Shelby Van Pelt’s novel continues to receive praise
By Jason Arndt
Editor
New York Times best-selling author Shelby Van Pelt has experienced a whirlwind tour following the release of her debut novel called “Remarkably Bright Creatures” more than two years ago.
Van Pelt, who hails from the Chicago suburbs, has seen her book garner national attention dating back to May 2022 when Jenna Bush Hager from NBC’s Today Show selected the novel for the Read with Jenna book club.
After more than two years, Van Pelt finally found time to make an appearance in Waterford as part of her ongoing promotional schedule. She was in the village Sunday.
Hosted by Reads by the River Books and Gifts, a Waterford bookstore, Van Pelt’s visit, consisting of a conversation with local author Jane Hamilton, sold nearly 400 tickets for the event. It was held at the Waterford Union High School Performing Arts Center.
Kelly Klein, co-owner of Reads by the River, said the novel’s success stems from the reader’s emotional connection with any character described in the book.
“It’s a really heart-warming book and I think people are just connected with the fact that it is a very uplifting and unique story,” said Klein, who added the novel to the store’s book club when it was released. “The reason it was picked is it is just a universally relatable story. People can relate to different characters that are in the story.”
The novel features Tova Sullivan, a widow who decided to take a job mopping floors at an aquarium, where she becomes acquainted with a curmudgeonly Pacific octopus called Marcellus.
In addition to coping with the loss of her husband, Sullivan has also grappled with her son’s disappearance, according to Van Pelt’s synopsis,
“Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine, but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight tentacles for his human captors – until he forms an unlikely friendship with Tova,” Van Pelt wrote on her website.
“Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova’s son disappeared. As his affection for Tova grows, Marcellus must use every trick his old, invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it’s too late,” the website shares.
Immediate popularity
Published in March 2022, Klein and Reads by the River reached out to Van Pelt, who had an interest in promoting her book in Waterford.
However, unknown to Klein, the novel eventually became featured by Bush Hager on the Today Show and instantly grew popular on a national level.
“Everything just kind of exploded. Her book became very well known, very quickly,” Klein said.
While Van Pelt traveled the nation, she and Klein kept in contact and eventually decided to meet on Sunday in Waterford.
Initially, Klein had planned for about 150 people to attend, but the number quickly grew to nearly 400.
“I was looking at 150, which is why we had to have it here because I knew it was going to be bigger than other venues we have used in the past,” Klein said of choosing the WUHS Performing Arts Center. “I had no idea it was going to be this crazy.”
Van Pelt, a stay-at-home parent, previously worked in the corporate world before authoring the debut novel.
Prior to the conversation with Hamilton, she told Southern Lakes Newspapers that she never envisioned seeing the novel grow immensely, crediting independent bookstores such as Reads by the River as well as positive customer feedback.
“It has had a lot of word-of-mouth promotion and a lot of wonderful indie book stores, like the Reads by the River, who have done a great job of selling it to their customers,” she said. “It has kind of been a renaissance and it just keeps going.”
As of Sunday, the novel has sold more than 1.5 million copies, which placed the book on the best seller’s list by the New York Times.
Hamilton said she has also read the book several times and acknowledged Van Pelt exhibited a smooth transition among the characters in the novel.
“What I admire about the book is Shelby moves between many voices with great ease,” said Hamilton, who has also seen national success with two of her books receiving props from Oprah Winfrey.
Customer praise
Mackenzie Peterson, of Union Grove, was one of nearly 400 people who attended the event. She found the novel unique and said she has also read the book multiple times.
Reception from local readers did not come as a surprise to Klein.
“I have not had one customer come in saying they didn’t like the book,” Klein said. “It is just universally loved.”
For more information, including how to purchase the novel, visit shelbyvanpelt.com.
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