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 enlarge | Authors: Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Category: Book
List Price: $15.00
Buy Used: $5.89
You Save: $9.11 (61%)
New (90) Used (66) Collectible (8) from $5.89
Rating:  1351 reviews
Sales Rank: 19
Media: Paperback
Pages: 368
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.9
ISBN: 0143038257
Dewey Decimal Number: 371.82209549
EAN: 9780143038252
Publication Date: January 30, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Softcover. Some wear to the cover and pages. Small tear on spine. Ships the next business day, with tracking and delivery confirmation sent to your email.
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| Customer Reviews:
As-Salaam Alaaikum (Peace Be Upon You) August 16, 2006
WILLIAM H FULLER (SPEARFISH, SD USA)
45 out of 50 found this review helpful
"Cheezaley! Where did this thing come from?" was my initial thought upon opening the Amazon.com box and finding THREE CUPS OF TEA. I hadn't ordered it, and my birthday was months away. The shipping invoice declared it a gift from some guy I'd never heard of, and I approached the book with suspicion, assuming it to contain some variety of reactionary religious or political propaganda. After all, the only printed matter that I'm accustomed to receiving free of charge generally comes from conservatively dressed people who ring the doorbell. My suspicion deepened when the dust jacket blurb informed me that the book had been written by a journalist about the true adventures of Greg Mortenson. The latest book I had read which was written by a journalist about someone else, Slavomir Rawicz by name, was THE LONG WALK: THE TRUE STORY OF A TREK TO FREEDOM, and, while it was an intriguing read, the encounter with the Yeti led me to conclude that at least some of its truths were rather subjective, and I really didn't want to put up with that sort of thing again. Still, I decided to give at least the first chapter a try.
The moment I began to read Relin's biography of Greg Mortenson, I was jolted back four decades when, as a teenager, I had read THE ROMANTIC WORLD OF RICHARD HALLIBURTON, the captivating tales of a young man's adventurous travels to strange lands that I still know only vicariously through the enchantment of books. Many years and many miles have dimmed my memory of the details in that book but have never lessened my admiration of Halliburton's daring or of the exuberance of his writing. The fervor of Relin's narrative drew me into THREE CUPS OF TEA as thoroughly and as passionately has I had dived into Hallibuton forty years ago, and as no other book had done since. Relin is a master storyteller, and the factual nature of his story makes it the more compelling.
Had I any lingering doubt whatsoever about the sheer joy of being in the company of this storyteller, it vanished forever on the thirtieth page by his adroit use of a single adjective that was clearly not to be found in my recognition vocabulary. Nor was it found in two dictionaries in my home library. Be honest now: Do you, fellow reader, honestly know what "prelapsarian" means? (Hint: Search Bartleby.com.) Any writer who can lead me on that long a chase for an elusive definition has my respect and attention, and I'll even forgive his overuse of "precipitous" a few chapters further on in describing the looming cliffs and gargantuan monoliths of the Karakoram Range in northern Pakistan.
Of course a captivating word hoard corralled into expressive syntax does not necessarily equate to a valuable book. The message also has a contribution to make. And what a message this story conveys! It is the message of staggering human need in some of the most impressive yet most inhospitable land upon the Earth. It is the message of a few real miracles that have enabled a handful of people to make real inroads in addressing that need, and the greatest thing is that each of those miracles has come from individual human effort and generosity. It is the message of both humanity and barbarism in the Muslim world of Pakistan and Afghanistan, a message that warns of the blindness and self-destructiveness of stereotyping an entire people because of the extremism of factions within their cultures.
THREE CUPS OF TEA is quite instructive, too. If one is at all interested in the reasons behind the growth of jihadists and terrorists in Muslim Asian cultures, the answers are here. If one is curious as to which United States ally funds the cancerous spread of the madrassas, the fundamentalist academies which issue forth a flood of committed jihadists, that answer is here. The evolving and fluid relationships of the mujahadeen, the Taliban, and U.S.-made Stinger missiles become more comprehensible to the reader of this tale. Of greatest significance, however, the ultimate answer to the problem of terrorism also lies within these pages.
A quick word of reassurance is in order here. That I describe this book as having a message and as being instructive does not imply that it is a dry textbook of facts, nor does it imply that it is a compendium of "holier than thou" sermons. It is a tale of true adventure. The "messages" and the "instruction" are there to be found by the attentive reader but he is never force fed. Call them "value added" attributes to the thrill of the story.
What sort of reading audience would best be served by THREE CUPS OF TEA? I claim no expertise as a reading specialist, but I believe that every teenager possessed of competent reading skill will love the adventure in this book. Beyond that audience, I recommend it with all the enthusiasm I can convey to every citizen who casts a ballot to elect those who make national policy (in every country), to every person elected to such an office, and to everyone who considers himself a patriot, an educator, a warrior, or a peacemaker. Had I the influence and wherewithal, I would gift this book to every public and private school and university, and insist that it be required reading. Of course, this is not going to happen, so the best I can do is to recommend it to you, patient reader. Yet I must warn you that, once begun, this book cannot be put down for long (and you'll also find the wonderful humor in the exclamation with which I began this review as well as the significance of three cups of tea).
One American has done with mere thousands what his government hasn't been able to do with billions - Fight Terrorism! September 6, 2006
Salman Khalid
42 out of 51 found this review helpful
Greg Mortenson is a super-hero of modern times. He has successfully waged a Jihad against illiteracy in the northern areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan. This is a very well written book and much more than a story about a guy who started building schools in a remote region of the world. This is a story of his incredible life - a life his fellow Americans can be proud of; a life that can teach so much to so many - especially the leaders of the developed nations.
Best book I've read this year!
Dr Greg stands at the summit of humanity January 29, 2007
M. A. ZAIDI (Karachi; Pakistan)
57 out of 64 found this review helpful
Mr Greg Mortenson may have missed the peak of K2; but has instead climbed to the summit of humanity; humility and civility. His selfless acts of charity to help the children of a region so inaccesible and remote; stands as a reminder that goodness in humanity is not lost. Through education he enlightens the children gives them hope aspiration; and with this has changed the dynamics of a region forsaken and fogotten by the country where the region resides. He enshrines the message of peace by Dr. King and the acts of charity by Mother Terresa. At times when reading the story i could not just feel envious of Mr Greg. While we sit and talk about helping out; he is out there and puts those words to doing and gets result. All this he attains with immense sacrifice to his family. I am a true fan of your cause and admire your efforts to utmost. And what little i can do will do in supporting your cause through financial donations.
My respets to David Relin for narrating the story is such an expressive way that a reader felt the connection with the surrounding.
I recommend this for all Amazon readers to consider.
"The enemy is ignorance" July 25, 2006
Friederike Knabe (Ottawa, Ontario Canada)
39 out of 47 found this review helpful
These words, spoken by Pakistani Brigadier General Bashir, symbolize an underlying thread in this extraordinary story. The fight against ignorance resulting from illiteracy and complete lack of economic resources is the primary theme of award-winning Journalist David Oliver Relin's account of a man with a mission: Greg Mortenson. Ignorance of local culture and customs, racial and religious prejudice are intimately linked to the failures in achieving lasting peace in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Education of the young, and in particular girls, are offered as an essential tool against ignorance. Building schools in remote and isolated regions of Pakistan has been Mortenson's passion for 13 years. Relin traces Mortenson's travels and encounters for a period of two years, interviewing many friends - and a few sceptics - along the way and recording months of discussions with Mortenson himself. The result is an action-packed adventure story with a deep moral and emotional centre. It depicts ten years in the life of a man who turned failure into strength, growing into a great humanitarian and dedicated fighter for the rights of tens of thousands forgotten poor in the tribal areas of this powder keg region of Central Asia.
Overcoming ignorance has also been a leitmotiv for Greg himself. After abandoning his climb to the top of K2, the second largest mountain in the world, he had lost his guide and then his way on the descent. Close to exhaustion, he reached Korphe, a small village high up in the Karakoram range of the Himalayas. As the villagers nurtured him back to strength he became increasingly aware of the extreme poverty of the region and the dire conditions of the children's school. The village could not afford a school building and a teacher for only three days a week at $1 a day. The children sat on the ground in the open scratching the writing they had learned in the packed earth. Mortenson was touched by the warmth and generosity that the people had offered him and promised them to come back and build a school.
The obstacle course that Mortenson undertook to raise the funds for the school is vividly shared with us. Starting from nothing, living out of his car to save money to a benefactor's surprise gift, he managed to raise the funds to return to Korphe with the building materials stockpiled in a nearby town. Haji Ali, the Korphe village elder, accepts "Dr. Greg" into his family, recognizing his special qualities. The old man, himself illiterate, has a few lessons to share with him, important advice that will lead to the successful completion of the Korphe school three years later. The fundamental lesson was patience and listening: patience to develop relationships with the local community, sensitivity to local traditions and customs; listening to what the people had to say first and, with them, finding solutions to the problem at hand. It would also mean that real partnerships for school building developed where the local people put up the sweat equity to match his funds for building materials. Learning from his mistakes and initial naivete Dr. Greg becomes a successful catalysts for building many more schools in other remote villages in Pakistan and later in Afghanistan. Over time, other essential programs, such as women vocational centres are also added.
Each return trip to Pakistan was a major step forward for Mortenson and his school program. What had started as a simple promise to one village, became his all-absorbing mission. The more he learned the more he became convinced that balanced, "non-extremist" education of children, and in particular girls, is a major building block in peace-building in the region. He found his vision mirrored that of many local leaders: village elders, mullahs, including the supreme leader of northern Pakistan's Shias, politicians and senior military officers. Increasingly, as his work became known, he could count on their participation and advice. They provided essential support when two fatwas were issued against him that would have forced him to leave the country. He opened a local office for his Central Asia Institute, staffed with a diverse group of advocates of his program, who took over the day-to-day management while he was "commuting" to the home base in Montana to raise the necessary funds.
Even since 9/11 and the war against the Taliban, Mortenson was able to continue his work, much admired by his local network of supporters. Relin's interviews confirm the overwhelmingly warm and positive attitude of local people toward the American Mortenson. Negative reactions, though, came from within the US, where people attacked him for "supporting the enemy". Mortenson stood his ground, arguing that lasting peace and security around the world can only be gained through education of the younger generations. Finally in 2003, following a major article on his work in Parade magazine, the tide turned for him also in the US. Donations poured into his small foundation, securing his ever expanding work.
"Three Cups of Tea" is not only a moving and heart-warming personalized story of what one person can achieve with determination and persistence. It is also a portrait of a part of the world that we should all know more about so that we learn to differentiate between enemy and friend. [Friederike Knabe]
One school at a time...... March 9, 2007
Muhammad Asad Khan (Jonesboro, AR USA)
43 out of 50 found this review helpful
This is Greg Mortensen's story, who through his Non-profit Organization Central Asia Institute builds schools in the most isolated villages in the mountainous regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Beautifully compiled and narrated by David Oliver Relin. It starts in Tanzania where Greg was born to missionary parents, life back in USA where he felt a misfit,to his climbing days in California before his attempt to scale K-2 summit in Pakistan (1993) . His attempt failed and he came down battered, bruised and seriously weakened and was nursed back to health by people of a remote village high in the Karakoram mountain range in Pakistan. He was thinking of how to repay them back when he saw girls trying to educate themselves by writing with sticks in the dirt. The idea of schools sprang to his mind and rest is what you must read.
It is an inspiring book that did more than just fascinate me. It made me take action (albeit small) to help Greg Mortenson's cause which is noble, immensely courageous and absolute common sense (especially when you want to fight ignorance, hatred, fear and terror). When you teach one girl, you teach a whole family and Greg is doing just that. And to do it in the remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan where suspicion, hatred for anything western (especially American) is rife, is astounding. His most important lesson in this book is even though you may have the noblest intentions to help, you cannot succeed if you impose your timetable, your style on the people you are trying to help. He talks about learning patience, learning the nuances of traditions, and not breaking promises he kept (which governments, organizations have a talent for) . Spending endless hours drinking chai with the elders, stopping the project to follow a ritual (that might look wasteful to us) is what formed his deep bonds with those people. Being from that region, being in the places where he has been, I can assure you that his understanding and depiction of the people of Pakistan is very accurate and that is in itself a very remarkable achievement.
I hope all the governments, organizations who are fighting terror, poverty and illiteracy make this book a must read for workers who are going in these regions to help. He is the best ambassador of United States.
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