It’s pretty obvious that I’m obsessed with dogs. I love everything about them; from their personalities and how forgiving they are, to the way that they view the world forgetting about yesterday. I love them so much  that there are some days that I wish I only had to communicate with dogs. So anytime I see a story with a dog, I must investigate further and learn more about it. It just so happens that I stumbled upon Finding Gobi on my daily Facebook scrolling and instantly became hooked.
Finding Gobi is the story of Dion Leonard running an extreme marathon in the Gobi Desert in China, when low and behold, an adorable little dog decides to join him on his journey. The Gobi Desert is no place for a dog, but this little powerhouse managed to run most of the race with Dion, convincing Dion that Gobi was meant to be a part of his life, and he had to find a way to take him home with him to the United Kingdom. While traveling back home to work on all of the proper paperwork in order to formally adopt Gobi, Gobi “escapes” from the home that he is staying at, forcing Dion and a group of rescuers to travel back to China to find him. The story is full of twists and turns that you won’t expect, but has a happy ending with Gobi making himself at home with Dion, his wife, and their cat.
Finding Gobi is one of those books that you won’t be able to put down. Guilty as charged, I finished the book within two days. Even previously reading the story on social media and knowing that it was going to be a positive outcome, the story still leaves you on the edge of your seat and putting yourself in Dion’s shoes. It is this beautiful story of the love of overcoming the obstacles that life throws at you as well as the love story between a man and his dog. Even though Dion hadn’t know Gobi for that long, she had a special place in his heart and helped him to finish the race, so he knew that he had to do something special for her and bring her home.
Gobi isn’t the only subject to leave you feeling connected to the story, but also, the way that Dion talks about running is extremely relatable. I’m far from the runner that he is, but Dion really gives a great runner’s perspective as to the walls that you can hit and the emotions that you can go through when your running in a competition. Even if you’re not a runner, you will be able to understand the emotions that you go through putting your body through an extreme workout and pushing yourself to the limit.
Ginger Views: Buy it, rent it, borrow it from a friend, but do what you have to do immediately to read Finding Gobi! Not only will it leave you filled with hope for the world, it will leave you wanting to take your dog for a run or simply just bond with him/her a little more. The love between Dion and Gobi is something that is so rare, but it is something that puts a tear in your eye and makes you feel a little bit better about the world as a whole. In a world full of darkness and lacking in hope, it is really a great story to lift you up and make you want to do something better. Go read it now and do something good!
Previously published on Ginger Views
Featured image via Prasanna Kumar on Unsplash
