Bob Shacochis, Shacochis's first collection of stories, "Easy in the Islands" won the National Book Award. His second collection, "The Next New World" was awarded the Prix de Rome from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His novel, "Swimming in the Volcano" was a finalist for the 1993 National Book Award. Shacochis has been a contributing editor for Outside and Harper's, and has been a columnist and writer for several national publications, which include GQ magazine.