Three Cups of Tea

Three Cups of Tea
Cover of Three Cups of Tea
AuthorGreg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
LanguageEnglish
GenreMemoir
PublisherPenguin Group
Publication date
2006, 2007, 2008
Publication placeUnited States
Media typeHardcover, Paperback, Audio CD
Pages368
ISBN978-0-14-303825-2
OCLC83299454
Followed byStones into Schools 

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace ... One School at a Time (original hardcover title: Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Fight Terrorism and Build Nations ... One School at a Time) is a memoir book by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin published by Penguin in 2007. The book describes Mortenson's transition from a registered nurse and mountain climber to a humanitarian committed to reducing poverty and elevating education for girls in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Following the beginnings of his humanitarian efforts, Mortenson co-founded the Central Asia Institute (CAI), a non-profit group that has reported overseeing the construction of over 171 schools as of 2010.[1] CAI reported that these schools provide education to over 64,000 children, including 54,000 girls,[2] in the remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan, where few education opportunities previously existed.[3][4][5]

The book's title was inspired by a saying Haji Ali shared with Mortenson: "The first time you share tea with a Balti, you are a stranger. The second time you take tea, you are an honored guest. The third time you share a cup of tea, you become family..."[6] Three Cups of Tea remained on the New York Times nonfiction bestseller's list for four years.[7][8]

In April 2011, critiques and challenges of the book and Mortenson surfaced. Author Jon Krakauer alleged that a number of Mortenson's claims in the book are fictitious and accused him of mismanaging CAI funds.[9][10][11][12] In 2012, Mortenson agreed to repay $1 million to CAI following an investigation by the Montana attorney general. The inquiry determined that he had misspent over $6 million of the organization's money, although no criminality was found.[13]

  1. ^ "The Power of Knowledge". Bridgewater State University. March 30, 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-04-04. Retrieved 2011-06-26. Newslog, Bridgewater State University
  2. ^ Aliya Anjum. "Education emergency in Pakistan". Pakistan Observer. Archived from the original on 2012-03-16. Retrieved 2011-06-26. Pakistan Observer, "Education Emergency in Pakistan"
  3. ^ "Journey of Hope". Bozeman Daily Chronicle. Retrieved 2010-12-08.
  4. ^ "Mortenson Campaigned to Build Schools in Asia" Archived 2008-04-30 at the Wayback Machine, ABC News, March 8, 2006.
  5. ^ Worldview: The lesson jihadis fear most – In the remote reaches of Pakistan, former mountain climber Greg Mortenson is besting extremists by building schools" Archived 2008-02-29 at the Wayback Machine, The Philadelphia Inquirer, January 13, 2008.
  6. ^ Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace One School at a Time, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin, Penguin Books, NY (2006), pg. 150.
  7. ^ CNN reports number of years Three Cups of Tea on NYT Bestseller list Archived 2012-10-09 at the Wayback Machine, cnn.com; accessed December 9, 2016.
  8. ^ "Paperback Nonfiction Bestsellers", The New York Times, March 16, 2008.
  9. ^ Three Cups of Deceit Archived 2011-06-24 at the Wayback Machine, Jon Krakauer, April 2011.
  10. ^ "‘Three Cups of Tea,’ Spilled", by Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times, April 20, 2011
  11. ^ "Greg Mortenson’s Tepid Defense", by Tom Wright, The Wall Street Journal, April 27, 2011
  12. ^ "Can't Get There From Here" Archived 2011-04-30 at the Wayback Machine, Outside journal, Apr 27, 2011
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).