The stray with an ugly big head, a unbalanced twisted body and a deep urge to travel and see the world is the central character in "Dawa: The Story of a Stray Dog in Bhutan".
Dawa has the gift to understand different human languages as he was an excellent translator in his previous life as a human being.
Dawa Koto is mangy and ugly but street smart and quick thinking with an unusually big dog brain. He has a beautiful voice, is sensitive in nature and has an amazing perception to understand human languages, especially Dzongkha.
Written in first person narrative with the background set in present day Bhutan, the novel traces Dawa Koto's adventures and experiences as he travels from Paro to Bumthang and his rise from discomfiting stray into a leader in the dog world.
Dawa, who loses his mother and his siblings in tragic circumstances as a young and helpless pup, wins over other stronger and ferocious dogs in Paro and Thimphu. His rise as the legendary "Leader of the Howling" is attributed to his beautiful voice and his strange gift to learn different languages.
It is the insatiable urge to travel that brings Dawa to Thimphu, his becoming the leader of the howling pack, and the eventual trip to Bumthang in search of a cure after he is infected with mange.
...........................................................