Remarkably Bright Creatures may be the first book you’ll read with a cephalopod as one of the main characters; specifically, a Giant Pacific octopus named Marcellus, who lives at the Sowell Bay Aquarium. Tova Sullivan, a seventy-year-old widow, is the nighttime cleaner at the aquarium, and one night she catches Marcellus out of his tank in the middle of a crisis. He went to steal snacks from the breakroom, got tangled up in some cords, and started suffering The Consequences. (The Consequences are what Marcellus calls it when he stays out of water for too long and weakens.) After Tova frees him, the two come to an understanding and begin to forge an unusual but extraordinary friendship.
Remarkably Bright Creatures is told through multiple perspectives: Marcellus; Tova; Ethan Mack, the local grocer in Sowell Bay who has a crush on Tova; and Cameron Cassmore, a down-on-his-luck young man who lives hours away but whose path is destined to intersect with every other character in unexpected ways.
At the beginning of Marcellus’s point-of-view chapters is a count of his days in captivity (we begin at 1,299 days), and the length indicates he is nearing the end of his lifespan. Tova is also aware that she’s entering her later years and, like the octopus, is all on her own. Will they be each other’s last new friend?
At one point, Marcellus reveals, “I am very good at keeping secrets.” And so he is. He has limited options – after all, who can he tell? But the converse is true as well. Marcellus is very good at picking apart secrets, and Tova has a big mystery at the center of her life. Thirty years ago her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, went missing, and his body was never found. She moved on with her life, but the questions surrounding his disappearance still haunt her. Was it an accident? Was it murder? Will she ever know? Incredibly, Marcellus may be the key to finding out.
Remarkably Bright Creatures is a heartwarming story of grief, healing, unexpected friendships, and lost and found family. You'll learn interesting Great Pacific octopus facts (they have nine brains!), and you’ll find yourself rooting for Marcellus and Tova as they figure things out, big and small. Find it at your local library in print and audiobook formats!
