The Lagoon

by Lilli Carré

A family is seduced by a mysterious creature's siren song that can be heard emanating from the lagoon after dark in talented young cartoonist Lilli Carré’s first long-form work, and how each member reacts to the song in The Lagoon is the crux of the story. For the wise—or pixilated—Grandpa, the song reminds him that, in the time he has left, he must pause to respect, appreciate, and fear nature. The song hints at something that Zoey, the daughter, is too young to fully grasp. And the song lures the sexually frustrated mother, and eventually, her husband, into danger…

Carré experimented with nib pens and brushes while drawing this black-and-white graphic novel, giving the art a different feel from her previous, Eisner-and-Harvey-Award-nominated story, Tales of Woodsman Pete. The Lagoon was influenced by the films Creature from the Black Lagoon and Night of the Hunter, but reads more like the gothic, family narratives of Flannery O’Connor or Carson McCullers. Rhythms—Grandpa’s taps, the ticking of a metronome—are punctuated by silences that pace this “sound”-driven story. Older teen and adult readers are invited to imagine the enigmatic creature’s haunting, ever-shifting tune as it reverberates through weedy waters, eventually escaping the lagoon to creep into windows at night.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Horror, Womens

80 pages, Hardcover

First published October 15, 2008

About the author

Lilli Carré is an artist and illustrator currently living in Chicago. She primarily works in the forms of experimental animation, comics, and print. Her animated films have shown in festivals throughout the US and abroad, including the Sundance Film Festival, and she is the co-founder of the Eyeworks Festival of Experimental Animation. Her books of comics are The Lagoon, Nine Ways to Disappear, Tales of Woodsman Pete, and a new collection of stories, Heads or Tails. Her work has appeared in The Believer Magazine, the New Yorker, The New York Times, Best American Comics and Best American Nonrequired Reading.

Source: Lilli Carré | ABOUT/CONTACT

Reviews

[karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was good, not great. i liked the atmosphere, but it was hinting at something that wasnt ever fully realized. i wish there was just a little bit more to it. although i did enjoy the illustration style.

[Seth T. · Rating 2 out of 5]

So do I fault The Lagoon for not having really any sort of sensible narrative arc or do I give it props for having a swamp monster that smokes cigarettes? I'm sort of leaning toward the former. I really wasn't super impressed with the book either in terms of art or story. It has that sort of indie art sensibility that means you're probably going to overlook the illustration in order to focus on the interesting character building or dialogue or narrative structure or raw experimentalism. I didn't really find much of anything in The Lagoon that would make up for overlooking the art. Judging by the cover and packaging, this should have been a celebrated and worthwhile read.

Hence, I guess, the cliche.

p.s. the swamp monster bumped this up from 1 star.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is unusual for me in that I liked her short story and tidbit collection Heads or Tails (2012) more than this, her first graphic novel (2008), which is kind of interesting. Visually more sketchy, like woodcuts, and black and white to maybe help set the mood for the sort of moody, supernatural story. It's funny, in the same day I read Gipi's Garage Band which one would think was about music but wasn't, and Carre's The Lagoon, which really was about music, and sound, all through it. This is about how various characters, none of them particularly compelling--which is the problem for me--respond to the experience of listening to a song in a lagoon at night, sung night after night. People go to listen to it… and it is haunting, a little scary, though not in a Neil Gaiman way, not really scary, it is more lyrically haunting, and mysterious, and all the characters are a little odd and the center of it is a girl and her Grandpa… and this creature in the lagoon who sings this sort of siren song that gets everyone to listen to it, standing in the water… and then they go home.. though sometimes not everyone goes home… It's mysterious at its best but not all that likable. More complex than any of the stories in Heads or Tailes, but also less attractive, and the art seems less accomplished here, but I think this is somewhat deliberate, she didn't want attractive, colorful characters, she wants a little creepy, and for the music to be central, not beauty. Ugly is in a way the point, as even the girl characterizes the song itself as ugly at the beginning, and both she and her Grandpa seem to almost deliberately drawn to be "ugly," or at least purposely physically unattractive… interesting, but on some level it didn't work for me, I didn't love it… though it seems to have succeeded in its intentions. Maybe I just like pretty things more than creepy things? And maybe then I would imagine Carre would shake her head and say, I'm disappointed in you for that.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is a lot that I liked about this comic. I really enjoyed how it captures how weird it is to try and figure out the world as a kid. All adults act strange and their world seems so secretive so it is hard to figure out what is normal and what is true. Like is there really a creature that lives in the lagoon and sings a haunting tune? Carre creates a unique kind of creepy, kind of inviting atmosphere and she is especially good at depicting sound.

[Stephanie Griffin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to read Carre’s Tales of Woodsman Pete but Hoopla only had this book by her. I’m a huge fan of The Creature From The Black Lagoon, so I thought I’d give this a go. It’s just ok. The black and white nature art is very nice.

[Gabriella · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the art and the story, but I would have liked it a lot more if I felt there was any closure by the end. Maybe the ending just wasn't direct or literal enough for me to get, but I wish the story was a bit longer. It left me with a lot of questions...What was the mother's relationship to the lagoon creature? Why did I get the impression from the way she was speaking with the creature that she was speaking to an ex who was secretly the father of her child? And why didn't the father know about this backyard lagoon creature at all, despite his father-in-law talking openly about it, in his home, to Zoey? And what happened to the parents? Did they just get pulled in, never to be seen or heard from again? In that case, I find it strange the way that Zoey and her Grandfather seemingly carried on as though nothing had happened at all. All uncertainties aside, I'm going to seek out more books from this author - there was just something different about this graphic novel, and I could see it turned into a really cool movie.

[Madeleine R · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Lagoon is about a families relations to a swamp monster who I think is some sorta mix between a siren and the creature from the black lagoon. Anyway it's an okay book but even with how beautiful and illustrative the art was I found it very inconheasive and even after thinking about it for awhile it still doesn't make much sense. The characters were pretty flat and not as interesting as I would've liked. I found the story to have an interesting concept but could've been done better. But it does have that hint of weirdness that resembles things like Welcome to Night Vale, or just urban supernatural stories that aren't completely horror. The story mainly takes place either at the swamp/lake the monster lives in or the main character's house. The little girl has heard stories about this monster before, but it's her first time ever hearing it's song. Overall, its an okay story with an interesting concept.

[Erin O'Mahony · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a strange one. it didn't seem to follow the typical cadence of a story, flicking between time with no real climax or resolution. It feels like a slice of strange life where the lore of a rural area is real.
Something about this reminds me of Over the Garden Wall.

[Jo ♡ˎ´✨ ☕︎ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, the plot seems good and the art isn't bad. I don't have anything else to say, really.

[Mark Robison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was totally into this woodblock-y graphic novel about a creature who sings beautifully at night and draws curious onlookers to the lagoon to watch. But then the ending just fizzled. (Also, I wanted Grandpa to turn out to be the creature.) I'll keep an eye out for the creator but this one didn't gel for me.

[Andrea · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love Lille Carre ---- WOODSMAN PETE is great, as is the smaller comic about a woman who gets flip flopped with her identity and ends up watching herself from the bushes --- so I was really looking forward to this, but it's disappointing.

A cool idea, and definitely atmospheric ---- but too short. there's just not enough here for there to be little to happen and little explanation and let it all run on sensory impression and atmosphere. And the exposition from the townsfolk dude in the swamp is just way too long and doesn't fit well.

I wish she'd rework the ideas into something else, which is a ridiculous thing to think about someone's graphic novel, but she's just so good, I know this could've been better.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting little book---I absolutely loved the art, premise, and imagery, but felt like it never really went anywhere ultimately. It seemed like the story had a lot more potential to talk about or explain town or family secrets, and never really wanted to take up that reign. The ending was bizarrely surreal and felt loaded with meaning, but I feel like I didn't really get or appreciate it. If someone wants to explain this to me, that would be great. Until then I think I'll appreciate it mostly as an art object and the early eerie scenes of the protaganist's family being lured to the lagoon by a creature's haunting song until they are swallowed.

[Chrissy · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting little graphic novel with a great style and the beginnings of a great idea: the story follows a family that lives near a lagoon, where a creature is known to lure people under the water with its siren song. Carré primarily makes use of implied sounds and rhythms, rather than words, to tell her story, but to be honest I feel a little let down by both the technique and the story itself. She tries to say too much with too little, too quickly, and despite a wonderful and evocative art style, she only ends up touching the surface of it all.

[Mir · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow, disappointing. The initial concept is intriguing -- the singing lagoon monster and its odd relationship to some of the locals -- but its development is very slight and unsatisfactory.

I didn't care for the art at all.

[Dang Ole' Dan Can Dangle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Underrated by the silly geese who think this book's strength lies in its premise and not in its perfect conclusion. It's Universal Monsters by way of Raymond Carver.

cya

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

I especially liked the whimsical grandpa.

[Courtney · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was waiting for something that never really came... It felt like a cool idea but didn’t see the overall story arc and felt a little too fragmented.

[Blue · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Lagoon is beautifully inked and drawn. I say that first, because the art style really adds to the atmosphere in the story, and atmosphere is almost another character. There's a creature in the lagoon. The locals love its song and sometimes go wade in the water to listen, though it becomes clear that one has to be careful, or else! The young girl is annoyed and intrigued by her grandfather's tales about the creature. To her the adults are as unknowable and mysterious as the creature. Meanwhile, her mom seems to be buddies with the creature, who comes at night to share a smoke.

The story is a piece of family life made bizarre by the creature. The conversations between grandfather and the girl are fantastic. I wanted more of that and the creature lore (where villagers enlighten the girls father) could have been tighter. I wanted to know more about the grandfather's memories of the creature, why he was picking the flowers only to put them in vases (or the fishbowl, in this case) and so on.

Recommended for those who like crazy singing cats, reading, and goldfish.

[Thurston Hunger · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the actual book Noah van Sciver referenced at the back of his "As a Cartoonist" along with some other heavy hitters. Thanks to him for that little gift list.

Here's a quick tale of, I dunno either the supernatural (i.e. Creature from the Black Lagoon) or the painfully all-too-natural (marital discord in a bleak town). For fans of Mrs Caliban and/or Jim Woodring? This has that stark relief of black/white in a sort of faux woodcut fashion, see also Peter Kuper's graphic capture of Kafka tales where that style flourished.

I enjoyed this along with Carre's "Heads or Tails" collection and her video work via her web site has a sort of punk-rock art vibe with definite humor. Is this a cautionary tale about smoking in bed with someone different than your partner? Maybe not, but it might be a good time for you to listen to the Roches "Runs in the Family" while reading this.

[Benjamin Green · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back cover says haunting, lyrical...perhaps in the beginning. But it soon devolves into this weirdly dispassionate snuff piece. Maybe she'll consider it exalted company, but this lady is going on my list, along with Stephen King, of authors I don't really ever want to read again. I'm just not armoured sufficiently to endure a steady diet of this kind of creeping despair. Good art and pacing, though.

[Bonnie Brzozowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

A haunting, beautiful, and short graphic novel about a mysterious creature that sings a tune that fascinates and lures people to it. The artwork echoes the gothic mood she sets with the story. I was mesmerized by the artwork and stopped many times to appreciate the distinct feel of it. The story is clever, unexpected, and whimsical. This book is appropriate for older teens as well as adults.

[Sasha Elise · Rating 3 out of 5]

it left too many unanswered questions. how did everyone know the creature and the song? why didn't the dad know? what happened to the parents? did they really just straight up left their daughter? was the mama sleeping with the creature? are the parents alive? how old is zoey? why is zoey not more concerned that her parents straight up disappeared or did they drown?

[Leanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was weird, and I'm not sure if there really was a story, but it's the kind of atmospheric absurdity that I enjoy. The way the listeners remember their fondest childhood memories when they hear the creature's song reminds me of this Louise Glück poem: "We look at the world once, in childhood. / The rest is memory."

[Kirk · Rating 3 out of 5]

It started off nicely, with a small-town myth. It got more interesting, then . . . it just sort of fizzled out. It reached this climax of sorts and then the mystery never really resolves. It felt incomplete.

But I enjoyed the artwork and really enjoyed where the book was going. It was a very tranquil read as well.

[Arbe · Rating 1 out of 5]

Me encanta el arte de esta autora y su talento es evidente, pero no hay personajes, no hay historia y todo evoca supuestamente "algo" que se me escapa. No siempre has de entender lo que se te muestra en una obra, es verdad, pero debe provocar en ti alguna reacción y a mí me dejó helada. Si no me aburrió fue porque es muy breve.

[Rick Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Narratively nonsensical, and not in a surreal kind of way, but more like in a incomprehensible kind of way. I did really enjoy Lilli Carré's illustrations - they feel quite reminiscent of Richard Sala's stylings, but with some added whimsy to them. There was plenty to like about this comic, I just wish the story connected a bit more.

[Everlaine · Rating 2 out of 5]

What did I just read? The story started of good and I was enjoying myself but then it, like so many other graphic novels, got really weird and then just ended. I feel like it could have been a lot better.

Only reason it didn't get 1 stars is because the granddad was adorable.

[Nicole Hadenfeldt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very interesting story. My friend recommended it to me. I'm still not sure I understood everything that happened. I think there was a lot I didn't pick up on. I might have to re-read it again and see if I can pick up anything the second time through.

[Raechel · Rating 2 out of 5]

A good premise: A family living near a lagoon is a affected by the siren-like creature living in it, in different ways. But the story doesn't go anywhere.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wildly beautiful and mysterious.