Stones into Schools

     So per my previous post, here is my so-called "review" of the second book I read. It's a book that a year ago I probably would not have read. Stones into Schools is the follow up book to Three Cups of Tea, the biography of American climber Greg Mortensen. I had heard of Three Cups of Tea because it was gaining so much notoriety and being read by friends and family (my sister had to read it her junior year of high school) and then was assigned to read it for my anthropology class last fall. I loved the book. We only had to read up to a certain point, but I devoured the entire thing. I would say it was more pleasure reading than assignment reading. Mortensen’s story is truly amazing. If you haven’t read the book, you need to. In fact, if you’re at a certain level in the U.S. Military,  you have to read it. But I digress. The first book is written in third person, as Mortensen had help writing it. “Stones” is written in the first person and it is clear that Mortensen was the lead writer on this one. And it is wonderful. He really makes you feel like you are zipping round Pakistan and Afghanistan with him, and spending torturous months back in the U.S. after the 2005 devastating Pakistan earthquake. He writes it with an ease that makes you not believe him when he swears that public speaking and writing are not his areas of expertise. I was transported to a different world, a world that I am sad to say I really didn’t know much about. When the Pakistan earthquake occurred, I knew about it on a surface level but really didn’t pay much attention to it. I wish I had. 
     What his organization, the Central Asia Institute, has done is truly amazing. Since they started building schools in 1997, and up to the point of this books release, they have built 145 schools focusing on education for girls throughout Pakistan and Afghanistan. This feat is absolutely staggering given the attitude towards women in those countries, especially the rural areas. But look at me, I'm getting a little too outside my comfort zone.
     It was an amazing book and I strongly recommend both books to anyone who is looking for a new and interesting read. It really takes you to a different place and that, in my opinion, is the real purpose of books. To transport us to places we can't physically be at that moment.