Remarkably Bright Creatures
Ratings428
Average rating4.1
Cute, “family movie” vibe with the added gimmick of an octopus and his internal monologue. It's in the same vein as A Man Called Ove, featuring an older person who has been through some tragedy and gets the chance to connect with new people. (Hey, octopuses are people too!)
I wish she had pushed the light comedy a bit further and made it funnier. There was potential, but most of the characters were humorless. Van Pelt kept very specific characterizations. Cameron: resentful, Tova: practical, Ethan: generous, Knit-Wits: meddlesome, Avery: spirited. There wasn't much complexity.
Other reviewers mentioned disliking Cameron, and I get it. He's insufferable to the point where I didn't want to see things work out for him. The author must have thought readers would be on his side if she kept serving him bad luck. Sometimes it's more about how the character handles setbacks than the setbacks themselves.
Despite all the backstory of death, child abandonment, and other heartbreak, it's uncomplicated and light-hearted if you're in that type of mood. It was entertaining for the time I spent reading it.
Peaceful, straightforward read about elderly no-nonsense Swede, Tova, coming to terms with grief and learning personal growth amid a tumult of coincidences and magical realism that bring people together.
Tova is very well-written, fleshed out character, and I wanted to see more of our gruff Scotsman, Ethan, with a heart of gold. Cameron came across as a little flat, and his penchant for not listening to people until they're done with their sentences conveniently added ~40 pages to the end of the book.
Also, I missed why Cameron didn't send a follow-up text to Avery after talking to Marco because it's not like Marco liked Cameron to begin with enough to do him a favor. The octopus duex ex machina could've been edited out of the book all-together and the ending would have still been the same.
This is a lovely book in a beautiful setting in Washington State, but the languid pacing and octopus shoe-horned in pulled me out of Tova, Ethan, and Cameron's story.
3.75 stars. A good, solid, sweet fiction book. Very bestseller vibes which is to say mediocre in a way that's not painful, I guess. I often like stories about chosen families, I have found, and I gotta say having an octopus in one's chosen family certainly seems like an improvement over not having one.
DNF 40%. I kept waiting for things to happen and nothing ever did. I loved the Octopus' POV chapters, Tova's were ok, Cameron is insufferable and I skimmed most of his chapters. I finally decided to DNF and looked up what happened. I feel like I was bamboozled by this book.
I thought the premise was intriguing, and the passages involving Marcellus were quite interesting and very well done, and Tova's were well done also, but the portions dealing with the other characters were just so much unnecessary fluff, diluting the storyline. I found myself skipping whole sections, which is never a good sign. Perhaps the threads would have all come together later in the book, enriching the tale as they did so, but I couldn't bring myself to stick with them enough to see it through. So, unfortunately, this will end up as a “DNF” for me.
DNF at 11%: Oooh, big fat no.
I wanted to listen to the audiobook during work. It was going fine; I didn't really care for Tova yet, and although Marcellus rubbed me off as pompous, he was funny. And an octopus, so of course I could overlook that.
But then, Cameron. Only one chapter into his narration and I was already annoyed. He speaks like an angsty teen that just learned how to swear. He said, “bicep day's been lit at the gym lately.” How very how-do-you-do-fellow-kids of you, Shelby.
I wasn't enjoying it at all. That change in tone gave me whiplash. It was so dull, I spent close to three hours replaying the chapter because I wasn't taking anything in. I assumed he would make regular interventions, and the feeble interest I had in the other characters was not enough for me to put up with this. As Cameron once said, “...ugh.”
The premise sounded really interesting but oh well, on to better books.
A lovely confection with likeable characters that will leave you feeling good. Recommended for that space between two books of heavier subjects as a palate cleanser. Definitely worth reading. I look forward to seeing Sally Field as Tova and Lewis Pullman as Cameron.
Loved the concept. Wanted more: Marcellus, Tova, and Ethan Mack. Wanted less: Cameron. A little slow and predictable, yet endearing and sweet. A nice read.
Rating Description:
1.0 - DNF/Despise
1.5 - Almost DNFed and wish I had
2.0 - Almost DNFed but had redeeming qualities/just boring
2.5 - Alright with lots of notes
3.0 - Alright with notes but I'm not raving about it
3.5 - Technically good but I'm not raving about it
4.0 - Technically good, and/or I enjoyed it a lot
4.5 - Loved it, I wanted to highlight lines in the book but still with notes
5.0 - Loved it, I wanted to highlight lines in the book, and notes are very positive
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While I might not really say, I love this book so much, I did, however, enjoyed it immensely. I was quite saddened that this is a litfic and will not have a sequel. Or at least not with Marcellus. If he’s not a part of it, then I probably won’t want to read it.
Pros:
1. I loooooooove Marcellus. I was already thinking about borrowing this book when it was chosen as the Book Club pick for the month. The draw was the octopus.
2. Though the story did stray far from Tova’s interactions with Marcellus, very little of it felt unnecessary or filler. I’m not saying it’s devoid of it. But I can only think of 1 scene that I think this book could have done without or reduced.
3. The title of the book insinuates that it’s talking about the octopus or all octopi. But in the end it it’s about people as well.
Cons:
1. Not enough Marcellus.
A story of characters examining and finding their place in the world, and then finding their family. I admit I am most interested is the octopus and wish there was more focus on him! Medium re-readability.
This was very well-written without overdone prose and was very readable, if not just an enjoyable read. The light-hearted tone, solid character development, and multiple POVs work well and while the creature is slightly less prominent in the middle of the story than you might expect, the story itself gets a little serious along the way and then very sweet at the end.
Cute with a unique character that adds character to the book. No surprises as you can see where it is going very quickly.
Pulls you in slowly. You can guess what will happen but you still want to see it unfold. Marcellus' voice is charming!
Seems from the reviews you either loved it or hated it. I fall into the group of people that enjoyed this one. I liked that Marcellus the GPO
What a wonderful book! A talking octopus. Need I say more? No, but I will. It seems perfectly natural for the ‘pus to narrate their own chapters even though it might sound quirky. Remember there was a talking dog in Lesson in Chemistry and we all loved that!
I listened to this one based on several peoples' recommendations... they wanted me to hear the voice of the octopus and they were not wrong. So well cast.
I love a book that lets me guess the ending and keeps dropping clues to make me feel smart :)
Okay FINE I loved it
50% of the way in I still didn't really get what I was reading but why was it so freaking wholesome
The octopus was the smartest character in this book and nothing would have gotten done or problem solved without him. Humans are NOT remarkably bright creatures.
If you want to feel warm and cozy while having a few laughs, then this is a must-read. Remarkably Bright Creatures is one of those books you are so happy to have read because it makes you appreciate life just a bit more. It reminded me of the feeling I had after reading Matt Haig's The Midnight Library and Humans.
** Some spoilers below **
At first, I was a little confused. I wasn't sure if it was a multi-timeline situation or how the characters related to each other. However, around the 15% mark, everything became much clearer.
I loved the characters and the relationships they built, particularly between Marcellus and Tova. Marcellus reminded me of the octopus from Finding Dory. He's an over-intellectual grump who craves freedom. His initial perspective on humans, viewing us as helpless beings, was both amusing and thought-provoking. Over time, he develops love and empathy for Tova, and I felt his frustration as an observer who couldn't easily intervene, watching him become desperate and doing whatever it takes to help.
Throughout the book, I appreciated all the synchronicities and felt deeply connected to Marcellus's emotions, frustrations, and eagerness to assist.
I also really enjoyed Cameron's themes of avoidance and low self-worth, as well as his journey towards accepting love and care. Tova's struggle with loneliness and following the expected path in old age was equally compelling. I felt similarly while watching the TV show Grace and Frankie. This feeling of lack of autonomy and fear of being alone was portrayed so well. It was such a simple but rich story of human connection.
One random thing that left me feeling a little unfinished is that I kind of expected more resolution with the lost body of Tova's son, which added a layer of anticipation to the story. Also, I was screaming “noooo” when Tova decided to sell the house. I felt like it was so important to the history of her family, especially with the discoveries in the end, but I also understand that it carried so many memories and sad moments that she wanted to start over.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It left me with a smile and a feeling of appreciation for being a remarkably bright creature. The well-crafted characters, the touching relationships, and the heartwarming moments make it a truly delightful read.
