Remarkably Bright Creatures

Remarkably Bright Creatures (2022) is American author Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel. It was published to critical acclaim and deals with themes of grief, family, and freedom. Van Pelt was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest and uses the unique ecosystem of the area as a setting for the book, which highlights a sense of community and deep connection with the sea. This study guide references the hardcover edition of the novel from Bloomsbury Publishing.

Content Warning: This novel prominently concerns a death by suicide.

Plot Summary

Tova Sullivan is the elderly cleaning woman for the Sowell Bay Aquarium. She enjoys conversing with the aquarium’s octopus, Marcellus—an unusually intelligent creature who speaks directly to the reader about his captive circumstances. Marcellus has learned how to escape from his enclosure and travels through the aquarium looking for snacks. On one occasion, Tova finds him tangled in knotted cables in the director’s office. She helps free him, and Marcellus recognizes that without Tova, he would have died. The two begin an unlikely friendship.

Each week, Tova meets with her friends in a seniors’ social club they call the “Knit-Wits.” The other women express concern over Tova’s job.