A novel of the deep, an ecological thriller. Hope this is not too scary. Got this a few years ago from friends.

The doorstopper arrived today along with some other everyday aid. Looks interesting! Thanks a lot!

Der Schwarm 2004, translated by Sally-Ann Spencer 2006. 881 pages.

This ecothriller tells about humanity's careless attitude towards the world's oceans. In the depths of the ocean lives an unknown consciousness, and it has decided to rise up and strike back.

Ships sink inexplicably, shellfish become poisonous, killer whales attack ships, and the water makes people sick. To save humanity, a group of scientists analyzing the behavior of sea animals is needed. Soon they find themselves in a race against time to prevent a global cataclysm.

This was really a reading experience! In addition to the topical theme, it was an entertaining sci-fi read, an exciting and dramatic dystopia about what if nature strikes back. The author has done a huge amount of background work, and the book was a rather demanding read in places, with lots of accurate knowledge about marine biology, geology, and geophysics. But then, there were breathing spaces in the text, like a long and interesting episode of Inuit life.
The theme of collective consciousness, "group mind", is interesting.

One of humanity's greatest challenges is to understand man's place in the world. In the book, the scientists had some good reflection on the subject.
"Eighty per cent of multicellular organisms have been far more successful in evolutionary terms than mankind, without ever being part of this supposed trend towards neural complexity. The fact that we're endowed with intelligence and conciousness is only evidence of progress from our particular viewpoint. We're just some bizarre evolutionary sideshow that's arisen against all the odds. There's only one thing that the human species has contributed to the ecosystem of this planet, and that's a whole lot of trouble."
Poor we!

-ruzena

220/1001 done

***
EDIT. 2023-12-08: Released in Rikhardinkatu Library, Helsinki.