Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
I had heard about this true story and read an excerpt "Stones into Schools," so it was nice to read the entire book. The life of Greg Mortenson doesn't even seem real--how could one man with no money or job end up building over 55 schools in rural Pakistan and Afghanistan? The beginning of his story is surreal, also: Mortenson failed in his attempt to summit K2 and wandered off the trail on his way down to safety. He was separated from his porter and ended up wandering into a small town in the Karakoram Mountain range called Korphe, which is so small it isn't even on a map--the "bridge" high across the Braldu River to the village was really only a basket on cables. The people of Korphe took care of Mortenson while he regained his strength from his climb (they found his porter, too) and the bond he forged with the people of Korphe was tight enough for him to promise to build them a school in their poverty stricken village.
The majority of the book follows Mortenson's attempts to build that first school--his success leads to the creation of the Central Asia Institute which raises money, then builds schools. The amazing part of the story (and there are many amazing parts) is that we readers know that history was leading to 9/11; Mortensen was in Pakistan when the twin towers fell. This strengthened his determination that the only way to fight terrorism is by offering an education to the people, especially the girls.
It is Relin's voice telling the story, but it sounds like Mortenson deserves the admiration that is so clearly heard. The title comes from Haji Ali, the leader of Korphe: the first cup of tea you share is as a stranger, the second cup is as a guest, but by the time you share a third cup of tea, you become family. Mortenson drank a lot of tea. If more of us drank tea together, the world would be a very different place.
The majority of the book follows Mortenson's attempts to build that first school--his success leads to the creation of the Central Asia Institute which raises money, then builds schools. The amazing part of the story (and there are many amazing parts) is that we readers know that history was leading to 9/11; Mortensen was in Pakistan when the twin towers fell. This strengthened his determination that the only way to fight terrorism is by offering an education to the people, especially the girls.
It is Relin's voice telling the story, but it sounds like Mortenson deserves the admiration that is so clearly heard. The title comes from Haji Ali, the leader of Korphe: the first cup of tea you share is as a stranger, the second cup is as a guest, but by the time you share a third cup of tea, you become family. Mortenson drank a lot of tea. If more of us drank tea together, the world would be a very different place.
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