Greg Mortenson: Three Cups Of Tea

[short_circuit]

Has anybody read this book? It is such an excellent read, if you haven't read this book then you must. I really liked this book and especially when I read the first few paragraphs it had me hooked. And it is a true story, and an amazing one. The determination that Greg Mortenson has is just impalpable.

 

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For those that need more information:
Greg Mortenson builds schools. Whats so special about that you asK? Well his schools are built for some of the poorest children in the world and they are built at high altitudes where air is thin. What makes this story so great is just reading about Greg Mortenson's adventure as he struggled to gather enough money to build his first school. he is a mountain climber turned humanitarian. The harsh reality of the people he builds his schools for is amazing, how these people are so poor that they cherish a simple food such as sugar. They live and survive in a harsh world of their own where everything is scarce and sought after, and that world is that of northern Pakistan, the region at the foot of the infamous 20000ft peaks which include K2.

 

[novella]

I heard him on the radio a couple of weeks ago. His story was certainly interesting. He grew up in the shadow of Kilamanjaro, I think. But then I got the feeling that the whole story was a religious money-raising scheme, so I turned it off. Maybe I'm too cynical. I just had my doubts when the whole thing started sounding like a Christian missionary's appeal for donations. Did I imagine that?

 

[short_circuit]

I don't think he is a christian missionary at all. No. The book is about his work in Pakistan. You could say that his book is a way to promote donations for CAI (his institute) but I don't think that was the real purpose of Three Cups of Tea. But its a book worth reading.

 

[Tintin]

This is a must-read. A real testimony to the power of the human spirit.

 

[silverseason]

But then I got the feeling that the whole story was a religious money-raising scheme, so I turned it off. Maybe I'm too cynical. I just had my doubts when the whole thing started sounding like a Christian missionary's appeal for donations. Did I imagine that?

Not a missionary effort! One of the things I liked about the book was Mortensen's open views to other religions. At one point he went to the mosque with one of his Pakistani friends and afterwards asked him to teach him how to pray properly (in their style).

He did work against extremist views, for example, no education for women. He found that the mountain people, who are very poor and where the women have hard lives but are not sequestered as city women might be, wanted education for all their children.

His stories about his experiences with the villagers and their negotiations about where to put the schools were the best parts of the book. Mortensen learned a lot about what it requires to live in small groups with few resources.

 

[Comeflyaway]

I just finished this book. I agree that the story is one that is inspiring, touching, powerful. The courage and drive that this man has is astounding.

But I have to say that the book itself (that is, the writing) was average. It wasn't written by Mortenson himself, but rather by a journalist that interviewed Mortenson and the other key players. As a result, the tone was odd -- it was like the third person, except omniscient because we were told about Mortenson's inner thoughts and feelings via direct quotes from Mortenson after the fact. And I have to say that I got tired of all the quotes from other people telling us how amazing Mortenson is. While I don't dispute that he is, I kind of feel like it's up to the author to show us this, rather than find people to tell us this.

Other than that, though, good read

 

[Sam Page]

I agree that the third-person narrative is odd, but Mortenson's story/life is amazing. Someone needed to write this book, and given Mortenson's personality, it probably was not going to be him.

 

[Sam Page]

Mortenson's new first-person narrative Stones into Schools is scheduled for release on December 1.

 

[Sam Page]

In 1993, Greg Mortenson came close to reaching the highest point on K2, but opted instead to take the moral high ground, participating in a harrowing, life-threatening rescue of a fellow climber that dashed his own chances of summitting. Unbeknownst to Mortenson, this selfless event would serve as a microcosm for his future. Instead of continuing his promising career as a mountain climber, he would sacrifice his own self-interest by helping the less-fortunate.

Read the rest of my review