Greg Mortenson was the keynote speaker at February’s IRA convention in Phoenix and we were pleased to supply all 3 versions of Three Cups of Tea (original version, Young Reader’s Edition, and Listen to the Wind) at the conference. With a damaged copy of the adult version leftover on my desk I decided it was time to learn what the hub-bub was all about, so I read it last weekend. And I am very glad I did.
The book opens in 1993 after Mortenson’s failed attempt to summit K2 in northern Pakistan (what struck me about his “failure” was that he really gave up his bid to summit in order to help 2 fellow climbers down after they became almost terminally ill from altitude sickness). He becomes lost from the climbing group and stumbles into a small village, Korphe, where he is sheltered for several weeks. Inspired by these people’s steadfastness, kindness, and desperate poverty, Mortenson promises to return and build a school for the village’s children. Over a number of challenging years, this effort became the Central Asia Institute, which has built more than 50 schools in rural Pakistan and Afghanistan, with a focus on educating girls. As the book moves past 9/11, Mortenson becomes even more determined on the mission that in order to fight Islamic extremism, the United States must collaborate to alleviate poverty and improve access to secular education.
This is a compelling, captivating story of a man who stepped forward to do his small part which has grown into a movement to make the world a better place. Mortenson’s co-author, David Oliver Relin, skillfully weaves together Dr. Greg’s fascinating story with great detail, establishing time and place, as well as the portraits of the characters with engrossing clarity. Mortenson’s struggles, his hopes, determination, and consistent dedication to his dream leap from the pages into the reader’s heart. From his earliest years, Dr. Greg has worked tirelessly to help others, often putting himself into jeopardy to do what’s right for another human being, and that is his, and by extension, mankind’s, ultimate triumph.
- Posted by Cori