Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (2022 fiction)

After the death of her husband, Tova Sullivan takes a janitorial job on the night shift at the local aquarium. She becomes acquainted with Marcellus, an elderly octopus who wants nothing to do with his human captors until he becomes acquainted with Tova. Over 30 years ago, Tova’s 18 year old son Erik mysteriously vanished on a boat trip in Puget Sound, and keeping busy at the aquarium is her way of coping with her loss. Marcellus decides to help her figure out what happened. I came across this book shortly after watching a program on PBS about an octopus living in a scientist’s home aquarium. While this book is fiction and some parts of it are improbable, it is still a fascinating story about the “remarkably bright creature” Marcellus, as well as friendship and family.

Reviewed by Ginger Russell