Stones into Schools, Greg Mortenson

Stones into Schools by Greg Mortenson

The first book written about Greg Mortenson, Three Cups of Tea, described how Mortenson became involved in building schools in rural Pakistan. The book became a world-wide inspirational best seller. This book follows up by describing how Mortenson and his "Dirty Dozen" employees work. The book describes how some of the schools -- now 131 -- actually came about. Mortenson describes how he and his men work with local community leaders to gain their acceptance and support, which he believes is vital to success. I found this book as inspirational as the first book -- it provides tangible methods to achieve success. Compared with the total number of schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan, the number of schools built by Mortenson is tiny, but they are vital to the villages and the children they serve.

As an unintended consequence, a much larger purpose has been served by Mortenson -- he has inspired the American military to take a completely different approach -- talking with elders in communities rather than simply bombing and killing innocent civilians. Military leaders have sought the advice of Mortenson, and Three Cups of Tea is now required reading by officers in the military serving in Afghanistan. At last our military is "promoting peace with books, not bombs", as Mortenson teaches, as shown by this quote:

"What Greg understands better than most—and what he practices more than anyone else I know—is the simple truth that all of us are better off when all of us have the opportunity to learn, especially our children. By helping them learn and grow, he’s shaping the very future of a region and giving hope to an entire generation." —Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff

Stones into Schools

New York Times Review of Stones into Schools

Bill Moyers Interview with Greg Mortenson

Bloomberg Night Talk Interview with Greg Mortenson (and numerous other YouTube videos of Greg Mortenson

Central Asia Institute

Greg Mortenson

Greg Mortenson's Blog

Three Cups of Tea