 Chatwin published The Songlines in 1987 , and it became a bestseller in both the United Kingdom and the United States . The book was nominated for the Thomas Cook Travel Award , but Chatwin requested that it be withdrawn from consideration , saying the work was fictional . Following its publication , Chatwin became friends with composer Kevin Volans , who was inspired to base a theatre score on the book . The project evolved into an opera , The Man with Footsoles of Wind ( 1993 ) . 
