While that tag line may not tickle your fancy, please bear with me. It is also about family tragedy, second chances, and how the strongest of bonds can be formed in the unlikeliest of places. It gave me goosebumps and made me cry early on, so I knew straight away that it was my kind of story. Delivered as a pair of interweaving stories where you’re never sure at what point the characters’ lives are going to intersect.
At first, I was a bit annoyed when the story abruptly switched from the majestic Pacific Northwest setting where “Marcellus” the octopus lives, to Modesto, California, where we meet Cameron and his “failure to launch” lifestyle, mainly because I could not fathom what this interloper had to do with anything. But hang in there and you will not be disappointed.
The first part of the novel revolves around Tova, an elderly widow in Washington State who cleans the aquarium where Marcellus, a particularly intelligent giant Pacific octopus, lives and roams. From early on we know something happened to Tova’s son and that she has never found the closure she desperately seeks over his death.
Everyone in Tova’s small, tight-knit community think they know what happened thirty years ago the night Tova’s son disappeared on Puget Sound. Tova, however, is sure there is more to the story than meets the eye. What she is completely unaware of, however, is that Marcellus is determined to help her get answers.
From the opening pages, I could tell this was a tale that was going to pull on the heartstrings. It doesn’t take much for me, so I was welling up from the first chapter but I was also cracking up at the wit and dry humor of - remarkably - an octopus. Obviously, an octopus cannot speak, but the reader is privy to Marcellus’s internal musings and let’s just say I will never be able to look at an octopus the same way again.
Van Pelt takes us along with Tova and Cameron (and, of course, Marcellus), as we meet the inhabitants of Sowell Bay: the ladies’ club Tova meets on a regular basis, the grocery store manager who is sweet on her, and the manager of the aquarium, all who want the best for the independent and reserved Tova who, after losing her only son and, later, her husband, has come to rely only on herself. With the arrival of Cameron at a pivotal moment in her life, Tova will learn that even amidst profound sorrow, joy can sometimes be found in the most unlikely and unexpected relationships.
Remarkably Bright Creatures may be a very unusual tale but it evokes feelings we can all relate to. I highly recommend!
