MixedThe Comics JournalThroughout the book, problems are presented broadly at the expense of the story’s impact. Our protagonist? His father is divorced, and their relationship is complicated in ways that cleanly elucidate the struggles of dealing with a deadbeat dad without getting too upsetting for the reader. Russell’s other friends at school are rowdy bullies whose razzing and roughhousing are tolerated until they beat up Warren for being gay – could it be that performances of masculinity could be toxic? After this altercation Warren hangs himself between chapters, compelling questions of his emotional inner world cut short as fodder for Russell’s character development. Indeed, all these characters eventually prove to have little more to them than manifestations of lessons for Russell to learn, which might be more compelling if Russell’s emotional life were richer. Instead, Russell is a vessel, whose angsty thoughts and blank stares invite the reader to step into his shoes at the expense of a more nuanced portrayal ... The story Home After Dark sets out to tell is admirable. The book will serve the libraries and high school English classes it is doubtlessly bound for well, and hopefully some curious students will be driven to seek out David Small’s previous graphic novel Stitches. Stitches is an autobiographical work which touches on similar themes with a particularity and deliberateness that provides the very urgency that Home After Dark lacks.