Nala's World

 

Since getting our dog Dollar nine years ago I've developed an interest in animal books and this one would be among my favourites. I really didn't want this book to end, it was so good. 

In September 2018 Scottish man Dean Nicholson headed out to cycle around the world.  On December 10 that same year he came across an abandoned and unwell kitten on the side of the road in Bosnia. He named her Nala, nursed her back to health and a beautiful friendship began. 

Nala was Dean's travelling companion. Everywhere that Dean went, Nala went too, either tucked around Dean's neck or in a special carry case in the front of his bike. Over the next year and a bit they journeyed together through various places including Montenegro, Albania, Santorini, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Serbia and Hungary.

Dean posts a video on Instagram of his first meeting with Nala which was seen and picked up by the animal stories website The Dodo.  One day Dean's Instagram account had 3000 followers, the next day 150,000 followers. He now has more than 850,000 followers on Instagram and his YouTube channel has had more than 8 million views.

Dean posts his travels on social media and has used his presence on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube to raise tens of thousands of dollars which he's donated to various charities including animal shelters. People who follow him on social media make special trips to wherever Dean and Nala are just to see the feline star.

I can't express how much I loved this book and while Covid-19 may have halted some of their travel plans, I hope that when they are able to travel more extensively Dean will write another book.

Five out of five stars for this fantastic read.

Footnote: For anyone wanting to follow Dean and Nala's adventures, their Instagram account is @1bike1world and Facebook page is 1bike1world.