Book Review: “Remarkably Bright Creatures” by Shelby Van Pelt
Oh, you think humans are the smartest creatures in the world? Read this book then
Title: Remarkably Bright Creatures. First Published: 2022. Genre: Contemporary. Publisher: Ecco. Pages: 360.
Shelby Van Pelt is a young author who was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. She now resides in the Chicago area and admits that she misses the mountains of her home region. You would think that she praises the mountains in her debut novel. And you would be wrong. Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel is about an ocean, or rather, an ocean creature. “Remarkably Bright Creatures” is a bestseller that was bought by readers over 1.5 million times. How can an author make such a successful debut, you ask? Well, it is all about one remarkable character.
Meet Marcellus, a huge octopus living in an aquarium open to visitors. Marcellus is indeed very smart, reserved, reasonable, and even a bit philosophical. Oh, yes, he shares his thoughts with the readers, and he has a lot of them. He knows how long octopuses usually live and understands that his time is running out.
But Marcellus is not the type who sits (or rather, lays) with his paws (or rather, tentacles) folded. He lives an active life, especially for a creature locked inside the four glass walls.
For instance, Marcellus has a friend, a retired woman named Tova. In the evenings, Tova tidies up the aquarium, but not for the sake of money. She does it because she has lots of free time and energy. After her husband’s death, she is all alone. Her only son died under mysterious circumstances involving the ocean when he was only 18… Don’t get me wrong, even though Tova’s story is pretty sad, the novel is full of joy and hope. But sometimes Tova gets sad, and Marcellus notices it. He likes Tova and doesn’t like when she is down. But how can you not be sad when nothing ever happens in this small town?
Well, at least that was the case until a young lout named Cameron came here. He’s in town because he’s looking for the father who abandoned Cameron’s mother when she was pregnant. And now, when three of them are gathered — Marcellus, Tova, and Cameron — the real mess begins. And the rest of the town’s residents, by the way, are not standing aside; they are joining the hurricane of adventures.
It’s easy to guess that the book is about friendship and family. Sometimes, as in life, these topics intersect, sometimes they don’t, and sometimes one of them transforms into another.
Whatever the way the plot plays out, one thing is clear: no matter who or what you are, if you find a creature smart enough to realize how special you are, hold on to this creature.
Shelby Van Pelt is great at recreating different voices in her story. She makes Tova likable and believable; Cameron is also absolutely real with his hot-messy lifestyle; and she also manages to speak with a distinct octopus voice. If you have no idea what “octopus voice” is, don’t worry; I was also clueless before reading this book. But now I won’t confuse it with anything.
“Remarkably Bright Creatures” is a beautiful story about people who sometimes can be silly and shortsighted, but as long as they stick together and try to pull each other out of difficult situations, everything can (and will) work out just fine. And sometimes they get themselves into such a pickle that the help of a remarkable octopus is needed. So, it is nice to have him around as well.
