Skip to main content

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt Book Review

Reasons For Reading This Book:

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt has been on my to read list since it was published last year. This specific book came as a recommendation from my best friend. After finally getting my hands on a library copy I was able to read it in March 2023. As someone who has a degree in environmental studies and a love for ocean life, I was excited to read this book for the story and interpretation of an octopus as a narrator. I avoided reading the description of the book as I wanted to go into it with little expectations of the story. Before starting I was told by my best friend that she loved it and when she tells others about this book it sounds like a child’s book but is not.

 

Content of This Book:

Tova is a lonely widow, Cameron is a down on his luck young man, and Marcellus is a giant Pacific octopus. These three contrasting characters’ lives become intertwined cleverlyin a story that is heartwarming, charming, and oh so unconventional. 

 

What I Liked About This Book:

 

The first thing that comes to mind is the ease of the writing. I can see how it could be viewed as juvenile. I can see why someone would say that but I would respond by saying the focus of the novel is on the story and less on the sophistication of the word choice and literary devices. The main literary device used in this novel is flashbacks. This is used to provide the reader with information about a few of the narrators. The main emphasis for the octopus is its intelligence. This idea comes across strongly in both its actions and inner thoughts for why he does what he does. I really enjoyed the feeling this novel gave me as I read it even though it had a more somber feel. I was optimistic and found joy in picking it up each time. It is rare to have a novel where the narrators are so different. This novel has three main narrators who are an octopus, an older women, and a 30 year old man. The varying perspectives in this novel lends to a wider view of how one thing can affect people of different species, backgrounds, ages, and life experiences. I was entertained and intrigued by the underlying mystery of the suspicious death of Tova’s son. The author did a fantastic job of weaving this plot point into the overall story by having it be a background element with great importance. This book has been described as heartwarming and charming and it is just that.

 

What I Disliked About This Book:

 

A majority of this book consisted of the characters doing mundane activities in their day-to-day lives. This could really turn off some readers. I found that I could only take it to an extent. I did find myself zoning off during some of these parts of the novel. From the jump Cameron really annoyed me. I know that the reason for my dislike of this character is because of our opposing personalities. I was fatigued by his outlook on life. With that being said I did grow slightly more fond of him by the end of the novel. There was inconsistencies in the level of details given. There were times where Marcellus would go into extreme detail about something and then Tova would graze right over it. I did have the thought that this was intentional to show the difference in intelligence between Giant Pacific Octopus and humans. As I said above, I was entertained by the suspicious death plot point, but I was ultimately let down by its conclusion in the novel.

 
Would I Recommend This Book?

Overall I would recommend this book. There are meaningful lessons learned in this novel that can apply to so many different people. It is also entertaining and easy to read. I rate it 4 stars.


Check out my book reviews for 2023!!


Check out my book reviews for 2022!!
2022 Book Rankings

Horse by Geraldine Brooks  
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Friday Night Lights by H.G. Bissinger
Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll
Hester by Laurie Pico Albanese
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
Environmental and Sustainability Book Reviews 2022
Self-Improvement Book Reviews 2022
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
Know My Name by Chanel Miller
The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley
Not All Diamonds and Rosé by Dave Quinn
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Golden Girl by Elin Hilderbrand
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton
A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham 
Girls With Bright Futures by Tracy Dobmeier and Wendy Katzman
Run, Rose, Run by James Patterson and Dolly Parton
The Summer Series by Jenny Han
A Stolen Life: A Memoir by Jaycee Dugard
The Housewives: The Real Story Behind the Real Housewives by Brian Moylan
Verity by Colleen Hoover
All Rhodes Lead Here by Mariana Zapata
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Our Country Friends by Gary Shteyngart 
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Majesty: American Royals 2 by Kathrine McGree
Every Last Secret by A.R. Torre

Check out my book reviews for 2021!!

2021 Book Rankings

Beach Read By Emily Henry
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
Maybe In Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Educated by Tara Westover
The Simple Wild by K.A. Tucker
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig 
The Kitchen Front by Jennifer Ryan
Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins 
We Are the Brennans by Tracey Lange
Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins 
We Are the Brennans by Tracey Lange
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Klara and the Sun 
The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
American Duchess by Karen Harper 
Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
Girl With No Job by Claudia Oshry
Down the Habit Hole by Holly Madison Book Review
My Story by Elizabeth Smart
Layla by Colleen Hoover

Check out my book reviews for 2020!!

Check out my book reviews for 2019!!

Check out my book reviews from 2018!!


Don't forget to stay up to date on my blog by following my social media accounts!
Instagram: @whenishouldbestudying




Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Reasonable Dorm Room Cleaning Schedule

Reasonable Dorm Room Cleaning Schedule After my first semester of college I have developed a cleaning routine that I have been able to keep up with. You can read my previous blog post about What I Learned In My First Semester of College . Over the past few months I have experimented and I am confident in the routine that I have created.  Personalize When it comes to personalizing the schedule you could add or take out the different chores. For example I also wash my retainers weekly and monthly my roommate and I decorate the marker board on the outside of our door. We also only clean our mirrors when needed since we have found that they do not seem to become too dirty regularly. Something that I would make sure you sanitize every week would be the surfaces that you are constantly touching. That means light switches, door handles, and your desk. By doing this I managed to avoid getting sick when my roommate and other floor mates go sick. Another task that you could add to y
93 comments
Read more

Bullet Journal Fitness and Workout Spread Ideas

If you want to purchase some of these spreads you can buy the digital bundle from my Etsy shop: Simply Paperless .  I had created six different bullet journal fitness and workout trackers/spreads. These spreads were made in my digital bullet journal using the GoodNotes App.   I highly recommend to use a stylus when using GoodNotes as a digital bullet journal. For this project I used the Adonit Dash 3 Stylus , which I highly recommend. I also recommend the Bargain Depot Stylus 2 Pack  from Amazon. Daily Workout Plan This first spread can be used to plan out what exercises you plan to workout each day of the week. I would recommend this spread for those who are just starting to workout. I did not created the workout that is used as the example for the content of this spread. The workout is from Pintrest Workout Plan .  Workout Tracker This next tracker is in the format of a monthly calendar. In order to track the different workouts accomplished throughout
63 comments
Read more

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Book Review

Reasons For Reading This Book: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus was Jackie's choice for the month of October. Jackie is the host of The Readheads Podcast Book Club. This is a monthly podcast book club that I have been apart of since it was established in 2020. I love getting to hear the thoughts of the hosts each month.  Content of the Book: Elizabeth Zott is a chemist but is much more than meets the eye. She is not only beautiful but also extremely smart, confident, strong, and not afraid to beat to her own drum. Elizabeth is one of the only female chemists working at Hastings Research Institute. She is viewed as different by everyone there. It's there that she meet Nobel-Prize nominated chemist Calvin Evans. Calvin who falls in love with Elizabeth is described as a loner, grudge holder, and extremely brilliant. Fast forward a few years and Elizabeth is now a single-mother working as the host of the most watched cooking show, Supper at Six . With Elizabeth's ways of
2 comments
Read more