Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanasi

A "New York Times "Notable Book
A Best Book of the Year: "The Economist, The New Yorker, San Francisco Chronicle, Slate.com, "and "Time"
In Venice, at the Biennale, a jaded, bellini-swigging journalist named Jeff Atman meets a beautiful woman and they embark on a passionate affair.
In Varanasi, an unnamed journalist (who may or may not be Jeff) joins thousands of pilgrims on the banks of the holy Ganges. He intends to stay for a few days but ends up remaining for months.
Their journey--as only the irrepressibly entertaining Geoff Dyer could conjure--makes for an uproarious, fiendishly inventive novel of Italy and India, longing and lust, and the prospect of neurotic enlightenment.