I was in Target and I was looking in the book section in case something caught my eye. In 1993 Greg Mortenson attempted to climb K2. He failed at his attempt and got lost from his party. He ended up in a village in Pakistan called Korphe, he became quite ill. The villagers took care of him, gave him their best blanket and meat. As Greg regained his strength, he realized how sick he had been and the sacrifice that this poor village had made for a stranger. Greg was in awe of their sacrifice and pledged to come back and build a school. The people of Korphe smiled and nodded, but they had heard this before, they didn’t believe Greg. Greg went back to California without a clue how to raise money for a school in rural Pakistan. Greg kept his promise and built that school. Fourteen years later, Greg has built many schools in rural areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Greg’s passion is educating girls. There have been some tough calls over the years, but Greg keeps going. Greg is not perfect, he has made mistakes. Yet the positive effect that Greg has had on these communities and on the opinion of Americans in this part of the world cannot be underestimated.
3 out of 4 Stars
Reviewed By: Anne Egger, Library Services
