THE DAY THE FISH WENT WILD

The Day the Fish Went Wild is also the day Timothy Allen learns the meaning of bravery. Vacationing along the Sea of Cortez (east Mexican coast) while his father recuperates, he is intrigued by native Pancho's description of the spring pileup, a surface gathering of fish during migration time, and the two stow away on an expensive cruiser to see the fish feast on each other. Discovered by the skipper's unfriendly son, they would be sent below but slip away onto the skiff and sail to the scene of the churning water. Pancho is knocked overboard, Tim dives to the rescue without a second thought despite the enormous danger. His father's earlier suggestion--that ""in a time of crisis, it helps a lot if you're thinking of somebody else, instead of yourself""--comes back to him during the crew's congratulations. Possibly too pointed to hit the mark, and although the situation is compelling, the telling is completely flat.