Shelby Van Pelt

Someone recommended this one to me a way back, as a "If you like quirky small town stories..." type of rec. I most certainly do and this one was right up there with some of my favorites.

I was hesitant about the octopus on the cover and hearing that the story is partially told from the point of view of the octopus, Marcellus. But Marcellus is such a hoot and his internalizing was the best part!

There are multiple stories revolving around this small town, Sowell Bay, and you can sort of guess how all the stories will coalesce, but that doesn't diminish the fun in getting there.

I would highly recommend listening to the audiobook, to hear the voicing of the super-intelligent Marcellus. A+. Marcellus the octopus gave me shades of the talking octopus named 42 from the TV show Resident Alien, another favorite dealing with quirky, small town lives.… (more)

There was a girl.....Although that line comes in late in the book, it sums up the premise nicely. Tova's only son died 30+ years ago. Now widowed, she works as a night cleaner at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, which also happens to be the home of Marcellus, the clever Giant Pacific Octopus. As the story goes back and forth between Marcellus' chapters (easy to find with the octopus arm graphic) and Tova's, additional characters are introduced and bring their parts to the story. You're kept guessing until close to the end - what will happen to Marcellus? What will Tova & Cameron do in the end?… (more)

An unlikely cast of characters feature in this thoughtful and poignant story in the Pacific Northwest: Tova, an elderly woman still grieving the loss of her husband, who spends her nights doing janitorial work at the local aquarium. Cameron a young man with several chips on his shoulder who is struggling to find his place in the world, and...Marcellus, a curmudgeonly giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium, with a penchant for escaping from tank and getting up to mischief.

This is a touching, beautifully-written book and be warned: it is difficult to put down. The characters' inner struggles illustrate the certainty that we are all experiencing our own personal conflicts that may never be apparent to those around us. It's also a perfect example of how a feel-good book doesn't have to be sappy and overly saccharine, and every once in a while, and depending on what the reader is going through, they sometimes come along just when we need them. Highly recommended for summer reading or, honestly, anytime reading. Marcellus, as the only first-person narrator in the story, is the bomb.… (more)