Calcutta Telegraph (India)

Friday, August 31, 2007

Paperback Pickings

From Strangers To Friends

Three cups of tea (Penguin, Rs 395) by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin is the story of “One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace… One School at a Time”.

In 1993, Mortenson, now the director of the Central Asia Institute, had reached a nondescript village in the Pakisatn’s Karakoram mountains after a failed attempt to climb the K2. Touched by the hospitality of the villagers, he decided to return to set up a school there. This proved to be the beginning of a whole life’s undertaking, involving extensive travel throughout Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Braving the strictures of Taliban, Mortenson set up 55 schools over the years, some especially meant for girls. Relin, an experienced journalist, helps chronicle Mortenson’s outstanding achievement.