'Cups of Tea' Author Sued in Montana
United Press International
May 09, 2011
A lawsuit filed in Montana seeks damages from Bozeman writer Greg Mortenson, the suddenly controversial author of "Three Cups of Tea."
The class-action suit claims fraud on Mortenson's part for allegedly not using donations and proceeds from his best-selling book for their stated purpose of building schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
KRTV-TV, Great Falls, said Saturday the plaintiffs in the suit, Jean Price and Michele Reinhart, are both members of the Montana Legislature.
Mortenson's book chronicled his adventures as a mountaineer who wound up in a remote Pakistani village in 1993 after a failed attempt to scale K-2.
His claim that the villagers' hospitality inspired him to launch a school-building project has been challenged this year as an exaggeration and media reports that donations have not been spent on schools.
KRTV said Mortenson's office had no comment on the lawsuit, which will be formally served next week.
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Copyright 2011 by United Press International
