'Now I must go back to squat in the sand with my people; I must get my water from roots and my food with a bow and arrow.' Orphaned as a young child, Koba, a San bushman, has lived most of her life as the adopted daughter of a white, farming family. But when her love affair with their son, Mannie, is discovered, Koba is forcibly repatriated to the lands of the Kalahari Desert. To survive she must find her nomadic tribe. But will she stay alive long enough to succeed after years of living among whites? Fleeing across the South West African sandveld, Koba uses all she remembers of her San hunter wiles to evade her police guard and her enemy, Andre Marais, a vindictive Boer who murdered her parents and is intent on killing her too. When she finds her drought-stricken people, she brings with her the longed-for rain. But even as she's feted for this 'miracle', tribal tensions boil over as bachelors in the Ju/'hoansi tribe vie for the attention of the young stranger. Meanwhile, Mannie has set out after Koba, hitch-hiking across southern Africa to find her. But who will get there first - her lover or her pursuer?