The Great Thirst: Californians and Water-A History, Revised Edition First Edition

by Norris Hundley Jr. (Author)

21 ratings

ISBN-13: 978-0520224568

ISBN-10: 0520224566

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The Great Thirst: Californians and Water-A History, Revised Edition
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The story of "the great thirst" is brought up to date in this revised edition of Norris Hundley's outstanding history, with additional photographs and incisive descriptions of the major water-policy issues facing California now: accelerating urbanization of farmland and open spaces, persisting despoliation of water supplies, and demands for equity in water allocation for an exploding population. People the world over confront these problems, and Hundley examines them with clarity and eloquence in the unruly laboratory of California.

The obsession with water has shaped California to a remarkable extent, literally as well as politically and culturally. Hundley tells how aboriginal Americans and then early Spanish and Mexican immigrants contrived to use and share the available water and how American settlers, arriving in ever-increasing numbers after the Gold Rush, transformed California into the home of the nation's preeminent water seekers. The desire to use, profit from, manipulate, and control water drives the people and events in this fascinating narrative until, by the end of the twentieth century, a large, colorful cast of characters and communities has wheeled and dealed, built, diverted, and connived its way to an entirely different statewide waterscape.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"The definitive history of how water has been used and abused in California [and] required reading for anyone who really cares about California's most precious resource."--"Los Angeles Times

From the Inside Flap

"This revised and expanded edition of Professor Hundley's seminal history now includes a fascinating treatment of important developments in the California water arena during the 1990s. The new edition is must-reading for all who hope to understand the California water scene."--Henry Vaux, Jr., University of California

"The best reference on California water history that there is."--William Kahrl, author of Water and Power

Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of California Press; First edition (May 7, 2001)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 800 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0520224566
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0520224568
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.5 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 2.1 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #466,360 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #115 in Water Supply & Land Use (Books)
- #122 in Water Quality & Treatment
- #1,290 in Ecology (Books)

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21 ratings

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Philip Carl

The Single Tome on California Water History

Reviewed in the United States on February 15, 2003

Verified Purchase

The Great Thirst is as long and detailed as the subject matter it tackles, a complete history of Californians and water. The revised edition came out in 2001 and addresses the recent developments in the Bay-Delta program (formally know as CALFED) and important water policy changes at Mono Lake and in the Owens Valley. The book consists of 8 chapters covering the early, pre-European settlement, the role water development played in the growth of Los Angeles and San Francisco, the development of large state and inter-state water projects, the recent changes in water policy brought on largely by shortages, and environment concerns, and the author's summary.
To give you a feel for the detailed scope of the work, the author includes over 100 pages of notes to supplement the text, and a bibliography of nearly the same length! I have yet to find anything the matches The Great Thirst in its unbiased depiction of the complex history, water policies, competing interests, and future challenges that have and will come to shape California.
The author, an American History professor at UCLA, presents the reader with the single most important fact facing California, "Californian's are currently using more water than well be available on a long-term basis. The deficit is 1.6 million acre-feet annually, which can rise to more than 5.1 million acre-feet during drought years..." The public appetite for new water development has come to a halt given the high cost to state budgets and more importantly the surrounding landscape. But the growth of development and population continues marching on, leaving you to wonder how the final chapter of this important story will be written.

26 people found this helpful

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woodsgrl

It is well written and holds my attention

Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2016

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I am slowly working my way through this book. To date, I have found it quite informative. It is well written, and holds my attention more like a novel than a piece of non-fiction. It has help me better understand the past and present droughts.

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John A Mackenzie

Anyone wanting the best single summary of California water and the politics it ...

Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2015

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Anyone wanting the best single summary of California water and the politics it has fostered won't find a better book. From the first people through the Spanish and Mexican era to the onslaught of the '49ers and into the history of our own case law, this thoroughly researched and delightfully written book will inform if not enlighten you.

One person found this helpful

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ness

Fast shipping

Reviewed in the United States on January 29, 2021

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Book in great conditions even though it is used and shipping was fast !!

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gigi

It's a bible for anyone who desires an easy read on such a complex subject

Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2016

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Very informative. It's a bible for anyone who desires an easy read on such a complex subject.

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A_2007_reader

A bit too long, but a nice compliment to Reisner' s book

Reviewed in the United States on July 3, 2003

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Reisner's book "Cadillac Desert" is much more readible, but this book is a data dump of the above and more of a primary reference.
Recommended if you are a pedant or just like more raw unfiltered data.

14 people found this helpful

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Meet A 1313

You will like it if you like romanticized history

Reviewed in the United States on May 15, 2006

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The book is well written, but the way the author romanticizes ancient people living in California and demonizes its modern inhabitants puts me off.

I do not mind an author's biases creeping in his writing but then he should be able to carry if off with readers who dont disagree with him. For example, I read Reisner's Cadillac Desert which is a totally biased commentary on California's water and I rarely agreed with his viewpoint, but he puts it in such an interesting manner that it makes good reading nevertheless and I loved that book. The author of this book not only makes preposterous statements (for example, saying that the Indian inhabitants of America lived lives in harmony in nature because they were wiser than us) but makes them without constructing a strong intellectual platform that might engage someone who thinks differently.

Any new information the book provides is lost in the lengthy and tedious literary style that the author adopts. I am a fairly keen reader, and I must say that I dozed off reading this book more often than with others of this genre.

10 people found this helpful

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Wanda Ochoa

An excellent and underrated treatment of a complex subject

Reviewed in the United States on October 13, 2001

I was pleasantly surprised by the first edition of this book, which was much shorter than the new one. It is broader in range than any other account that I know on this absolutely central issue for California, and its depth doesn't seem to be compromised at all in spite of its comprehensibility. It isn't exactly lively writing, but it's clear nonetheless. I think Hundley's book offers lay readers a fuller picture of why water is so important in California and the west, and how people have tried to manage it, than any other single volume.

15 people found this helpful

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