Lobster

by Guillaume Lecasble

'There was a Lobster-shaped hole in world literature which has now been filled by this remarkable work.'
Nick Lezard in The Guardian

Aboard the Titanic, Lobster watches Angelina devour his father, before being plucked out of the aquarium himself. Just as he is put in the boiling pot, the ship hits the iceberg and the pot is thrown to the floor. Lobster survives, with some he finds himself sexually attracted not only to a human, but to the very human who ate his father. He gives her one life-changing orgasm before their tragic separation, following an ugly incident in one of the lifeboats.

'A fable of crustacean love. Our hero is a lobster aboard the Titanic. From his tank, he watches his father being eaten by a pretty girl. Then the boat founders and Lobster escapes. Aboard the sinking ship, Angelina, the girl who ate his dad, knows a brief but shattering moment of physical love with Lobster. Then they are separated. They pine for each other. Angelina tries having sex with another lobster, with disastrous results. Death smells of bay leaves.'
Sam Leith in The Daily Telegraph

'In terms of abusing the natural world, Lobster by Guillaume Lecasble is in a league of its own. The surrealist tale of a lobster on board the Titanic which finds itself helplessly attracted to a human female, the book hinges on the life-changing orgasm the fishy amorist gives Angelina as the boat sinks in the icy water.'
Tom Fleming in The Literary Review

112 pages, Paperback

First published February 20, 2024

About the author

Guillaume Lecasble was born in 1954. He started painting at the age of nineteen and had a first solo exhibition eleven years later. From his artwork—and particularly the portrait of a chorus of monks—he became inspired to experiment with new approaches to filmmaking. Various short films yielded a pair of characters (bonhomme & bonfemme) who then reincarnated themselves in a series of highly praised books for children. Painting continues to inspire and accompany his written and cinematographic work. Lobster, his first novel, was published to critical acclaim in France in 2003. His second novel, Cut, was published in 2004.

Reviews

[Julia Mohler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess...there's something to be said for a book that gleefully resists any kind of coherent structure? A book which I PROMISE will surprise you many times with its utter insanity, depravity, and whimsy. An offense against...so much. It wasn't the ending I wanted, but I don't know that I've ever encountered a book that cares less about what I might want. I wouldn't call it a "good" book, but it provided much entertainment, and I'm quite certain I will be cursed to remember it until the day I die 🤣

[Ben Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

What it says on the tin, glad I picked up this great short story on a lobsters journey from a tank on the Titanic to the streets of Paris.

[Kerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wowie zowie that was a weird fucking trip. Can’t wait to talk about this one at the bookshop tomorrow.

[charlotte · Rating 2 out of 5]

What the fuck was that

[Caroline · Rating 2 out of 5]

Now what the hell was that

[Will Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

wild

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book might really be for those of you who don’t think bay leaves actually do anything. . .

[Melanie Hensey · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m not sure what this book was trying to say. But, I did finish it even though it was very strange. It was recommended by the owner of a bookstore, on a podcast, as one of the best selling books in the store. So I gave it a try. Not for me.

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lobster brings woman to her first O, they try to find each other again, she gets her cooch snipped by a different lobster, the OG lobster makes a friend who, after eating the lobster grows a lobster dong, goes to find the girl who drowned in the river, so he eats her. 5 stars because what????

[Kali Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

a tale of a woman and a lobster who love each other

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Without a doubt the weirdest book I’ve ever read 🤣

[Abeer K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super French. Super weird. Super jarring. This was a surrealistic fable of crustacean porn at its best & I appreciated every bit of its weirdness. I’ve never read anything like it and I doubt I ever will. It’s got quite some Kafkaesque elements to it… A 5 stars for being absolute thrilling madness!

Had me seriously hooked immediately, I could not put it down & I just had to know how it was going to end for them all. Great ending too!

I picked this up in Galignani during my second Paris trip, on the hunt for more translated French literature. After reading the blurb, I just had to get it. Both as an homage to my love for lobster & for the wicked summary that left me wanting to know more. I don’t regret this one bit & it exceeded all expectations.

[Haley Durslag · Rating 2 out of 5]

Is that the sensual smell of bay leaves in the air? While I'd say that this book was aromatic, the beastiality (crustasteanality?) and incel vibes just made this a "WTF was that?" experience. It's certainly creative to have a main character of a dextrious lobster who can conjure female pleasure. Even so, it seems like the author is just implying that women are way too complicated for men and that men should just give up and hand their power over to lobsters. The book brings us back to the "hysterical woman" of the past, the man who can offer her "everything" (oh cool, a man who doesn't listen or care!), and the woes of a man who's woman is just too much!

Luckily, I learned women shouldn't fret, we can change our standards to look for eternal love and lust with lobsters.

[Martyna · Rating 3 out of 5]

książka o homarze, który zakochuje się w kobiecie, która zjadła jego ojca. pełno jest tu wspaniałych zwrotów akcji i niespodziewanych, dziwnych wydarzeń. natomiast niezbyt podobał mi się styl pisania autora.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

[dead-dove-do-not-eat.gif here]

I mean, the blurb said it was about a lobster in a tank on the Titanic that fucks a woman, and boy, did it deliver.

[Heather]

Gifted this bizarre story for Christmas from a dear friend. Lobster porn. Who knew it existed. 🤣 🦞

[Oliver Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lobster pleasures women to save her life, then travels to Paris with a friend he met at sea. This already sounds insane and it’s 1% of the plot…

[Chloé H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

wtf?

[Beth Pritchard · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the worst thing I've ever read. The sentence structure of an 8 year old + beastiality + the MMC being a literal lobster. Not a single redeeming quality.

[Megan Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

What even was that

[Ari · Rating 1 out of 5]

1★

Why

[Idreamofdandelions · Rating 3 out of 5]

What the heck

[Selena · Rating 3 out of 5]

every time I thought I knew what was happening next I actually had no clue, what a trip

[Jesse Hassinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

More than the sum of its parts, "Lobster" is a lovers-torn-from-each-other tale with a few distinctly strange elements, not the least of which is that one of these lovers is a literal lobster. Not quite exactly the John Waters "Multiple Maniacs" lobster/Divine story, but also not too far from it; similarly not quite exactly the "Titanic" Leo/Kate story, but also not too far from it, either. Is your interest piqued? Mine was, and I still can't get the smell of bay leaves off my hands after reading this one.

[MacKenzie · Rating 1 out of 5]

what the fuck