I was given ‘The Raw Shark Texts’ by Steven Hall a while ago, it was an enjoyable and riveting first read mixing what we know of reality whilst we journey into a mind-blowing existence with Eric Sanderson, the main character. Eric literally ‘comes to’ on the first page, a rebirth almost, knowing nothing. A simple moment which, thankfully for most all of us will never experience, yet the author brings it to life detailing the disjointed sensations that Eric wrestles with, coupled with the mechanics reawakening and then topped by the realisation of knowing nothing. Eric not only has amnesia, but is launched into an earth-shattering quest in the form of a shark.
A book you read and then intend to come back to
It is one of those books you intend to come back to, but need a prompt. The prompt was a radio podcast series about rabbit holes or, more correctly, conspiracy theories. The Raw Shark Texts isn’t about rabbit holes, though it certainly is a veritable rabbit hole of a story, which, forgive the mixed metaphors, will take you by the hand and lead you on a merry ‘dance’.
Some might liken it to a rollercoaster ride which feeds on cognitive dissonance, you know you are safe, but the ride feels scary. Unlike a rollercoaster where you slowly move upward in anticipation of tipping over the edge to plunge, crazily, seemingly out of control, into the twists, turns and loops, ‘The Raw Shark Texts’ starts with a bang, no messing.
On the cover it instructs “First things first, stay calm!” and so you must. It is full of delightful explorative language that takes you into the heart of Eric allowing us to deeply share his extraordinary story of imagination which will challenge and leave you with thoughts and ideas to mull over.
The second time reading it
It was a shock to find that my memory of the story was neither correct nor complete and that made me wonder if I had actually read it all the way through, a whole section had, like Eric’s memory, vanished. I remembered the quality of the writing and how it pulled me into a world beyond anything I could have imagined, that hadn’t changed, but the ending, that was different, both in the detail of the events themselves and the questions it left with me.
It made the reread even more enjoyably unsettling, as missing memory is at the core of the narrative. Imagine if you will, Momo by Michael Ende, where our perception of time is challenged by a gentle fairy story, meeting the mind-bending reality shift of the Matrix and you will have a hint of the journey you will accompany Eric as he deals with some of life’s great shape shifting mysteries.
When I put the book down for the second time, I wrongly felt slightly cheated, it was unsettling, not so much for my ‘memory’ lapse, but because of the questions it raised about reality. We each construct our own within the building blocks of language. which is a strong theme brilliantly explored by Steven Hall. I remember the quest, the excitement of accompanying Eric as he journeyed into realms of ‘fantasy’ woven from our relationship with language and how it shapes our world.
I felt different about the story the second time
However, I was initially disquieted by not having a recollection of the issues it raised the second time around about who we are and how we fit into our individual realities. The role of language, particularly in our media-soaked existence, continues to exercise our ability to find where and how we fit in the world. I confess to not having read the French philosopher Jean Baudrillard, but evidently he talks about Simulacra, “which are copies that depict things that either had no original, or that no longer have an original. They never conceal the truth; it is the truth which conceals that there is none.”
Or as I would put it – The truth is a typo where the ‘ir’ was omitted from the ‘The’.
It is fitting I should write this on the day that we lose an hour from the concept of time as the clocks go forward. On that note, I can honestly say The Raw Shark Texts led me a merry dance and caused me to reflect on some of life’s fundamental questions. Well worth tracking down a copy and settling down to a thrilling ride. Cue fairground music!
Endnotes:
PS: ‘Raw Sharks Texts’ is pun!
Momo by Michael Ende; though written in 1973 Momo really is a timeless book. You would be forgiven for thinking of it as a children’s story, but its themes are of the adult world and explores the relationship between time as a concept, how it is used, how it alters our perceptions and our relationships. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Momo_(novel)
Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Baudrillard; “is most known for its discussion of symbols, signs, and how they relate to contemporaneity (simultaneous existences). Baudrillard claims that current society has replaced all reality and meaning with symbols and signs, and that human experience is a simulation of reality.” Quote from Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simulacra_and_Simulation
