these crimes. Hell, a dude I went to school with got busted for methamphetamine trafficking and copper theft recently, and while it didn’t surprise me at all, it still gave me an uneasy feeling because I was friends with the guy for a while.

This truly is a gripping read, and if you’re a fan of true life comics, I would wholeheartedly recommend it.