by Shelby Van Pelt, with audio narration by Marin Ireland and Michael Uhry (Compact Disc Van Pelt) (a 2023 One Book – One Lincoln finalist)
Seeing that it was one of the three finalists for One Book – One Lincoln in 2023, I managed to grab Remarkably Bright Creatures as an audiobook-on-cd, and am incredibly grateful that I did. I loved this book, but especially as an audiobook!
This shares the intersecting stories of three individuals (and the people in their immediate periphery) at a pivotal point in all their lives. Tova Sullivan is an active senior, who has been working at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, cleaning up after closing hours, since her husband passed away. The biggest mystery in her life is the question of what happened to her son, many years ago, who disappeared after his part-time job one night and was never seen again, though circumstantial evidence seems to indicate that he took a small boat out on the ocean and committed suicide. The second main character is Cameron, a young man who’s drifting through life without any real purpose, who ends up in Tova’s town in search of the man he thinks is his father, based on an old photo of his absent mother from her high school years. The third main character is Marcellus McSquiddles. That’s right. He’s a Giant Pacific Octopus, nearing the end of his 4-year lifespan, who’s on exhibit in the aquarium.
Each of these three characters narrates their own story. Tova’s and Marcellus’ stories intersect one night when Marcellus who’s a bit of an escape artist, is found outside his tank, tangled up and unable to save himself, by Tova, who rescues the arthropod. After circumstances force Tova to take a partial leave of absence from her aquarium job, Cameron (temporarily in town) ends up filling in for her.
Each of these characters is suffering grief, lonelieness and uncertainty about their futures. And each of them ultimately discovers that the other two characters fill a void in their life. To tell you more would be to spoil the joy of seeing the story unfold.
The one thing I was say is that the audiobook of Remarkably Bright Creatures features TWO narrators. Actress Marin Ireland does the bulk of the story, but actor Michael Uhry narrates the segments told in the voice of Marcellus, and he makes that octopus come to life. By the end of this novel, I was emotionally moved and 100% invested in the fates of everyone in the story. This isn’t a truly “deep” novel, but it is an incredible character study and left me fully satisfied in the end. Hopefully you will be too! And definitely give the audiobook a try!
( official Shelby Van Pelt web site )
Recommended
by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service
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