Jim Lynch

THE HIGHEST TIDE, released in 2005, has been a bestseller in the United States and the United Kingdom. The novel won the Pacific Northwest Bookseller Award and has been translated into ten languages and adapted to the stage where it was performed by Book-it Theater in spring 2008.

U.S. hardback and paperback, Bloomsbury

U.S. Young Adult cover

The British version of The Highest Tide became a bestseller after it was showcased by the Richard & Judy Show, a televised book club in London.

The Highest Tide

One unforgettable night, thirteen-year-old Miles O'Malley sneaks out on the flats near his home in search of shellfish only to discover something remarkable, a giant squid. When he continues to discover more exotic sea life, he becomes a local celebrity and is pursued by TV crews urging him to explain what's going on. And as the days shorten and the water begins to rise, his summer-long attempt to understand the muddy flats becomes an examination of life itself, and this enchanting debut novel about obsession and natural wonder surges toward an unforgettable ending. (Bloomsbury)

"A remarkable first novel ... This is an irresistible coming of age fable, dappled with lyricism, briny honesty and good humor. It's as if Rachel Carson herself (or, say, John McPhee) had turned to fiction, bringing an exacting sense of the ebb and flow of nature to the story of one largely unsupervised boy and the exploration of his surroundings." -- Los Angeles Times

"This novel is so very special. If you reach the last page without having laughed out loud, felt tears well up or at least once sat back in wonder at the extraordinary descriptions of the sea and its creatures, then you may quite simply be inhuman."
-- London Independent

"Graceful and inventive first novel ... [Lynch's) declarative style and vivid imagery allow the science of the ocean to blend easily with its poetry." -- New York Times Book Review

"This absolutely luminous first novel has all the earmarks of a classic. The Highest Tide is destined to be read, re-read and to remain on bookshelves for the enjoyment of generations to come." -- Amazon.com Editorial Review

"The kind of novel that book clubs live for, heartwarming, but not unosphisticated." -- Detroit Free Press

"The Highest Tide is one of the best novels it has been my pleasure to read for many a day. ... This is a great novel which you will want to re-read." -- London Independent.

"A remarkable first novel ... This is an irresistible coming of age fable, dappled with lyricism, briny honesty and good humor. It's as if Rachel Carson herself (or, say, John McPhee) had turned to fiction, bringing an exacting sense of the ebb and flow of nature to the story of one largely unsupervised boy and the exploration of his surroundings." -- Los Angeles Times

"This novel is so very special. If you reach the last page without having laughed out loud, felt tears well up or at least once sat back in wonder at the extraordinary descriptoins of the sea and its creatures, then you may quite simply be inhuman."
-- London Independent

"Graceful and inventive first novel ... [Lynch's) declarative style and vivid imagery allow the science of the ocean to blend easily with its poetry." -- New York Times Book Review

"The kind of novel that book clubs live for, heartwarming, but not unosphisticated." -- Detroit Free Press

"The Highest Tide is one of the best novels it has been my pleasure to read for many a day. ... This is a great novel which you will want to re-read." -- London Independent.