Three
Cups of Tea
by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

Of the hundreds, maybe thousands of books I've read in my lifetime, few have touched me more than this book about the change one man has made for children in northern Pakistan and Afghanistan, all during a time of great turmoil among various Islamic groups, and then later, during America's "war on terror" after 9/11.  Greg Mortenson, a missionary kid who grew up in Africa, went to northern Pakistan in 1993 with the intent to climb K2, the second highest peak in the Himalayas.  Besides the challenge of the climb itself, his motivation was to place a bead bracelet which had belonged to his younger sister on the peak in her memory.  Greg's attempted climb was a failure, and in a severely debilitated physical condition, he stumbled into a desperately poor mountain village where the people cared for him for weeks.  As he got to know these humble but proud people, he realized that this village had no means of educating its children.  During the warm months, students gathered on an outcropping of rock, sat on the ground and did their lessons on slates or with sticks in the mud, often without a teacher.  At that point, Greg Mortenson changed the focus of his life and left  Pakistan with the intention of raising enough money in America to come back and build Korphe village a school.  To make this happen, Greg lived in his car or a storage building while working as a nurse, so that he could save every possible penny for the school.  He didn't own a computer, so he hand typed hundreds of letters to the rich and famous, soliciting funds for his school.  His personal sacrifice for children half a world away, was something most of us can't even imagine, much less do ourselves. Yet, today Greg Mortenson has been instrumental in building scores of schools for children, especially girls, who would never have had an opportunity to get an education, but for him.  It's not possible to read this book without being challenged to think about what we all should be doing to promote peace and help those who have little ability to help themselves.  Three Cups of Tea is a must-read.
        Reviewed by Mrs. Sams

            

Saint Iggy

by K.L. Going

Sixteen-year-old Iggy Corso is a projects kid who never caught a break in his whole life. Both parents are drug addicts who owe their souls to their dealer, Freddie, and hardly remember Iggy is alive.  In fact, Iggy's mom went "visiting" weeks ago and hasn't been seen since.  Iggy gets kicked out of school for doing something stupid, and it's basically his last chance.  Iggy never intends to do bad things, but he just seems to fall into situations no matter how hard he tries to stay out of trouble.  He has a hearing with the school superintendant in three days, and he decides he will figure out some way to contribute to society, so that he can convince the school authorities to let him back into school.  When he needs some help and comfort, he goes to his friend Mo's apartment, but Mo is not in a good place himself.  One thing leads to another and soon Iggy finds himself with Mo in Freddie, the drug dealer's apartment, the last place on earth Iggy wants to be.  Mo leaves the place with an assortment of drugs and a $2000 bill to Freddie that he has to pay within a few days.  No one knows better than Iggy that debts to Freddie never get paid, but he goes with Mo to his rich mother's place where Mo is sure he can get the money, and Iggy sees a life he never knew existed.  Mo's mom takes Iggy under her wing, but refuses to give Mo the money.  Iggy knows that Mo is in deep trouble, and he finally realizes what he has to do to contribute to society.  Iggy is a character that it's hard not to like, and who doesn't deserve all he gets.    Saint Iggy is an intense story of drug addiction and poverty, and how one boy chooses to deal with it.  ~reviewed by Dail Sams