Books: "Remarkably Bright Creatures" By Shelby Van Pelt

 

Remarkably Bright Creatures

By Shelby Van Pelt 

Ecco; hardcover, 384 pages; $35.00; available today, Tuesday, October 6th

Shelby Van Pelt was raised in the Pacific Northwest and she currently lives with her family in the Chicago suburbs.

Remarkably Bright Creatures is her debut novel, and it was an instant New York Times bestseller. It is now a Netflix film, a Read With Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick, and has been published in thirty-eight countries. 

This beautifully produced Collector's Edition features marbled oceanic edges and endpapers, gold foil, and a reading group guide.

The appeal of this remarkable book is the lesson that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help reveal a future that once didn't feel possible.

Tova Sullivan's husband died, and she went on to work the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. 

Keeping busy has always helped Tova cope, especially in the three decades since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound.

At the Aquarium, Tova makes the acquaintance of the curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living there. Marcellus knows more than anyone can conceive, but he wouldn't dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors.

That is, until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova. Marcellus, using his unique detective skills, deduces what happened the night Tova's son disappeared, and now he is set to use every trick that his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it's too late.

The story is told in alternating fashion between chapters in Tova's voice and diary entries from Marcellus, such as this one below:

Day 1,299 of My Captivity

DARKNESS SUITS ME.

Each evening, I await the click of the overhead lights, leaving only the glow form the main tank. Not perfect, but close enough.

Almost-darkness, like the middle-bottom of the sea. I lived there before I was captured and imprisoned. I cannot remember, yet I can still taste the untamed currents of the cold open water. Darkness runs through my blood.

Who am I, you ask? My name is Marcellus, but most humans do not call me that. Typically, they call me that guy. For example: Look at that guy - there he is - you can just see his tentacles behind the rock.

I am a giant Pacific octopus. I know this from the plaque on the wall beside my enclosure.

I know what you are thinking. Yes, I can read. I can do many things you would not expect.

The plaque states other facts: my size, preferred diet, and where I might live were I not a prisoner here. It mentions my intellectual prowess and penchant for cleverness, which for some reason seems a surprise to humans. Octopuses are remarkably bright creatures, it says. It warns the humans of my camouflage, tells them to take extra care in looking for me in case I have disguised myself to match the sand.

The plaque does not state that I am named Marcellus. But the human called Terry, the one who runs this aquarium, sometimes shares this with the visitors who gather near my tank. See him back there? His name's Marcellus. He's a special guy.

A special guy. Indeed.

Terry's small daughter chose my name. Marcellus McSquiddles, in full. Yes, it is a preposterous name. It leads many humans to assume I am a squid, which is an insult of the worst sort.

How shall you refer to me, you ask? Well, that is up to you. Perhaps you will default to calling me that guy, like the rest of them. I hope not, but I will not hold it against you. You are only human, after all.

I must advise you that our time together may be brief. The plaque states one additional piece of information: the average life span of a giant Pacific octopus. Four years.

My life span: four years - 1,460 days.

I was brought here as a juvenile. I shall die here, in this tank. At the very most, one hundred and sixty days remain until my sentence is complete.