A veritable deluge of facts about water. Too many in fact - I reached information overload before the end. I might have given a shorter version five stars, but it became fairly repetitive.This book seems very well researched, not alarmist but full of well laid out warnings about water availability in the future. "Water itself isn't becoming more scarce, it's simply disappearing from places where people have been accustomed to finding it - where they have built communities assuming a certain availability of water - and reappearing somewhere else....All water problems are local." (p. 19)We are fortunate in the Midwest that we still have plenty of water access.If you are interested in water shortages and access to water, I definitely recommend The Big Thirst. You could pick and choose among the chapters and get the message. I am a non-fiction fan and like to find unique stories about everyday things. The Big Thirst quenched that desire. Water is not completely under the radar, but it is certainly taken for granted compared to other commodities. Fishman does a great job of taking a world view of the problem/issues by collecting stories from a number of different countries. I found the discussion about the daily quest for water in India to be particularly intriguing. The book does not paint a doomsday scenario, but it does send up a lot of red flags. For developed nations hopefully breaking points won't have to be reached before action is taken. The water business is another area where technology (especially in the area of desalinization) has the potential to be a game changer in the future.
PHD thesis perhaps, but fascinaitng account of our water, where its going and where its been.
—Ghem
Really enjoyed. Very interesting subject and well written. i recommend it.
—Alexx
An eye opener. Makes you think about society and personal behavior.
—Wendy
Eye opening for many. Great read for those that care about water.
—Sabrina
Eye opening
—jitesh
