Three Cups of Tea

This is some more catching up. I read this awhile ago, and simply must mention it. Three Cups of Tea was written by Greg Mortenson (from Bozeman, MT) and David Oliver Relin, and is the true story of Greg's failed attempt at reaching the summit of K2, getting lost and taken in by a village in Pakistan, and his subsequent promise to build them a school (their kids were sitting out in the open, at 10,000 feet, trying their best to learn with no supplies while trying not to freeze). He recovered and eventually headed home. For a lot of people, this is where the story would end. Greg, however, is not a lot of people. He scraped together money from wherever he could find it, he learned much about the customs of a completely foreign land and culture, and he kept his promise. He saw the building of the schoolhouse he promised, and then went on to build many more. In the process, he did all of this without asking anything in return of the villagers except that they would educate their children. He didn't push them to switch religions, or to accept any "western" conventions. Through his efforts he has seen children who may have otherwise ended up in fundamentalist training camps go on to become educated people who return to help out their fellow countrymen. He is successfully doing what billions of dollars of war money is failing to do, and doing so on a shoestring budget. He is providing an amazing example of help and understanding. The world could use more Greg Mortensons. You really should read this book. Seriously.

My Steve

Known as Steve and Me in the States, this book, written by Terri Irwin, is about Steve as she knew him. It's not about the Croc Hunter, it's about her friend, her husband, and her soul mate, who just happened to also be the person the rest of the world saw on TV wrestling crocs. I can't really say what I expected when I picked it up to read it, but what I found surprised me. It was funny. It was sad. It was "Holy cow!" It was a good, interesting read from start to finish. You learn over the course of the book that whether the camera was on or off, he was Steve. He was the consummate wildlife warrior, hell-bent on single-handedly saving the planet through his conservation efforts, and intent on bringing the rest of the world along for the ride, giving everything to impress upon the rest of us the importance of his mission. It was sewn into the fabric of his being from his early youth. There are pretty excellent odds that he has successfully passed on the torch through his wife and children, who bravely carry on a life's work that started out as his, and over time became theirs. One can only hope their passion and enthusiasm for saving animals, habitat, and ultimately ourselves will rub off.

More catch-up

Here are some more past reads (a collection of Bill Bryson stuff).

In a Sunburned Country (U.S., Down Under everywhere else)

Another excellent travel book. All of his books have been great, but this one has been my favorite so far. He makes his way around Australia and has an enjoyable and hilarious time. Much of the amusement often comes at his own expense, as you come to expect in his books. At times the guy just doesn't have much talent or luck.

Notes from a Small Island

Travelling around the U.K. this time, in traditional Bryson style, uncovering strange customs (and even stranger people), and bungling through seemingly easy tasks.

A Short History of Nearly Everything

This one's NOT a travel book. This one covers scientific progress from beginning to end, in easy to understand words, and on only 5 easy-to-turn cardboard pages (with pop-ups)! I jest. It's written with a smattering of humor, as that's just the way he writes, but it's a very interesting read in that it does cover a fair amount of science, putting things into interesting perspective. You need not be a Ph.D. physicist to understand the concepts he describes. It was a very nicely done book.

Notes from a Big Country

I just finished Bill Bryson's Notes from a Big Country (known in the U.S. as I'm A Stranger Here Myself). It's a collection of columns he was asked to write for a newspaper about his experiences living in the U.S. after 20-some years of living in England. The guy knows how to write really funny, yet educational books that often cut to the heart of a society's often strange behaviors. I've read a handful of his books now and will continue reading. I have yet to read one that wasn't enjoyable, and can't recommend them - any of them - enough.

Digital Fortress

This is another Dan Brown novel...I believe this will be the third one now that I've read (mostly) on a flight to or from somewhere. They really do make good plane fodder. It's easy to kinda melt into 'em and ignore the screaming kid in the seat behind you. Anyway, this was a fun read about cryptography, and the customary better-looking-than-any-real-nerd set of characters who go, fight, win to triumph over adversity. The central plot is, the NSA has received an unbreakable encryption code and are, in essence, being held hostage by the author. Do they give in to demands? Have people "rubbed out"? It was, as with his other works, quick paced and enjoyable to read. The bits and pieces tie together pretty well in the end, though I must say, Mr. Brown seems to have some "thing" about the dashing leading man and the voluptuous leading woman ending the story, post-shag, staring longingly into each others eyes whilst "Let's get it on" plays in the background... Perhaps he views this as some literary cigarette after the main story.