Most Popular Books by Jim Lynch

These three, inter-related stories describe the lives of three generations of the McGowan family and their personal battles to make a living by working on the Boston waterfront. The common thread that runs through them is the challenges presented by the shape-up or pick-up system, a procedure that was archaic and rife with favoritism and was the sole determining factor whether you received a salary that day. At a young age, Jim McGowan goes to work as a longshoreman not knowing one end of a ship from the other. Fighting alcoholism, bad companions and family hardship, he strives to make a decent living for his family. Jim''s uncle Owen is an immigrant from Ireland in 1920 who finds work on the docks, one of the few jobs available to him. Working alongside veteran longshoremen, he decides to become part of the political establishment in order to improve the working conditions on the docks. Owen''s cousin Mike is a seasoned dock worker, content with his life but wanting something better for his children. The Longshoremen details the working conditions and challenges of working on the Boston waterfront and is based on the real-life experiences of longshoreman, author Jim Lynch.

Set in the previously sleepy hinterlands straddling Washington state and British Columbia, Border Songs is the story of Brandon Vanderkool, six foot eight, frequently tongue-tied, severely dyslexic, and romantically inept. Passionate about bird-watching, Brandon has a hard time mustering enthusiasm for his new job as a Border Patrol agent guarding thirty miles of largely invisible boundary. But to everyone’s surprise, he excels at catching illegal immigrants, and as drug runners, politicians, surveillance cameras, and a potential sweetheart flock to this scrap of land, Brandon is suddenly at the center of something much bigger than himself. A magnificent novel of birding, smuggling, farming and extraordinary love, Border Songs welcomes us to a changing community populated with some of the most memorable characters in recent fiction.

Roger Morgan, the promoter responsible for bring the World''s Fair to Seattle in 1962, runs for mayor in 2001, right after the tech bubble bursts, while budding reporter Helen Gulanos probes his secretive past.

One unforgettable night, thirteen-year-old Miles goes to the mud-flats near his home in search of shellfish, only to discover something startling and remarkable: a giant squid. Instantly, he becomes a local celebrity and is pursued by TV crews urging him to explain the phenomenon. His psychic friend Florence predicts that even more astonishing discoveries are to come, indicators of the highest tide in fifty years. Yet, Miles worries more about matters closer to home: will his passion for his ex-babysitter Angie go unrequited? Will his arguing parents divorce? Is everything, even the bay, shifting from him?

Americans are fascinated by sports. It''s not uncommon for businessmen and businesswomen, or anyone for that matter, to read the sports news before turning to the business pages. Sports terminology has even found a place in the vernacular of the business world with commonly used terms such as "strike-out," "time-out," and "throw a curve." In Coaching for Performance Improvement, authors Jack Ramsay and Jim Lynch link successful coaching in the athletic arena to effective business management. In sports, as in business, the management of people is crucial. The authors have put together an outline for becoming an exceptional leader through their more than twenty years of experience gained coaching in the National Basketball Association, as well as in academic and corporate environments.

Following The Highest Tide, Border Songs, and Truth Like the Sun, Jim Lynch now gives us a grand and idiosyncratic family saga that will stand alongside Ken Kesey’s Sometimes a Great Notion. Joshua Johannssen has spent all of his life surrounded by sailboats. His grandfather designed them, his father built and raced them, his Einstein-obsessed mother knows why and how they work (or not). For Josh and his two siblings, their backyard was the Puget Sound and sailing their DNA. But both his sister and brother fled many years ago: Ruby to Africa and elsewhere to do good works on land, and Bernard to god-knows-where at sea, a fugitive and pirate. Suddenly thirty-one, Josh—who repairs boats of all kinds in a Steinbeckian marina south of Seattle—is pained and confused by whatever the hell went wrong with his volatile family. His parents are barely speaking, his mystified grandfather is drinking harder, and he himself—despite an endless and comic flurry of online dates—hasn’t even come close to finding a girlfriend. But when the Johannssens unexpectedly reunite for the most important race in these waters—all of them together on a classic vessel they made decades ago—they will be carried to destinies both individual and collective, and to a heart-shattering revelation. Past and present merge seamlessly and collide surprisingly as Jim Lynch reveals a family unlike any other, with the grace and humor and magic of a master storyteller.

How did the universe and life begin and what are the threats to people and the environment in a pandemic? This book is for anybody with interest in protecting life on the planet. Studies on the origin of life and scientific contributions to safeguarding the planet are examined in light of current thinking on climate change. A major focus is the spread of microbes, put in the context of environmental assessment and management, including descriptions of microbiomes and a consideration of the risks of genetic modifications. Professor Lynch shows how failure to control disease can lead to the collapse of any biotic population. To avoid this, the ethics of management of disease by biological control and by vaccination are discussed, at the practical level and in a moral theological context.

The Rhapsody players is a captivating story about how a fascinating group of characters create a springboard to longevity. The story examines the choices they make with respect to their own health, wellness, sexuality and spirituality, even as they build a business that provides these choices to others. The novel is rich with vibrant characters whom you quickly learn to love or to despise. All of this is achieved in a global setting, replete with the issues that face the world during the years 2008 through 2012.

A longshoreman has a clue about a murdered bartender from Charlestown, a section of Boston. Rather than endanger his family by going to the police, he joins the force, falls in love with a woman, and works his way up to detective. He uncovers secrets that point to the killer but must work quickly as the Irish Mafia seems to be looking for the same person.

Une nuit, Miles O''Malley, treize ans, se faufile hors de chez lui pour aller explorer les étendues du Puget Sound à marée basse. Il fait une découverte qui lui vaut une célébrité locale. Certains se demandent quand même si cet adolescent imaginatif n''est pas un affabulateur ou... peut-être même davantage ? En fait, Miles est surtout un gosse qui s''apprête à grandir, passionné par l''océan, amouraché de la fille d''à côté et inquiet à l''idée que ses parents divorcent. Alors que la mer continue à abandonner des présents issus de ses profondeurs mystérieuses, Miles se débat avec la difficulté d''entrer dans le monde des adultes.

Brandon Vanderkool n''a qu''une passion, les oiseaux. Poussé par son père, il vient pourtant d''entrer dans la Border Patrol, la police des frontières américaine, où il est chargé de surveiller un bout de frontière poreuse - et paisible - entre les États-Unis et le Canada. Est-ce parce qu''il est dyslexique, ou qu''il possède une perception unique du monde, toujours est-il qu''il commence à enchaîner les arrestations. Cette efficacité soudaine fait de lui un héros dans sa petite ville frontière, où les conversations vont bon train. Pendant ce temps-là, Madeline, la voisine canadienne de Brandon, désireuse de fuir cette petite communauté, s''initie au trafic de drogue. Une histoire fantaisiste, avec un héros décalé et attachant.

Dans la famille Johannssen, le grand-père dessine les voiliers, le père les construit, la mère, admiratrice d''Einstein, étudie leur trajectoire. Par tous les temps, le dimanche est synonyme de sortie en mer. Les deux frères, Bernard et Josh, s''entraînent avec passion, sous la bruyante houlette paternelle. Ruby, la cadette, écoute à peine. C''est inutile : elle semble commander au vent. Mais lorsqu''un jour elle décide d''abandonner une carrière de championne toute tracée, la famille se disloque et s''éparpille. Douze ans plus tard, une nouvelle course sera l''occasion de retrouvailles aussi attendues que risquées.

L''adolescence d''un jeune garçon passionné par la biologie marine. Touchant et sensible. [SDM].

Joshua Johannssen ha pasado toda su vida entre veleros. Su abuelo los diseñaba, su padre los construía y competía en ellos; su madre, obsesionada con Einstein, sabe por qué y cómo funcionan (o no). Josh y sus dos hermanos llevan la vela en la sangre, y su patio de juegos fue el estrecho de Puget, en el estado de Washington. Pero tanto su hermana como su hermano huyeron hace muchos años: Ruby a África, entre otros lugares, para hacer buenas obras en tierra, y Bernard a quién sabe dónde en el mar, como fugitivo y pirata. Con la sensación de haber llegado a los treinta y uno de repente, Josh (que repara barcos de todo tipo en un puerto deportivo al sur de Seattle) se siente dolido y confuso por lo que quiera que fuese mal en su volátil familia. Sus padres no se hablan, su desconcertado abuelo bebe cada vez más y él mismo (pese a su incesante y cómico frenesí de citas en línea) ni siquiera está cerca de encontrar novia. Pero, cuando los Johannssen se reúnen inesperadamente para la regata más importante en estas aguas (todos juntos en un velero clásico que construían hace décadas), encontrarán sus destinos y llegarán a conclusiones reveladoras.

En uforglemmelig natt sniker 13 år gamle Miles O''Malley seg ut av huset for å utforske fjæra i Puget Sound på jakt etter skalldyr. I stedet oppdager han noe svært usedvanlig: en sjelden kjempeblekksprut. Han blir straks en lokal kjendis, og hans synske venninne Florence spår at enda flere forbløffende oppdagelser er i vente - tegn på at den høyeste tidevannsbølgen på femti år er underveis. Journalister flokker seg nysgjerrig rundt gutten, som tilskrives profetiske evner. Miles er bare en tenåring som svermer for nabojenta og bekymrer seg for at foreldrene hans skal skilles og at alt han er glad i skal forsvinne. Mens havet byr på stadig nye overraskelser, sliter Miles med mysteriet det er å bli voksen.

En roman om lokalsamfunnets liv og røre i skyggen av verdensbegivenhetene. Brandon Vanderkool er en dyslektiker med et stort hjerte som er glad i å være alene ute i skogen der han katalogiserer og studerer fugler. Han tar seg jobb som grensevakt og sørger både for at marihuanasmuglere, ulovlige innvandrere og mulige terrorister blir tatt hånd om.

Een dromerige nieuwkomer bij de Amerikaanse grenspolitie zet met zijn hilarische acties de overheid aan het denken.