I few weeks ago I did a small review of Greg Mortenson's Three Cups of Tea. Since that time I have finished Greg Mortenson's second book Stones into Schools.
Stones into Schools is a continuation of Three Cups of Tea. The work of building schools and establishing positive relationships continues. There is more of an emphasis on girls education and the expand into Afghanistan. With all this activity the challenges faced also grow. There's no free ticket that comes with experience in these projects.
At the end of Three Cups of Tea some tribesmen from Afghanistan meet Greg and want a school . They have ridden a long way to find Greg and of course Greg promises them a school. However, it takes ten years before the school is built. All sorts of road blocks appear that delay the project. The location is extremely remote and pack animals have to be used to carry supplies in the last few miles. However, the school is finally built and a desperate people have an asset that their government and no other NGOs could produce.
Greg suffers some break down as a result of pushing himself for too long. He deals honestly with his difficulties .
I find Greg's story fast paced and he has an excellent segway from one area of his activity to another area. He spends time in Montana with his family, speaks at fundraisers and travels to Pakistan and Afhganistan so all of these activities take place at the same time. He tells of one activity and when it's just right he leads you into another area.
I enjoyed Stones into Schools every bit as much as Three Cups of Tea. I'm looking forward to the third book Listen to the Wind.
