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Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

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Hello, fellow reader. Before going too far I must confess something to you: I had ulterior motives when deciding which book my review would focus upon. Nothing nefarious, but with you in mind. My motive is Remarkably Bright Creatures is the book selection for Joplin Reads Together, the library’s premier community read. Common at public libraries across the country, a community read encourages participants from the community to all read one book, and the library provides programs that coincide with the selected book. Through the month of April Joplin Public Library will have a multitude of programs that relate to themes within Remarkably Bright Creatures. There is no cost to participate in Joplin Reads Together or any of the related programs, AND I’m not done with the awesomeness yet – Shelby Van Pelt is visiting the library April 27th to discuss her book. Another plus to the community read is participation is whatever you’d like it to be; you can read the book and come to all the programs in April, or simply read the book and come just to the author visit (or don’t, that’s an option, too!). However one is inclined to participate, Joplin Reads Together offers a shared experience with the library and readers in the community.

In a small tourist town in northern Washington septuagenarian Tova Sullivan works at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, cleaning the outside of aquariums and mopping the floors after closing. As she makes her way from aquarium to aquarium she talks to the sea creatures inside. While Tova acknowledges the animals don’t know what she’s saying and don’t respond (or so she initially thinks), this characteristic made Tova instantly likable to me for her kind, calm manner. A widow, Tova’s husband recently passed away, a sorrow she carries with her along with grief for her son, who died under mysterious circumstances 30 years prior. At the Aquarium Tova seems to find some solace for her loneliness.

Also at the Sowell Bay Aquarium is Marcellus McSquiddles, an irritable giant pacific octopus that vehemently rejects, among other things, his mortifying last name (he is an octopus after all, NOT a squid). Marcellus has a lot of opinions; he spends his days observing the people that come to the Aquarium, perplexed by their human ways and possessing an uncanny ability to pinpoint facts about them just by observation. In Marcellus, Van Pelt creates an entertaining and funny character that pulled me in. I found myself looking forward to the chapters told from his perspective. Also in Marcellus Van Pelt creates a friend for Tova; Marcellus listens to all Tova has to say as she cleans, and finds his own way to communicate back. As a result of this friendship and the grief Marcellus sees within Tova he is determined to assist her in uncovering what happened to her son all those years ago.

In addition to Tova and Marcellus the novel is full of characters from around the town that are friends to Tova and invested in her life. There’s grocer Ethan who has a crush on Tova, the Knit-Wits who are Tova’s closest friend group, and new-to-town traveler Cameron who is searching for his family. Many of the novel’s characters seem to be on the verge of a new start, driven by their unique searches for that certain something missing in their life. Tova especially is haunted by her past and how to move forward with her future. Can Marcellus help her?

Within Remarkably Bright Creatures Shelby Van Pelt creates a realistic fiction that pulls at the heartstrings. Van Pelt manages to address the heavy burden of loss and grief in a relatable manner, all while maintaining a gentle, often humorous narrative. Tova’s struggle with how to leave the past in the past, while also bringing its memories to the future, is something I think many readers could identify with, especially those that have lost a loved one. While I myself am not 70 years old like Tova is, I found her additional struggle with aging, particularly after losing those closest to her, a necessary conversation that should be examined by a community often and purposefully. How can we assist those in our community that are, day to day, alone? What is the difference between the community we live in, and the community we choose to make for ourselves? If this is a book you pick up to read I hope it brings you the entertainment and thought provoking questions it brought to me. And if Joplin Reads Together is something that interests you I hope to see you at one of the library’s April programs to hear what you thought of Tova and Marcellus.

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Review by Sarah Turner-Hill, Adult Programming Coordinator

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

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Emily St. John Mandel is a name that many readers may already be familiar with, as the Canadian born writer has been gaining notability (and awards, television adaptations, Best Seller list recognitions, among others) for the last several years. Mandel’s fourth novel Station Eleven, received a nomination for the National Book Award (alongside other accolades), and HBO Max released a limited mini series adapted from the book. Mandel’s fifth novel The Glass Hotel likewise garnered award nods and television adaptation interest. Mandel’s newest novel, Sea of Tranquility, examines the idea of time travel and reality, and is no exception to popularity. Debuting at number 3 on The New York Times Best Seller List, and winning the 2022 Goodreads Choice Award for Science Fiction, Sea of Tranquility was a great way to end my 2022 read list. 

Now that I’ve thoroughly swayed you on the impressiveness of Mandel’s oeuvre, moving on to the book itself…

Mixing science fiction with speculative fiction, Mandel examines what it is to find meaning and beauty in a life that is always changing, and when time is always passing. One of my favorite aspects of the novel is its structure: Sea of Tranquility follows the storylines of four main characters, their lives taking place hundreds of years apart. The novel first introduces Edwin St. John St. Andrew in 1912. An English native, Edwin is sent away to Canada by his family at 18 years old following an ill-timed truth shared at a dinner party. Traveling alone to the Canadian wilderness, Edwin ponders what has become of his life and what he is to do now. On a walk in the forest Edwin experiences a simultaneous flash of darkness, the sound of a violin, and a whooshing sound that is like nothing he has experienced before, and it truly unsettles him. Shortly after this experience Edwin meets a man that introduces himself as Gaspery Roberts, who disappears before Edwin can satisfactorily speak with him.

The novel next moves to Mirella in the year 2020. Mirella is in a relationship she isn’t sure she wants following the suicide of her husband. Much like Edwin, Mirella seems lost and searching, but for what, she isn’t sure. Mirella is unable to move past the reason for her husband’s death, an investment that turned out not to be an investment at all, but fraud that ruined his life and savings. The wife of the man responsible for this fraudulent case, Vincent, is an old friend of Mirealla’s whom she was previously unkind to, and now wishes to rectify her misgivings. Mirealla tracks down Vincent’s brother, only to learn Vincent is dead. She also meets Gaspery Roberts, who is interviewing Vincent’s brother about a flash or darkness, the sound of a violin, and a whooshing sound Vincent caught on tape. 

It is now the year 2203 and the novel introduces Olive Llewellyn. Olive lives on the second moon colony but is visiting Earth on a book tour for her most recent and popular book. Olive seems to be only half invested in her tour, her mind on her daughter back home and the fact that she can’t remember her current hotel room number, as there has been so much change happening. Is this tour what she wants, and how does she handle all of the change her most popular book is bringing about, both for her and her family? Olive then does an interview with Gaspery Roberts, who is interested in a particular scene in her new book: a flash of darkness, the sound of a violin, and a whooshing sound. 

The final character the book shifts to is Gaspery Roberts himself. Gaspery lives in the Night City in the year 2401, and works as a hotel detective. Gaspery is tasked with investigating a series of strange anomalies, individuals that have experienced a flash of darkness, the sound of a violin playing, and a whooshing sound. Gaspery, like the other characters, is grabbling to find peace and comfort in a life that has been shaken and is changing, and not necessarily for the better. “But what makes a world real?” Gaspery ponders, often exploring the idea of living in a simulation, “If we were living in a simulation, how would we know it was a simulation?”

While time travel and details like the habitation of the moon definitely lend this book to Science Fiction, Mandel focuses on these aspects as much as one might say Kazuo Ishiguro does in Never Let Me Go, or George Orwell in 1984. Mandel has a way of utilizing lyrical, thought provoking prose when least expected, and presenting big questions relatable to her characters and readers alike.

Review written by Sarah Turner-Hill, Adult Programming Coordinator

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Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy

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Greetings and welcome to my first book review! While I’ve never written a book review I’ve read many, and likewise read many books. So maybe I’m a natural, right? (It’s okay, you don’t have to answer that, I can feel your encouragement from here.) So here goes: Once There Were Wolves is a book. It’s a good book. I think you should read this book, if you want. If not that’s okay too, I’ll likely never know. So…thank you for your time. 

Only joking, don’t go! Here are truly some things to know about Once There Were Wolves:

What happens to a climate without wolves? What happens when the wolves return? Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy explores these questions through a fictionalized solution to Scotland’s very real lack of wolves; the last wolf in Scotland was killed in 1680, and there are no wild wolves remaining. Enter main character Inti Flynn and her fourteen gray wolves. Inti is equal parts loyal and loner, sharing a deep connection and striking similarity to her wolves. A biologist, Inti is leading a team tasked with reintroducing wolves to the Scotland Highlands in hopes of revitalizing the environment. Without wolves Scotland Highlands’ deer population lingers in areas long enough to reduce the growth of tree shoots, and thus forests. Rewilding these fourteen wolves will help move the deer and subsequently allow regrowth of natural forests. Inti seems perfect for this endeavor as she is passionate about both the wolves and the environment their presence aims to fortify. 

However, the wolves and caring for nature aren’t Inti’s only motivations for moving to Scotland: Inti’s twin sister Aggie is coming too. Inti hopes moving Aggie away from their previous home of Alaska will be good for her twin, who is mentally and physically dependent upon Inti. Through a series of flashbacks between present day, Inti’s childhood, and young adulthood prior to moving to Scotland it’s clear Aggie wasn’t always this way. The balance between past and present throughout the novel reveals the reasoning behind Aggie’s dependency and how it intertwines with Inti’s motivations in Scotland.

Raised by her mother in Australia and her father in British Columbia, Inti was taught to fear human nature by her detective mother and to live among nature by her off-the-grid father. This upbringing is a foundation for Inti’s self-isolating nature, as is Inti’s diagnoses of mirror-touch synesthesia, a rare condition in which those diagnosed feel similar tactile sensations as others. For Inti this happens anytime she sees someone feel something, for example receiving a high-five. Inti is also able to feel things her wolves feel, like salivation when she presents them with food. Inti’s mirror-touch synesthesia is a contributing factor to her relationship with and protectiveness of her wolves, and her distrust of humans.

As one might imagine, Inti’s task of rewilding her wolves is met with adversity from locals, particularly farmers. Inti is not faced with an easy task; in addition to rewilding the wolves she is juggling angry farmers who fear the affect the wolves presence will have on their livestock, her sisters concerning condition, her own self-doubt, her struggles with mirror-touch synesthesia, and her budding feelings for the local sheriff. As if that isn’t enough a farmer is found dead (can’t a girl catch a break). In denial that her wolves could be responsible, Inti starts down a path to clear their name by uncovering the true killer, discovering things she never knew about herself along the way. What results is a rollercoaster conclusion to an already tense story.

There is a lot going on in this book, so staying interested was not a problem for me. At times there was too much going on for my taste, but I think that is somewhat the point: life can be chaotic, just as nature can be. McConaghy’s parallel between human nature and animal nature is wonderfully (if not pointedly) done throughout the novel. I found Inti to be an interesting character, both captivating and frustrating in her steadfastness of taking on everything by herself. Most of the time Inti relates more to her wolves than the humans surrounding her, and the simultaneous danger and beauty in the relationship between nature and humans is both poignant and humbling to read.

This is not McConaghy’s first novel focused upon human impact on the natural environment. McConaghy has also penned Migrations, which likewise follows a female protagonist in a journey of self-discovery through nature. If strong female leads and the importance of the natural world around us are of interest to you McConaghy is an author to explore. 

Note: If you are considering reading Once There Were Wolves I suggest reviewing the content warnings before embarking on your journey with Inti and her wolves.

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Review written by: Sarah Turner-Hill, Adult Programming Coordinator