Flora answers “What do you think the appropriate age...”

Casey O'connell asked this question about My Friend Dahmer: A Graphic Novel:

What do you think the appropriate age range is for this book? Would it be okay for a 12 year old who is really interested in serial killers? I'm her mom, and I do like to challenge her worldview with books, but she really only likes to read graphic novels. What are the parental concerns about this one, aside from the fact that he eats his boyfriends?

Flora It might be okay for the 12-year-old. Visually, there's nothing more graphically disturbing than depictions of roadkill. There are some topics that ar…moreIt might be okay for the 12-year-old. Visually, there's nothing more graphically disturbing than depictions of roadkill. There are some topics that are a bit more sensitive involving Dahmer's household atmosphere (parental neglect; divorce; his mother suffered from depression and was taking way too many drugs), 70's high school culture (drugs, alcohol, and insensitive teenage humor toward people with disabilities), and of course Dahmer's struggle with his unusual sexual preferences.

Thinking back to what I was like as a naive 12-year-old, I would have found it most difficult to process the last part, and I would have been slightly uncomfortable with the brief description of teenage hormonal lust. But there wasn't really anything that would have made me feel scarred for life.(less)

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Casey O'connell Thank you! That's exactly the kind of information I was looking for. ...more
Jul 22, 2018 02:48PM · flag

Flora You're welcome! (Also, there are no depictions of sexual acts, nudity, or the actual acts of murder - the book ends right before he commits his first ...more
Jul 22, 2018 05:05PM · flag

Tim I'll just add that at least in the edition I read there is an appendix that goes into quite a bit of detail about Dahmer and his crimes. ...more
Aug 02, 2018 07:34PM · flag

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My Friend Dahmer

by Derf Backderf (Goodreads Author)

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