Thirst

by Giles Foden

Genres: Fiction

Paperback

About the author

Giles Foden was born in Warwickshire in 1967. His family moved to Malawi in 1971 where he was brought up. He was educated at Yarlet Hall and Malvern College boarding schools, then at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, where he read English. He worked as a journalist for Media Week magazine, then became an assistant editor on the Times Literary Supplement. He was deputy literary editor of The Guardian between 1995 and 2006 and is currently Fellow in Creative and Performing Arts at Royal Holloway, University of London. He is a Professor of Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, and still contributes regularly to The Guardian and other journals.

Reviews

[Clare Greenup · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m a bit conflicted about this book. There were parts I loved (the journal and the final third of the book), other bits not so much (the transition from first Catherine to Cat was sketchy).
I bought this while I was travelling in Namibia and, being amongst sand dunes, deserts and vast dryness, the book came alive for me.
I think I would have given it 4 stars but there’s a slightly jerky style to the prose which I struggled with for much of the book.

[David Grieve · Rating 4 out of 5]

I ended up really enjoying this, but it did take a while to get into it. The main story is about an Irish woman's expedition to Namibia to seek her mother and an aquifer (she's a hydrologist), sponsored by the Chinese authorities. There is a lot more to it than this and it is part adventure story and part a study of the importance of water both in a country where it is desperately short, Namibia, and where there is an abudance, Ireland. Also a study of a country riven by foreign involvement.

The writing is interesting with lots of metaphors throughout, some quite convoluted, which a takes a bit of getting used to, but it's worth it. The voice changes regularly as well and certain phrases come out as if thought by a particular character, rather than the third person narrator.

The characters were convincing and well drawn and the settings were excellent - especially the desert. There is also plenty of stuff about aquifers, if that's your thing!!

For me, once it got going, it was an exciting adventure, beautifully written, with a lot more in besides.

[T P Kennedy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A disappointing book. The premise seems promising but it doesn't deliver. There's two almost unconnected narrative threads, neither of which is really resolved. It's a frustrating book with a scarcely believable plot and cardboard cut out characters. Finished as a hate read.

[Finlay Porter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Initially I was a bit dubious but this became quite compelling and a very enjoyable read. Classic quest narrative with a few good twists, some neo-colonial commentary and eco-criticism, and some touchingly human interactions in a sort of dystopian setting

[Rob Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Starts well but degenerates. How well does it depict Africa - at a guess so so.