The map and the perfection of distance

the long version

"The Map and the Perfection of Distance tells of the adventure of a widow who at age fifty-one travels solo, going abroad for the first time in her life. Compelled by a nightmare she cashes in nearly all of her assets to buy an Air India ticket for an around the world trip sojourning in Tokyo, Kyoto, Hong Kong, Bangkok, India and beyond. During three weeks in Kashmir on a trek in the Himalayas she is the object of treachery and risk to her life. In Bombay she finds a man she loved since college who haunted her dreams for twenty-two years because of a lie and need for confession. The dangers amid social and religious turmoil are not unlike those of today's world. Throughout her trip she meets remarkable women and seductive men: finds sanity in England, soul with Van Gogh in Amsterdam, and a major surprise on her return home."--