The morning after learning that he his wife was to be a father for the third time, the author left home on a solitary trip through western Europe, visiting its major cities, sleeping in hostels, and meeting people from the around the world.

This slim memoir, filled with anecdotes and commentary on European and American life, is, most of all, a meditation on love and desire.

Beware of journeys that begin that begin quietly, the author discovers: they might end up changing your life.