Sometimes, family is simply what you make of what the universe presents to you, in all its mysterious ways.
It could be your friendly coffee clutch. Maybe the attentive grocer who always wants to chat you up. A stray cat that finds its way onto your couch. A sullen newbie at work in need of a little structure and direction.
Even a dying octopus.
For Tova Sullivan, in Shelby Van Pelt’s “Remarkably Bright Creatures,” it’s all of the above.
Tova is living, at best, an efficient existence as a widow in Sowell Bay, Washington, still grieving the sudden loss of her 18-year-old son, Erik, decades earlier, and more recently, her husband Will. She bides her time working late evenings at the local aquarium, taking great pride in keeping it clean as a whistle and neat as a pin, and exchanging pleasantries with the house octopus, Marcellus.
A late-night rescue sets the stage for an even closer relationship between Marcellus, in fact a remarkably bright creature, and Tova, and it’s with the knowledge his days on Earth are dimming that Marcellus commits to bringing closure to Tova.
And that’s when Cameron Cassmore comes to town in search of his father.
One person missing family and another person searching for one, combining to create a new unit without even knowing the magic the universe holds in store for them.
“Remarkably Bright Creatures” has been on my TBR list for a while now, and I’ve had more than a handful of friends recommend it. I packed it for vacation and it was the perfect read for the occasion — sweet, but not sappy, serious in places without being dark, and grounded in accessible emotion. We’ve all celebrated, we’ve all grieved, we’ve all supported friends in transition and if you’re lucky, you have friends that have supported you.
Van Pelt’s debut effort is the kind of read that will remind you that no, not everyone can just sit down and pound out the next great American novel. You have to know how to write, and that she does. In spades. She creates well-drawn, believable characters, each with their own arc, and blended their journeys into heartwarming intersections that culminate in a quietly superb story.
I’m late to the party on this one but if you haven’t read it, by all means, pick it up. You won’t be disappointed.
LitzyDitz 