The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness

“Some of the Best possible science books of the year.” —Science Friday, NPR

In pursuit of the wild, solitary, predatory octopus, popular naturalist Sy Bernard Law Montgomery has practiced true immersion journalism. From New England aquarium tanks to the reefs of French Polynesia and the Gulf of Mexico, she has befriended octopuses with strikingly different personalities—gentle Athena, assertive Octavia, curious Kali, and joyful Karma. Each and every creature shows her cleverness in myriad ways: escaping enclosures like an orangutan; jetting water to bounce balls; and ceaselessly tricking companions with a couple of “sleights of hand” to get food.

Scientists have only recently accepted the intelligence of dogs, birds, and chimpanzees but now are watching octopuses solve problems and are looking to decipher the meaning of the animal’s color-changing techniques. Together with her “joyful passion for these intelligent and fascinating creatures” (Library Journal Editors’ Spring Pick), Bernard Law Montgomery chronicles the growing appreciation of this mollusk as she tells a unique love story. By turns funny, entertaining, touching, and profound, The Soul of an Octopus reveals what octopuses can teach us concerning the meeting of two very different minds.