Author Faces Civil Suit Over 'Three Cups of Tea' After making a $1 million deal to settle allegations that he misused his charity's money and resources, author and humanitarian Greg Mortenson now must face accusations that he fabricated parts of his best-selling books "Three Cups of Tea" and "Stones Into Schools." A hearing is set for Wednesday in federal court in Great Falls on claims that Mortenson lied about how he came to build schools in Central Asia after losing his way in a failed mountaineering expedition and being nursed back to health in a Pakistani village. The lawsuit - filed by two California residents, a Montana man and an Illinois woman who bought the books - list more than two dozen alleged fabrications and accusations of wrongdoing by Mortenson, publisher Penguin Group, co-author David Oliver Relin and the Central Asia Institute. The plaintiffs say Mortenson and the others purposely presented the lies as the truth to trick readers into buying the books and donating to the charity. They accuse Mortenson and the others of racketeering, fraud, deceit, breach of contract and unjust enrichment. A First Amendment expert calls the lawsuit absurd, regardless of whether the books contain fabrications. FILE - This undated photo provided by New Mark Communications via the St. Paul Pioneer Press shows Greg Mortenson, founder of the Central Asia Institute, a Montana-based organization which builds schools for girls in remote tribal areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan. After striking a $1 million deal that settles allegations that Mortenson mismanaged his charity, attention now turns to accusations that the author and humanitarian fabricated parts of his best-selling books "Three Cups of Tea" and "Stones Into Schools." (AP Photo/New Mark Communications via the St. Paul Paul Pioneer Press) Close Mortenson did not defame or harm anybody in his books, and barring narrow exceptions like national secrets, he can write what he wants and does not have to justify it, said Wayne Giampietro, a Chicago attorney and general counsel of the First Amendment Lawyers Association. It's his story. It purports to be his experiences. He can say it any way he wants to say. He has the right to publish anything he wants about himself," Giampietro said. The idea that you can be sued because perhaps they don't like what you wrote, for whatever reason, is absurd. Lawyers for Mortenson and Penguin Group plan to argue that very point before U.S. District Judge Sam Haddon. They are asking Haddon to dismiss the lawsuit, which seeks triple the amount of total books sales, plus punitive damages. The lawsuit is asking a judge to order that everybody who bought the books be refunded. Whatever money is left over would go to a humanitarian organization selected by the plaintiffs' attorneys and approved by the court That promises to be several million dollars. "Three Cups of Tea" alone sold about 4 million copies. The hearing comes less than two weeks after Mortenson and the Montana attorney general announced a $1 million agreement to settle claims that Mortenson mismanaged the Central Asia Institute and misspent its funds. The agreement removes Mortenson from any financial oversight and overhauls the charity's structure, but it did not address the contents of the books. That's where the civil lawsuit comes in. The four plaintiffs allege that Mortenson, Relin, Penguin, the Central Asia Institute and Mortenson's consulting group, MC Consulting, were involved in a conspiracy to promote and sell the books based on lies. "The enterprise's fraudulent scheme was to make Mortenson into a false hero, to sell books representing to contain true events, when they were false, to defraud millions of unsuspecting purchasers out of the purchase price of the books and to raise millions of dollars in charitable donations for CAI," their lawsuit alleges.