 Borders are another theme in Chatwin 's work . According to Elizabeth Chatwin , he " was interested in borders , where things were always changing , not one thing or another . " Patagonia , the subject of his first published book , is an area that is in both Argentina and Chile . The Viceroy of Ouidah is a Brazilian who trades slaves in Dahomey . On the Black Hills takes place on the borders of Wales and England . In The Songlines the characters the protagonist mostly interacts with are people who provide a bridge between the Aboriginal and white Australian worlds . The main character in Utz travels back and forth across the Iron Curtain . 
