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Short Synopsis
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Wal-Mart Effect comes a fascinating journey into the secret life of water, a book that upends everything we think we know about the most vital substance in our lives.

Full Synopsis
The water coming out of your tap is four billion years old and might have been slurped by a Tyrannosaurus Rex. We will always have exactly as much water on Earth as we have ever had. Water cannot be destroyed, and it can always be made clean enough for drinking again. In fact, water can be made so clean that it actually becomes toxic.

As Charles Fishman brings vibrantly to life in this delightful narrative excursion, water runs our world in a host of awe-inspiring ways, which is both the promise and the peril of our unexplored connections to it. Taking listeners from the wet moons of Saturn to the water-obsessed hotels of Las Vegas, and from a rice farm in the Australian outback to a glimpse into giant vats of soup at Campbell's largest factory, he reveals that our relationship to water is conflicted and irrational, neglected and mismanaged. Whether we will face a water scarcity crisis has little to do with water and everything to do with how we think about water—how we use it, connect with it, and understand it.

Portraying and explaining both the dangers—in 2008, Atlanta came just ninety days from running completely out of drinking water—and the opportunities, such as advances in rainwater harvesting and businesses that are making huge breakthroughs in water productivity, The Big Thirst will forever change the way we think about water, our crucial relationship to it, and the creativity we can bring to ensuring we always have plenty of it.

"Fishman's engrossing water survey establishes the base for a much-needed 'water-use revolution.'" ---Booklist Starred Review

"Stephen Hoye's voice is clear and strong, well paced and relentlessly upbeat.…This is a great place to start for those who want to begin learning about national and global water issues." ---AudioFile

"A timely warning about the dwindling global water supply." ---Kirkus

"A captivating account." ---The Wall Street Journal
Booklist Review

Booklist Bestseller

Amazon Top 10 Outdoors & Nature

The Big Thirst

The Secret Life and Turbulent Future of Water

Author Charles Fishman

Narrated by Stephen Hoye

Publication date Apr 12, 2011

Running time 14 hrs

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