Book Review--The World According to Bob

I feel very lucky to be able to review the book I am reviewing this week.  It has not even been published in the United States yet.  For some reasons, five libraries in the United States had a copy from the UK publisher.  I was fortunate to get the book through Inter Library Loan. 

The book I am reviewing is called "The World According To Bob:  The Further Adventures of One Man and His Street-Wise Cat"  written by James Bowen.  This book is the sequel to another book called "A Streetcat Named Bob".  I reviewed that book here on the blog, and I thought it was great.  I  recommend that you read the first book before the second.

The new book finds James and his cat Bob still struggling to make it.  James is still selling a paper called "The Big Issue", and he is in the process of getting totally off of all drugs including those helping him overcome his heroin addiction. 

There are some very nice stories in this book.  One of my favorites is the story when James falls asleep on the bus.  They are about to miss their stop, but Bob knows what stop is theirs.  Bob taps James with his paw until James wakes up and realizes what is happening.  Bob saved the pair a long walk back home.

Other chapters in the book deal with James suffering from two periods of illness.  First, he had a terrible case of flu.  Later, James developed a serious blood clot in his leg.  All the while, James was looked after by Bob who helped him heal.  You will have to read and find out how Bob does this.

Much of the book deals with how an agent found James and Bob and asked James to write a book with the help of a professional writer.  James didn't think that the book would be a big seller.  He was stunned when over 200 people turned out at the bookstore for the first signing.  Since then, James' first book has sold almost one million copies worldwide.  This second book was a number one bestseller in the UK for many weeks.

I highly recommend "The World According to Bob".  Like the first book, it clearly demonstrates how easy it is for someone to fall through the cracks in society and end up homeless.  It shows the power that an animal can have to transform someone's life.  I don't know what the beliefs of James Bowen are, but I think that God sent Bob to James so that these two could make it through life and help others along the way.