The Highest Tide

The Highest Tide (2005), a young adult novel by Jim Lynch, tells the story of a teenage boy who makes a rare discovery on the seashore. He then becomes an international phenomenon. The book won the 2006 Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award and received generally positive reviews upon publication. Lynch is the author of numerous bestselling young adult novels. Like many of Lynch’s books, The Highest Tide has been performed on stage. When he is not working on children’s novels, Lynch works as a newspaper reporter.

Thirteen-year-old Miles O’Malley lives in the fictional town of Puget Sound in Olympia, Washington. Miles is a typical teenager who loves hanging out with his friends and solving mysteries. Obsessed with marine biology and Rachel Carson books, he dreams of becoming a marine biologist. Miles’s father wishes he spent more time playing sports than dreaming about tides.

Miles’s other life obsession is eighteen-year-old Angie Stegner. Miles’s babysitter, Angie lives next door. She is in a rock band, and she is about to leave for college, which breaks Miles’s heart. Knowing that Angie thinks he is just a little kid, Miles wishes he could impress her somehow. His friends all think he is crazy and should let Angie go.



Life at home is not great for Miles, either. His parents are always fighting, and they plan to get a divorce. A divorce means selling the house and moving away, which will take Miles away from his friends and the shoreline. Miles wishes he could talk to his parents about his feelings, but he knows they have enough problems without worrying about him. Miles sneaks out of the house every night to wander around the tidal flats. The tide calms him down and makes him feel better.

One night, Miles makes an unusual discovery—a rare giant squid. At first, he doesn’t want to tell anyone about it, because he doesn’t think anyone will care. Most of us, Miles says, are too lazy and impatient to learn about the ocean, and he doesn’t want to share this discovery with anyone. However, he realizes that the squid is injured, and it will die without help. Miles has no choice but to tell an adult.

Miles approaches Professor Kramer. Professor Kramer is the only adult he trusts. Although the professor helps the squid, he also alerts the local media. This is the first time that anyone has found a giant squid outside of the deepest ocean recesses. It is a landmark discovery for the scientific community. Overnight, Miles becomes a local and national hero. Although Miles doesn’t want the media attention, it follows him everywhere.



Things get more overwhelming for Miles when he makes another discovery on the shoreline. He finds a dead ragfish on the sand. Ragfish are incredibly rare and should never be out of the water. When Miles finds the ragfish, the scientific community and the media go into overdrive. Everyone believes that God or some other divine being anoints Miles because the sea offers up its secrets to him. Miles, however, just wants everyone to leave him alone.

Meanwhile, Miles’s parents are fighting all the time. Angie is getting ready to leave for college, and Miles’s elderly neighbor, Florence, is suffering from Parkinson’s. Miles is fond of Florence because she loves the sea, too; he is distressed to see her deteriorating so quickly. Miles feels his whole life is falling apart around him. Fame only makes it worse.

Miles decides that he is looking at fame the wrong way. Instead of running from it, he should use it as an opportunity. He decides to raise awareness about climate change and what may be causing the sea to behave so strangely. Creatures like the giant squid don’t belong on land, and it is up to the people of Puget Sound to do something about it.



Around town, everyone reacts to the sea changes in different ways. To Miles’s delight, some residents want to learn everything they can about marine biology and protecting the oceans. Others only care about the town’s newfound fame and glory, and the tourist boom generating more cash for the area. All the while, Miles spends more time alone in his kayak, enjoying the beauty of the Sound.

Miles and his best friend, Phelps, are the only characters who remain humbled by the beauty and the mysteries of the natural world. They represent innocence and hope in a town that is falling apart all around them. All Miles cares about is protecting the people and the places he loves; the water is the only constant for him. Although Miles can’t fix Florence or his family, his new-found fame gives him and his parents something to talk about, and they realize that they should spend more time with Miles rather than fighting between themselves. The book ends on a hopeful note.