The Sharks

Set at the end of last century, The Sharks is a thrilling tale of mutiny and shipwreck, which bears comparison with Melville&rsquo,s Moby Dick or Conrad&rsquo,s Typhoon in its suspense and its evocation of the fascination of the sea. It is also the story of mankind&rsquo,s  voyage into the twentieth century, suspended between the empty skies and the bottomless depths, dreadfully aware of its potential for self destruction but clinging to a belief in the preservation of a fragile humanity. The narrator, Peder Jensen, is both competent second mate and unworldly philosopher, whose brain &lsquo,lacks walls, a floor and  a roof&rsquo,, through his eyes we follow the dismantling of the rigid power structure on board as a community begins to emerge.This novel from 1974 is the last one by Norwegian author Jens Bjørneboe (1920-1976), one of Norway&rsquo,s most original, outspoken and controversial modern writers.