A saga of six generations of an imaginary African people, this extraordinary first novel creates a myth at the margins of history. The BaNare, living on the fringes of the Kalahari Desert, must contend with the vagaries of nature and with the cultural challenges posed by Zulus, Boers, and the British in South Africa. The central figure is Mojamaje, Eater of Rocks, a hero to his people, first among equals in a cast of remarkable and colorfully named characters. In his life and exploits Mojamaje represents the resolution and resilience necessary to endure when all tradition is called into question. The tradition not in question in The Great Thirst is that of good storytelling, a tradition Duggan sustains with humor, human insight, and not a little magic. ( )