Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt picked by one of our book club members was a welcome read after a run of several serious books. It was a delight, and I finished the 368-page novel in no time. The cover is beautiful as well. We were staying on a lake in our Airstream while I was reading most of this book.
I read the author’s comments in the back, and she noted that her publisher wasn’t sure how it would go, since she was writing an octopus as the narrator of the story. Marcellus is a giant Pacific octopus, weighing about 60 pounds. He was rescued by an aquarium in the Pacific northwest, where Tova works as a janitor. He starts each of his chapters with Day #### of my captivity. He longs to be back in the open sea, and I grew fond of him throughout the book.
Both Marcellus and Tova are wonderfully written characters. I don’t know why the publisher was concerned, as I found Marcellus to be engaging and very entertaining, which made me want to know more about this amazing creature. If you’ve never watched any videos or documentaries about octopuses, I highly recommend you do so. They truly are very amazing. One might think the author was making up his abilities to escape from his tank through such a small hole, unlock treasure chests, memorize names and fingerprints on the tank, and even learn to read. I found it believable after a video popped up in my Facebook feed right before I started reading the book (insert spooky, eerie music). He would escape at night when Tova was cleaning, dig through the trash and eat contraband food that had been left behind.
Tova saved Marcellus the first time she found him out of his tank (he was tangled in some cords underneath a table), and that was the start of a long friendship. Apparently, their suckers put quite a mark on your arm if they attach their tentacles to your skin, but she suffered through it, lied about the marks, and managed to keep his secret so she could connect with him on a deeper level. Tova’s son had drowned when he was 18, and there was much suspicion that he had committed suicide (although Tova never believed it). Her husband died a couple of years ago as well. She had a lot of grief going on. As Tova and Marcellus become close “friends,” Marcellus sets on a quest to solve her son’s mystery for her. He leaves her clues from objects he has found around the aquarium on his many escapades. This is likely his final deed, since octopuses don’t live long and he was counting down the days. I was cheering him on, and her as well.
Then there is Cameron. I didn’t like him at first, and I wondered why the author would introduce him at all. He didn’t seem to “fit” with the rest of the story. He was a young adult in his early 30s, unable to keep a job or relationship with any stability. When Tova hurt her foot and had to stop working for a period, he helped out at the aquarium. He lived in a camper as he had no money for rent. I assured my book club friends that his camper was nothing like ours. His was old and had a smelly mattress, something he didn’t mind but made me think ew, gross. He became integral to the story as Marcellus brought him and Tova together. They both needed someone, and somehow Marcellus managed to make it happen. Learning his true identity at the end of the story was alluded to throughout the book, but it was satisfying to watch it play out. His is a success story, as he proves himself to be a hard worker and loyal to his employer.
I think we can learn a lesson from Cameron’s character. Just because someone appears to not have it all together when we meet them doesn’t mean they will be that way forever. They just need someone to believe in them. Someone to give them a hand up, not just a handout. Tim and I are starting a new book together about evangelism using house keys. It is a bit hard in the Airstream, but we will be looking for ways to use our new home and hospitality to connect with people. Perhaps we can do it on the road as well.
I liked the way the author packaged everything up at the end. There were other characters too, of course, and even their stories were wrapped up with a neat little bow. I may not remember all of them or their exact names, but there was Terry the aquarium director; Evan, the Scottish shop owner who was sweet on Tova; the “Knitwits,” Tova’s knitting group who tried to care for her with endless casseroles; and Cameron’s aunt and mother. The twist for me was at the very end, which I probably shouldn’t tell you (spoiler alert!). I thought from the very beginning that the title referred to the octopus. But Marcellus in all of his wisdom looks at Tova and calls her a remarkably bright creature. Sometimes we may forget that we are, indeed, remarkable. We are created to be bright and clever and creative.
My book club loved this book as well. We met on the second Wednesday in June to discuss this one. Here’s the summary from our leader, Carol.
Eleven of us gathered at Canopy this afternoon to discuss Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. This is her first novel and we all loved it. It was delightful. I started out the meeting by asking everyone “What kind of person do you think Marcellus would be if he was human?”. Some of us thought that he’d be skinny or fat, he would be inquisitive; good listener; Yoda [that was not mine lol]; Sleuthing; bald; nerdy with big dark rimmed glasses; a collector; therapist; a professor especially science teacher but we all thought he was an incredible character in the book. We are in awe of how smart octopuses are!!! We thought the book was well written, the author pulled all the strings together at the end and we were not disappointed at all with the ending. We encouraged everyone to watch the academy award nominee documentary movie called My Octopus Teacher that is on Netflix.
We rated the book 8.6.
À la prochaine…hasta la próxima vez…until next time!