Best Selling Books by David Oliver Relin

This young readers edition of the worldwide bestseller Three Cups of Tea has been specially adapted for younger readers and updated by Greg Mortenson to bring his remarkable story of humanitarianism up to date for the present. Includes new photos and illustrations, as well as a special interview by Greg’s twelve-year-old daughter, Amira, who has traveled with her father as an advocate for the Pennies for Peace program for children.

From the co-author of Three Cups of Tea comes the inspiring story of two very different doctors—one from the United States, the other from Nepal—united in a common mission: to rid the world of preventable blindness. In this transporting book, David Oliver Relin shines a light on the work of Geoffrey Tabin and Sanduk Ruit, gifted ophthalmologists who have dedicated their lives to restoring sight to some of the world’s most isolated, impoverished people through the Himalayan Cataract Project, an organization they founded in 1995. Tabin was the high-achieving bad boy of Harvard Medical School, an accomplished mountain climber and adrenaline junkie as brilliant as he was unconventional. Ruit grew up in a remote Nepalese village, where he became intimately acquainted with the human costs of inadequate access to health care. Together they found their life’s calling: tending to the afflicted people of the Himalayas, a vast mountainous region with an alarmingly high incidence of cataract blindness. Second Suns takes us from improvised plywood operating tables in villages without electricity or plumbing to state-of-the-art surgical centers at major American universities where these two driven men are restoring sight—and hope—to patients from around the world. With their revolutionary, inexpensive style of surgery, Tabin and Ruit have been able to cure tens of thousands—all for about twenty dollars per operation. David Oliver Relin brings the doctors’ work to vivid life through poignant portraits of patients helped by the surgery, from old men who cannot walk treacherous mountain trails unaided to cataract-stricken children who have not seen their mothers’ faces for years. With the dexterity of a master storyteller, Relin shows the profound emotional and practical impact that these operations have had on patients’ lives. Second Suns is the moving, unforgettable story of how two men with a shared dream are changing the world, one pair of eyes at a time. Praise for Second Suns “As miracles go, it’s hard to beat making the blind see. Yet that’s exactly what the eye surgeon Dr. Geoffrey Tabin can do. He services poor people in the developing world who have developed cataracts—a clouding of the lens of the eye that is the world’s leading cause of blindness. . . . Second Suns is a hopeful work, a profile of two doctors who have dedicated their lives to bringing light to those in darkness.”—Time “A compelling and inspiring book . . . Second Suns portrays heroic health care delivered under harrowing conditions: Ruit and his teams carry their equipment on multi-day treks up steep mountain trails, sometimes hiking at night with flashlights or head lamps, to reach settlements where they typically spend several days operating on hundreds of villagers in makeshift surgical theaters.”—The Washington Post “Second Suns should be required reading for anybody with an interest in humanitarian philanthropy—or, for that matter, a desire to feel a little better about the world.”—Outside “A detailed, heartfelt account of the work of [two] dedicated pioneers.”—Kirkus Reviews From the Hardcover edition.

Now in paperback: a #1 New York Times–bestselling author’s gripping chronicle of “two doctors . . . bringing light to those in darkness” (Time) Second Suns is the unforgettable true story of two very different doctors with a common mission: to rid the world of preventable blindness. Dr. Geoffrey Tabin was the high-achieving “bad boy” of his class at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Sanduk Ruit grew up in a remote village in the Himalayas, where cataract blindness—easily curable in modern hospitals—amounts to an epidemic. Together, they pioneered a new surgical method, by which they have restored sight to over 100,000 people—all for about $20 per operation. Master storyteller David Oliver Relin brings the doctors’ work to vivid life through poignant portraits of their patients, from old men who can once again walk treacherous mountain trails, to children who can finally see their mothers’ faces. The Himalayan Cataract Project is changing the world—one pair of eyes at a time.

En 1993, un montañero llamado Greg Mortenson regresaba de un intento fallido de alcanzar la cumbre del K2. Exhausto y desorientado, acabo desviándose del camino de descenso y alejándose de su grupo para vagar perdido por una de las zonas más desoladas del norte de Pakistán. Solo y sin comida, agua o una carpa bajo la que protegerse, se encontró de pronto en una pobre aldea pakistaní, donde le cuidaron hasta su recuperación. Antes de regresar a casa, Mortenson les prometió volver y construir una escuela. De aquella promesa nació una de las campañas humanitarias más increíbles de la historia: la misión de un hombre de luchar contra el extremismo y el terrorismo construyendo escuelas.

Quando Greg Mortenson, americano appassionato di alpinismo, si smarrisce su un ghiacciaio del Pakistan, sembra l’inizio di una brutta avventura. Invece, costretto a tornare indietro, viene accolto nello sperduto villaggio di Korphe, dove rimane per sette settimane, affidandosi alle cure degli abitanti. Di nuovo in forze, lo scalatore riparte, ma promette di tornare: per sdebitarsi costruirà una scuola nel villaggio. Una promessa che lo obbligherà a mettere in gioco la sua intera vita, il lavoro, gli amici, persino la casa. Osteggiato in patria per la sua ostinazione a voler istruire “futuri terroristi”, catturato e poi rilasciato da un gruppo di talebani, Mortenson è però riuscito a realizzare il suo progetto e a costruire cinquantacinque scuole, in Pakistan e Afghanistan. La storia vera, emozionante e avventurosa di un sogno che dimostra al mondo come la guerra alla violenza vada combattuta con il coraggio e la voglia di cambiare.

Dies ist die bewegende Geschichte des Höhenbergsteigers Greg Mortenson: Er scheiterte dramatisch am K2, wurde von Pakistanis gerettet und gesund gepflegt. Er verspricht, zurückzukehren und eine Schule für jene zu errichten, die in dieser so unwirtlichen Welt auf über 3000 Metern am meisten entbehren: die Kinder. Und er hält Wort. Seitdem widmet er sein Leben dem Aufbau von Schulen und Krankenhäusern in Pakistan und Afghanistan.

Adapted Edition; "With engrossing accounts of both hostilities and unlikely friendships, this book will win many readers'' hearts." --Publishers Weekly

1993, etter et mislykket forsøk på å bestige K2, vakler fjellklatreren Greg Mortenson inn i Korphe i Nord-Pakistan. Innbyggerne tar seg av den fullstendig utslitte mannen, som etter hvert kommer seg på bena og ser at landsbybeboerne lever i bunnløs fattigdom. Greg lover å komme tilbake for å bygge skole til barna. Boken forteller om hans kamp for å holde dette løftet. En skole blir til mange - et livslangt bistandsprosjekt for Greg og medhjelperne hans i Afghanistan og Pakistan. Han har nå etablert 170 barneskoler i Taliban-dominerte områder. Denne utgaven er tilrettelagt for unge lesere med fargebilder, intervju med Greg Mortensons 12 år gamle datter, informasjon om prosjektet Peace med mer. Dokumentar for ungdomstrinnet.

One man''s campaign to build schools in the most dangerous, remote, and anti-American reaches of Asia: in 1993 Greg Mortenson was an American mountain-climbing bum wandering emaciated and lost through Pakistan''s Karakoram. After he was taken in and nursed back to health, he made a promise to return and build them a school. From this promise, an incredible humanitarian campaign grew.