Remarkably Bright Creatures

Family dynamics are at the heart of the novel, and the plot explores various incarnations of what a family can be. While the story centers on a repaired blood family—the link between Cameron and Tova—it is by no means the only “true” sense of the word, nor is it infallible. This is illustrated in the way Tova’s relationship with Lars disintegrated over time; there was no cataclysmic rupture, but rather a slow erosion of familial connection. This teaches us that while the bonds of family are important to our well-being, they must be nurtured if they are to survive.

Before coming to Sowell Bay, Cameron had a distorted view of family relationships. His only known relative was his aunt, and while they both try to do their best by each other, they’ve never really seen eye to eye. Instead, he finds a sense of family with her friends Elizabeth and Brad—“the three musketeers” (35). However, their new marriage and their baby—the blood family that ties the two of them together—threatens what Cameron once had. Instead, he turns to what he believes to be a father figure, hoping for a payout that will solve all his problems. Here Cameron recognizes the potential for family but sees it as a financial opportunity rather than a place to belong; he equates the concept of blood family to opportunity, rather than love.

What he discovers instead is a new sense of family with his grandmother, Tova. However, one of the most important aspects of the novel is that their bond is forged before either of them are aware of their blood connection. In this way they become found family first and blood family second. At the climax of the novel, Cameron takes off without knowing the story of his heritage. However, he returns to do the right thing and do right by Tova even though he’s not aware of their blood connection. This means that his choice to return comes from his organic loyalty to the bond they’ve built together rather than a manufactured loyalty to a hereditary connection—the loyalty he was expecting from his false father Simon Brinks. In honoring his newfound family, Cameron becomes worthy of blood family as a reward.

Ethan also plays a role in this new family unit by taking Cameron in and building a new relationship with Tova. He provides a grounding influence to both characters as Cameron cycles through his own shortcomings, and Tova becomes caught up in her fear of aging and solitude. Even though Tova and Cameron share a connection in the novel, Ethan’s relationship with each of them forms independently of the other. Cameron’s sense of betrayal when Ethan recruits someone new for his grocery store shows how his perception of them as a family ran deeper than he wanted to admit. By overcoming his internal sense of entitlement and pride, he’s able to repair his relationship with Ethan, which in turn creates a stronger found family unit between the three of them.