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The Highest Tide
The Highest Tide: A Novel | Jim Lynch
16 posts | 19 read | 14 to read
One moonlit night, thirteen-year-old Miles O'Malley sneaks out of his house and goes exploring on the tidal flats of Puget Sound. When he discovers a rare giant squid, he instantly becomes a local phenomenon. But Miles is really just a kid on the verge of growing up, infatuated with the girl next door, worried that his parents will divorce and fearful that everything, even the bay he loves, is shifting away from him. "The fertile strangeness of marine tidal life becomes a subtly executed metaphor for the bewilderments of adolescence in this tender and authentic coming-of-age novel."-Publishers Weekly "As crisp and clean as a cool dip into the water, and just about as refreshing."-Entertainment Weekly "[A] graceful and inventive first novel."-The New York Times Book Review "Move over, Holden Caulfield; here's Miles. . . . An uncommon and uncommonly good coming-of-age novel." -Chicago Tribune
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BeckyWithTheGoodBooks
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Pickpick

Beautifully written and funny coming-of-age story set in the Pacific Northwest (represent!). In another life where I didn‘t grow up in a landlocked state, I like to think that I would‘ve been a child of the tide pools like Miles. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

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Fr3NcHtOaSt
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A stunning coming-of-age novel about one boy's mystical bond to the sea. #TheHighestTide #JimLynch #ebook #book #kindle #reading #comingofagestory

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HighLadyoftheStacks
Mehso-so

The reverence for marine biology and aquatic life is great, but the wish fulfillment at the end was unnecessary and put me off the whole thing. Just all over meh.

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HighLadyoftheStacks

I had to take a short reading break (just a few days) because I burnt myself out a little bit during January and February. Today seems like a good day to start again since it‘s a snow day and I have a head cold. #snowday #thehighesttide

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RealBooks4ever
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I really like this book! A teenage boy sees a giant squid in the Puget Sound and his life is changed. The characters are genuine and flawed in their own ways. #TeenSpirit #AutumnReads

Marchpane This is such a lovely book! I really enjoyed the way the main character would just nerd out about sea creatures 🦑 7y
RealBooks4ever @Marchpane Yes! I asked Lynch if there would be a follow-up because I loved the characters. He said no, and I guess it is best to leave it as one magical summer! 7y
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Victoria_Clyne
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Pickpick

I finished this book a couple of days ago. It was my pick for book club and a reread for me. I have to say that I enjoyed this as much the second time around as I did the first. I love the descriptions, I have a really clear idea of what the bay and the sea creatures look like. Members of my bookclub found that there was too much about the sea life and that the secondary characters weren't fleshed out enough. Neither of these things bothered me.

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Fernoppy
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Pickpick

This was a curious mix. The sense of place was beautiful - and if you live in or have ever visited the Puget Sound area, you'll probably love this book just for that - and the main character was engaging. But most of the other characters just seemed to be there to reflect some aspect of Miles for the reader. Which fits with the teenage protagonist, but I did early on get the impression Miles was telling the story after some years had passed.

Marchpane I'm currently reading this! Nice review 👍 7y
Fernoppy @Marchpane, we discussed it today at book group. I'll look forward to seeing what you think if it. 7y
5 likes2 comments
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Joanne1
Pickpick

This book perplexes me. On the one hand you have a landscape and ecology so exquisitely described that I could see, smell and hear the tidal mudflats, the sea creatures and the tiny nestling of houses. On the other hand you have characters painted with such broad brush strokes I never felt like I knew them, with the exception of Miles, or their motivations. I liked the unique premise, loved some of the writing but I needed more.

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Joanne1
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New book club book and breakfast. The book is a little weird so far!

BookNAround We read that one for book club a couple of years ago. As I recall, we all really liked it. We're reading his newest book for book club this month. 7y
44 likes1 comment
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Victoria_Clyne
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My husband is up with little man so I get to read in bed. Such a luxury these days.

Joanne1 Need to get started on this one too. 7y
11 likes1 comment
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DebinHawaii
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Day8 #MayBookFlowers #bodyofwater These are some favorite covers with bodies of water on them. I especially love the different blues from the light grey-blue to the dark, purplish blue and everything in between. They conjure up different moods and emotions. 💙📚

Bostonmomx2 Have you read the Longsdale one? I loved the one before this but just couldn't get into this one. Sad 😥 8y
DebinHawaii @Bostonmomx2 I did read it and really enjoyed it. I actually liked it a bit more than the first book--although I liked both. Did you know she is doing a sequel to Everything We Keep called Everything We Left Behind that's due out in July. Should be interesting with the way that one ended. 8y
Bostonmomx2 @DebinHawaii I think I did hear that. I'd probably have to reread that first one, I don't remember much about it. 8y
93 likes3 comments
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Seshat
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23 likes2 stack adds
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DebinHawaii
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My Friday has been closer to a Monday so I will admit to just a very quick look for a book with an animal on the cover when I got home this afternoon for my #FunFridayPhoto. I don't have a lot of animal books on my shelves beyond some cat behavior & cat picture books, but they are on the top shelf and require more effort that I currently have to give.😬And hey, starfish are marine animals and this one is pretty & blue... 💙💙💙

Seshat I love that book. 8y
DebinHawaii @Seshat I read it ages ago but really liked it. Pulling it out for the picture makes me want to read it again. 👍📚 8y
Seshat Yes, indeed. It resonated with me because I had the good fortune to spend several childhood summers in the Pacific Northwest. 8y
DebinHawaii @Seshat Probably why it did for me too. I grew up in Oregon and lived in Seattle for a number of years and I love books set in the PNW. Summers are the best there.😀 8y
Seshat They really are. 8y
66 likes3 stack adds5 comments