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| The Highest Tide: A Novel | 
| Author: Jim Lynch
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Category: Book
List Price: $23.95
Buy Used: $0.46
You Save: $23.49 (98%)
New (22) Collectible (7) from $1.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  59 reviews
Sales Rank: 356662
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 272
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 6 x 1.1
ISBN: 1582346054
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9781582346052
ASIN: 1582346054
Publication Date: September 8, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Some slight wear on book from reading, binding and pages are in very good shape.
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| Customer Reviews:
 A gentle coming-of-age story evolves in a moving story in THE HIGHEST TIDE. August 7, 2007
When pre-teen Miles's exploration of the night tidal flats of Puget Sounds uncovers a rare sea creature, he becomes an overnight sensation and finds his newfound fame one more obstacle to happiness as he tries to cope with first romance, parents who might divorce, and a summer of changes. A gentle coming-of-age story evolves in a moving story in THE HIGHEST TIDE.
 Starts fine but ultimately a washout August 6, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The story revolves around 13 year old Miles' explorations on the tidal flats of Puget Sound which is brimming with marine life. Miles makes a couple of unique finds and he and his friend Phelps brave a near tragedy while the boys prowl the nighttime bay.
The information about the creatures Miles finds is interesting but does at times read like a stuffy science textbook. There is also a sense of being repeatedly smacked in the head with glaringly obvious symbolism like the sea star shaped like a cross duh! The new age tangent the story takes served only to make me yawn.
There is some authentic interaction between Miles and his friends Phelps and old Florence but the same effort is not put into other characters.
By the end of the book I did not like Miles very much and found some of his actions cowardly and selfish. The ending was a bit corny and rushed as well. Add two stars if you live on Puget Sound or if you are a friend of the author.
Terrific July 1, 2007
Living on Puget Sound it was a delightful read - memories of our youth on the water..A MUST read for anyone who enjoys scavaging on the beach or kayaking
Courtesy of Teens Read Too June 19, 2007
Miles says that most people don't believe him when he describes what he sees in the water--they often think he is exaggerating or lying. But when he finds something that is almost unbelievable to both himself and Professor Kramer, people begin seeing him a bit differently.
What he saw was a giant squid, which is usually a deep-ocean creature. The mystery of how such a creature would end up in the shallow waters of the Puget Sound caused quite a commotion in his own community and among the science community at large. Since Miles tends to be a quiet teenager, sudden attention focused on him seems a bit unsettling.
When Miles finds more unusual creatures in the area, more attention and questions are focused on him. Why is he the only one finding all of these remarkable things? Miles says it's because he is probably the only one looking. Indeed, he spends more time looking at the water than most kids spend on the computer. He becomes seen as a sort of scientific genius, a prophet, and even a hero. More and more people begin showing interest in this area and Miles struggles with the constant attention and the disturbance to the once quiet area. All of this is happening while Miles struggles with his parents' troubled marriage, his crush on a girl, helping his elderly friend stay out of a nursing home, and just plain old growing up.
Never before have the details from a book intrigued me so much that I immediately wanted to research them so I could see what was described in the writing. Until I read THE HIGHEST TIDE by Jim Lynch, that is.
Miles, the main character, has such a love for water life, and he spends a great deal of his time exploring. When Miles describes the things he sees it is with so much respect and awe that readers can't help but be drawn into a fascination of this world that is so often overlooked. I found myself wanting to pick up the book during my day so that I could see where else Miles's discoveries would take me. And when I did research, the pictures of these creatures were just as breathtaking as Miles described them.
Jim Lynch is able to create beauty with words the way artists do with paintbrushes. Read this book. You will see our planet differently. At least the 2/3 of it that is water and contains such intrigue.
Reivewed by: Dianna Geers
a very strange coming of age story June 4, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Miles lives on the Puget Sound. He's almost 14, very small for his age, very smart, an insomniac, and absolutely in love with the Sound and with the girl who used to babysit him.
This is the story of a summer in Miles's youth which was almost mystical. He finds a mythical creature in the water, and his life begins to change.
So much in Miles's life changes in that summer: how his parents view him and each other, how he views his best friend (an old fortune teller), how he interacts with his peers, and how he handles himself. Toward the end of the book, his dad finds that miles has grown, physically, in an unexpected but longed-for spurt. This physical growth is mirrored in an emotional and mental growth. Miles loses some of his innocence but gains in self confidence and perspective.
It's a very well-told book which has science, ecology without preaching, and a cult that the author may or may not be dissing.
I really enjoyed it!
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Wildlife, nature and the Environment
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