New York: Viking Penguin, (1997). 53 interconnected tales from his travels over 5 years - from San Francisco and New York to Phnom Phen, Cambodia, Burma, Vietnam, Jerusalem, Mogadishu and more - all populated by the lost and the lonely, whores and drug addicts, and more. While Vollmann, one of the most fascinating and interesting of modern writers, had long been a cult favorite, in 2005 he received the prestigious National Book Award for fiction. Sources. xxii, 459 pp plus 7 pp of photographs at beginning of book, 8 pp at end. ISBN: 0-140254498.