The Tales of Woodsman Pete

By Lilli Carrè
Published by Top Shelf, 2006. Retail price is $7.

Plot: Umm… A crazy old guy lives out in the woods and talks to animals, dead and alive.

Strengths: This book doesn’t fit very well into this format, mostly because it’s so freaking weird. According to Lilli (who makes a living as an artist in Chicago), she came up with this idea of an old guy living alone in the wilderness and he continually reinvents his history, to the point he doesn’t know it anymore. Along the line, Paul Bunyan comes along to share the story of how he cried so much he flooded the land and washed away the mountains of salt that people used to store things in. Whew.

What sells the slender collection is its humor. On the very first page, we see Pete awaken to a bird’s song. He remarks of its beauty to Phillipe, who happens to be a stuffed bear. Then, Pete slings Phillipe over his shoulder and trots off onto an adventure. It’s hard to describe in writing how funny this scene is, which is to say Lilli’s art carries the book to great heights – which is very two-dimensional and full of contrast. I was laughing out loud while reading, but then would hit a sudden somber point, such as when Pete reflects on his deceased wife, that’s perfectly plausible as how an old man might handle grief. It’s a ridiculous book that’s impossible not to take seriously.

Weaknesses: The only possible drawbacks to the story is that there’s nothing in the way of an ongoing plot, or at least very little of it. But with something like this, it doesn’t really need it.

Grade: A- Just go pick up this book. It’s a great read. And when Lilli is very well known a few years from now, you’ll have hipster comics cred for knowing about “her old stuff.”