Lara the Runaway Cat tells the story of Gobi, the loveable pup who followed Dion Leonard across a gruelling 155-mile trek across the Gobi Desert, and her mischievous cat sister, Lara, who runs away from her family, seeking a courageous adventure and different life.

Lara doesn’t realise how good she has it in her home in Edinburgh with her owners, Dion and Lucja, and of course her sister, Gobi. If she’s being honest, she’s jealous of Gobi’s fame and the international attention she has received ever since Dion found her. Okay, Gobi may have survived an ultra-marathon across the Gobi Desert, but it’s not as if Lara doesn’t earn her fresh prawns! She dreams about the day when she can go outdoors and see the world, discover new friends and be free to make her own name.

But Lara’s wishful thinking gets the better of her as she takes a leap into the unknown and is forced to decide between her loyalties to her family and need to experience an adventure to rival Gobi’s. Join Lara in her eventful travels from Edinburgh to France, Beijing to Australia, where she is faced with challenges that will change her life forever.

Following on from the astounding real-life story of Dion Leonard, this fictionalised tale is a must-read for animal lovers everywhere.

About the author

Dion Leonard is a 41 year old Australian who lives in Edinburgh, Scotland. Dion has not only completed but competed in some of the worlds toughest ultra-marathons across the worlds inhospitable landscapes including running across the brutal Moroccan Sahara desert twice in the 250km Marathon Des Sables and also twice across South Africa's Kalahari Desert 250km. Dion's latest 250km race across the Gobi Desert in China turned out to be a completely different race where he fell in love with a stray dog (later named Gobi) that followed him during the week and this would change both of their lives forever.