His book describing his walk across Afghanistan, "The Places in Between", was a "New York Times" bestseller. "The Places in Between" was named by "The New York Times" as a "flat-out masterpiece" and listed as one of its 10 notable books of 2006. It won the Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize, the Spirit of Scotland award, and the Premio de Literatura de Viaje Caminos del Cid. It was short-listed for a Scottish Arts Council prize, the Guardian First Book Award and the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize. The book was adapted into a radio play by Benjamin Yeoh broadcast in 2007 on BBC Radio 4.