On Books. The United States has been at war for almost seven years. September 11, 2001 changed American life forever, but in parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan life had not changed in centuries until one man determined to fulfill a dream and a promise. He began to build schools for the children, both boys and girls, in the remote regions of Pakistan. His odyssey began in 1993 after a failed attempted to scale K2 one of the most formidable peaks in the world. His story does not end with the last pages of his book, Three Cups of Tea, with David Oliver Relin. The Central Asia Institute was founded to fund and to promote his efforts, and it continues to build schools in Pakistan and also Afghanistan. His premise is simple—education is the key to ending terrorism and ensuring our security. He is changing futures one school at a time in a place long forgotten by the world..

The point of interest for this book is the United States involvement in Central Asia. I have read two other books set in this region, The Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell, and the Kite Runner by Khaled Houseini. The Lone Survivor is the true story of Luttrell and his SEAL team in Afghanistan. The Kite Runner is fiction based in Afghanistan before the take over by the Taliban. These three books together are an excellent primer on life in this part of the world. The American public is tragically ignorant about the countries where we are at war. In order to be informed citizens, we should not just be able to find Afghanistan, and Pakistan on a map. Many cannot. Still.

Reading at least one of these books would good a long way in self-education for the good of the country. Understanding what we are up against, knowing about the people we are at war with and the people we are trying to help is crucial if we are to make the correct decisions when we vote, when we work to influence Washington, and when we decide how to donate our time and money. Mortonsen’s first cup of tea is drunk as a stranger, the second is drunk as a friend and the third is drunk as family. Read three books, these or three others, and start to include Central Asia as part of the family of your heart.