Nose in a Book

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

I’m sure most people are aware of what this book is about so I’ll make my summary brief.   Greg Mortenson was coming off the mountain after failing to summit K2 (his failure wasn’t really a failure, he wasn’t really given the opportunity to even attempt the summit when he used up all his strength saving a friend’s life).  Anyway, he was separated from his guide and stumbled upon a village in Pakistan called Korphe.  The people of Korphe were very hospitable and sheltered and fed him for the night until his guide could come and retrieve him.  In the short time that Mortenson spent in the village, he realized what every one before him had failed to see.  The village desperately needed, and deserved, a school.  And Mortenson decided  that he was the right man for the job. And so begins the process that will result in several schools and become Mortenson’s life work.

I loved this book.  It was so inspiring.  It was amazing to me the things that Mortenson went through, without giving up!  When he first began, he wrote 580 letters – mostly by typewriter in 1993 because no one had ever let him in on a little thing called computers!  He got one response to those initial letters – resulting in $100, but he still didn’t give up!  And this was just the beginning.  There were language barriers, funding issues, unfamiliar customs, dishonest dealers, kidnappings, the Taliban and hatred of Americans, and he just kept going!  This man just never let anything get in his way of accomplishing what he set out to do.

I also love the way the book portrays the majority of the people in Afghanistan and Pakistan.  In the post 9/11 world, I think we tend to see extremists carrying AK-47s when we picture the people in that part of the world, but this books shows that although that exists, it seems to be a minority.  The people that Mortenson grew to love were well-deserving people just trying to do what was best for their family and their village.  These are deeply religious people who are caring and kind.  Most of the major players in Mortenson’s organization sound like people I would like to meet.

This one is a must read.  Anyone who hasn’t already should really pick this one up.

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David Oliver Relin, Greg Mortenson, Pakistan