I Hunt Killers

Lyga, B. (2012). I hunt killers. New York: Little, Brown.

Parents can be strange in one way or another, families can be dysfunctional in more ways than one, and some families are operated with a single parent. One could say that Jazz’s family is dysfunctional on a whole other level; his mother disappeared a long tie ago and his father is a serial killer and Jazz has witness his father’s famous work.  When bodies start to pile up, Jazz help the police look for someone else, a different serial killer besides his father, Jazz begins to secretly wonder, is he becoming his father? After all, his father did teach him how to kill without feeling remorse for the victims, especially women.

Lyga’s realistic novel portrays a severely dysfunctional family that causes the child to question things about his life and himself. Although the topic is horror, the story focuses more on the mental state of Jazz and the impact of living a serial killer for a father.

Male adolescents will like the psychological war that Jazz endures growing up, along with the mystery behind him and in his attempt to help the law.

My Friend Dammer: A Graphic Novel

Backderf, D. (2012). My friend Dahmer: A graphic novel. New York: Abrams ComicArts. Based on the real Jeffery Dahmer, Backderf provides insight on the Jeffery before he became the notorious serial killer. This graphic novel gives the reader an idea of what life was like for Jeffery before he became famous, his dysfunctional home, absent father, alcoholism, what he did after school to animals, who he stalked, what interested him, and his first encounter with murder. The reader is able to connect with the author better, by visualize Dahmer and his behaviors through the illustrations.

This dark realistic fiction is ideal for adolescents 15 year old and older due to the content of it being about a serial killer and what he did to carry out his actions, his thought process, and obsessions.

Teachers can use this graphic novel to introduce a research project for speech, debate, or criminal justice classes. This can be a starting point and bridge the research into more detailed and centered topics about Jeffery Dahmer.