this is a book that should be used as a text book in many high school classes. It is informative and factual, as well as unbiased. It provides a comprehensive overview of the enemies we face and the challenges in fighting them while maintaing our way of life. It is a MUST read!

Great book, definitely worth reading. The development of fundamentalist Islam is an compelling narrative and it's just incredible to grasp the idea that billions of US dollars first built this movement and another billion of dollars is now thrown at a continuously botched attempt to destroy it. Within this broader perspective the book adds detail and dimension to the rise of Al-Qaeda

The Looming Tower, by Lawrence Wright, traces the history of Al-Qaeda from its roots in Egypt and Saudi Arabia to Afghanistan and Pakistan and finally to the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Wright's narrative begins in Egypt, where the humiliation of the Arab states in the 1948 war and popular disgust with King Faisal helped build support for Islamic fundamentalists. There, the Muslim Brotherhood, using a structure of secret cells with no more than five members each, built a powerful political, economic, and social force. However, Egypt's geography did not favor guerilla warfare, and Egypt's secular governments brought force to bear to suppress the Brotherhood and other radical Islamic movements.

In Saudi Arabia, the intolerant Wahhabi sect was "a dam against the overwhelming, raging river of modernity" that accompanied exploitation of the country's oil resources. According to Wright, radical fundamentalism was also a reaction against royal ostentation and displays of wealth. The collapse of oil prices in the 1980s accentuated stresses within Saudi Arabia. According to Wright: "Radicalism usually prospers in the gap between rising expectations and declining opportunities. This is especially true where the population is young, idle, and bored; where the art is impoverished; where entertainment - movies, theater, music - is policed or absent altogether; and where young men are set apart from the consoling and socializing presence of women."

In 1979, a Palestinian cleric named Abdullah Azzam issued a fatwa against the Soviets and helped convince 3,000 Arabs to move to Peshawar, Pakistan where they expected to support the Afghan mujahideen. His emphasis on martyrdom "created the death cult that would one day form the core of al-Qaeda." While this force had no practical impact in the conflict with the Soviets - Wright says most members never left Peshawar - Osama bin Laden was able to exploit a "David and Goliath" myth to enhance his prestige.

Bin Laden split from Azzam in 1990 to form al-Qaeda, and he returned to Saudi Arabia a hero. Expelled for his criticism of Saudi cooperation with the United States after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, he moved to Sudan. There, he enjoyed a bucolic life until 1996, when the United States pressured Sudan's government to expel him. By now, the Saudi government had confiscated bin Laden's share of his family's construction business, and Sudan's government confiscated nearly all of his remaining wealth when he was forced to leave Sudan. Hereafter, bin Laden would be dependent on external financing to keep al-Qaeda in operation.

In Afghanistan again, bin Laden set up camps that, according to Wright, trained 10 to 20 thousand Sunni fighters. These were not the dreamers and posers that came to Peshawar in the 1980s. These were educated men who had lived in Europe or the United States and spoke several languages. Many of them were not very religious before joining al-Qaeda.

The United States focused on bin Laden and al-Qaeda as an unambiguous threat after the embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. But, according to Wright, U.S. intelligence and military forces were not well prepared to respond to this type of unconventional threat. In retaliation for the bombings, the United States fired $750 million worth of cruise missiles at a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan and at bin Laden's camps in Afghanistan, but only a handful of al-Qaeda members were killed.

At this point, bin Laden and his organization were a liability to the Taliban. It was not in the Taliban's interests to allow bin Laden to turn the United States into an enemy by planning and launching attacks from Afghanistan. In fact, Wright says, Mullah Omar had already reached an agreement in principle to turn bin Laden over to the Saudi government. But these considerations were discarded when bin Laden pledged his "personal fealty" to Mullah Omar and recognized his authority as his "noble emir." From this point onward, a friendship developed between the men and Mullah Omar defended bin Laden against complaints by other members of the Taliban.

Wright's book ends with an account of the 9/11 attacks themselves, focusing on John O'Neill, a former FBI agent who became the World Trade Center's security chief just a few days before the attacks. Wright's account of the attacks is deeply disturbing and includes details that other writers have omitted, possibly from a sense of delicacy. It is best written account I have seen.

Wright is critical of poor communication within the U.S. intelligence and law enforcement communities on al-Qaeda's intentions. He attributes this poor communication not to legal obstacles, but to a fear that arrests and prosecutions would allow al-Qaeda to learn too much about U.S. intelligence gathering activities.

The Looming Tower has three principal strengths that distinguish it from similar histories. First, Wright includes enough information about his principal characters to make them three-dimensional: bin Laden is not just an evil plotter, he is also "the most daring terrorist in history" and his "commitment and relentlessness" are "unequaled." O'Neill is not just an indefatigable FBI agent locked in a contest with bin Laden, he is also a deceitful womanizer who runs up large debts. Second, Wright is careful with his evidence and discloses its limitations. Third and finally, Wright can write. The narrative rushes along, pulling the reader through the book to its final, violent denouement.

The Looming Tower is one of the best written and most compelling histories I've read in many, many years. Like the cliche "reads like a novel," this book actually does read like a novel. But this is more than a great read, it lays out the very unsettling modern history of the rise of Islamic fundamentalism, Al-Qaeda, and its execution of 9/11.

Like the best PBS Frontline's or New Yorker articles, this film lays out complex ideas and introduces key figures and events in a crisp, economical and dramatic way. The Looming Tower is even-handed in its narrative and the pacing and writing are superb -- there's not a clunker sentence in the whole book. The Looming Tower reads almost like a thriller: it is so well-structured and paced it's easy to overlook just how well this book is researched, structured and written. As it moves along from the earliest days of the Muslim Brotherhood through to Al-Qaeda, The Looming Tower not only informs the reader, it enrages them, most especially at the ineptitude and arrogance of the U.S. and of the brutality and ideological madness of Islamic fundamentalists behind 9/11.

This is a must-read by anyone interested in the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the Middle East and Africa over the past half century and for anyone who asked the question, why do they hate us?

Very well done look into the beginnings of the radical Islamist movement we know all to well today. Of course al-qaeda in particular comes under scrutiny. It is a very interesting look at Bin-Laden's background, beliefs and struggles in establishing the most well known of the jihadist para-military/terrorist groups.

There really is a filmic quality to Lawrence Wright's masterly "The Looming Tower," his five-year investigation into the birth of Al-Qaeda and the series of events that culminated in the apocalypse that was 9/11. In Wright's narrative, Osama bin Laden's war against America was a desperate marketing tool, employed by two individuals - bin Laden and his Egytian alter-ego Ayman al-Zawahiri - to resusicate a dying cause devoid of funds, soldiers, energy, and vision. Standing in their way was one maverick FBI agent, John O'Neill who would himself become a marytr.

The book is a fascinating read, and it's stunning to see what a powerful factor luck and coincidence played in the birth of the legend that was Osama bin Laden and the organization that was al-Qaeda. Instead of being heroes in Afghanistan, bin Laden and his band of Arabs were adventure tourists who embarrassed themselves in Afghanistan and annoyed the Afghans. But they survived, and in their rendering of the events they single-handedly brought an end to the evil Soviet empire. After this mythic founding of al-Qaeda, bin Laden and al-Zawahiri began a long perpetual descent that tested their resolve - bin Laden's fortune withered away, as did his soldiers, and eventually his cause and purpose. There were many instances when bin Laden should have been killed or captured or just given up, but he survived. Utterly destitute in Afghanistan and rejoined by the equally desperate Zawahiri, bin Laden would re-focus al-Qaeda's attention on attacking America, thereby drawing into his orbit a new generation of Islamic fanatics: men like Mohammed Atta, cosmopolitan and competent and compelled by their self-hatred to destroy the West and all it stood for.

Lawrence Wright believes that 9/11 would not have been possible without Osama bin Laden, and he is right. But he also believes one man could have stopped 9/11, and on this he is wrong. John O'Neill was a career FBI agent who managed to live three parallel social existences with three different women while at the same time relentlessly tracking al-Qaeda and angering the American intelligence community. It's clear that Wright believes that if the CIA were more co-operative with O'Neill or if O'Neill were to have replaced Richard Clarke as America's counter-terrorism czar or if the FBI simply respected the man's obsession then 9/11 could have been averted. This is simply nonsense.

In the epic struggle between Osama bin Laden and John O'Neill, Osama won because he was totally committed to his cause and he built consensus and was kind and generous to his followers: there was a purity to him that made Osama's charisma so much more powerful. John O'Neill was a pathological liar who sabotaged the careers of his enemies, creating tension and friction between his team and everyone else.

And so why did Lawrence Wright turn O'Neill into the book's martyr? Wright was a co-writer for the movie "The Seige," and he could hardly be blamed for trying to create a protagonist to bring in dramatic elements into his reportage. Moreover, O'Neill died in the flames of 9/11. Finally, Wright tells us that without the co-operation of O'Neill's FBI counter-terrorism team (the book's arch-villains the CIA refused to be interviewed) the book would not have been possible. The FBI could be loyal to the memory of John O'Neill as well as serve multiple bureaucratic purposes by inflating O'Neill's ability and brilliance, and spinning a narrative that made the CIA (because of their bureaucratic pettiness and obtuseness) the chief culprits for 9/11.

The book's most instructive contrast is not between Osama bin Laden and John O'Neill, but between the Muslim who begins the book and another who ends the book. In the late 1940s the Egyptian educator Sayyid Qutb came to America to study, and he was appalled by its crass materialism, licentiousness, and racism: his self-hatred and contempt for the West would provide the theoretical underpinning for modern Islamic fundamentalism. Then there is Ali Soufan, a Lebanese immigrant who found hope and salvation in America and repaid his adopted homeland by joining the FBI. In the last chapter melodramatically titled "Revelations," Ali Soufan interrogated Abu Jandal, a bin Laden bodyguard who was under Yemeni custody, to discover the identities of the 9/11 hijackers. Instead of torturing or ridiculing or threatening, Ali Soufan confronted Abu Jandal as a fellow Muslim, and it was by appealing to Abu Jandal's humanity that America was able to discover the link between al-Qaeda and 9/11.

Thus, it is not John O'Neill's death but Ali Soufan's triumph that reveals the tragedy of 9/11. When America permits its provincial hatred to overwhelm itself it creates people like Sayyid Qutb, and when it permits its generosity and tolerance for diveristy and difference to be let free then it creates people like Ali Soufan, Muslims who believe in America and who are the best ambassadors for America in the Muslim world.

After bin Laden declared war on America those who joined al-Qaeda came from all walks of life, but there was one common trait among them: displacement. We live in an age of globalization, and that means people who have obtained a certain education and socio-economic level are forced everyday to confront difference, diversity, and displacement, and it is how they respond to this ever shifting landscape that will determine if they become a global citizen or a religious fanatic. Society can do much to embrace those who are different and who are displaced, and indeed it is only with openness and tolerance, generosity and kindness that the Ali Soufans will outnumber the Sayyid Qutbs. Unfortunately, after 9/11 America chose to let its provincial hatred overwhelm it, which was Osama bin Laden's dream and goal all along.

A superb account of the events leading up to 911. Excellent character descriptions. Thoroughly researched.

The author reveals the ineptness, incompetence and infighting on both sides of the War on Terror. The failure of US intelligence to prevent 911 was clearly presented. Absolutely shocking. I was also surprised to see nil involvement of Israeli intelligence.

The author does as good a job as anyone could of presenting the sequence of events and characters involved. So many strange names and places.

I would have liked better maps that fully supported the text. It would also have been helpful to have a timeline of events.

Book contents: Table of Contents (2 pages), map (2 pages), text (418 pages), Principal Characters (descriptions) (11 pages), Notes (53 pages), Bibliography (12 pages), Authors Interviewed (list) (7 pages), Acknowledgments and Notes on Sources (9 pages), Index (18 pages), photos with notes (44 in 16 pages), Photographic Credits (1 page),

This is essential reading if you really want to understand how the U.S. found itself engaged in the current conflict against fundamentalist terrorists in the Middle-East. 9/11 happened because of events that were decades in the making and Wright spells out how. This book is fascinating.

"Wherever you are, death will find you,
even in the looming tower."

With these words, quoted from a passage from the fourth sura of the Quran, "he (bin Laden) sent an obvious signal to the hijackers who were on their way" (p. 350).

Today's headline announcing the most recent hijacking attempt illustrates the relevance of Lawrence Wright's The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and The Road to 9/11. For those seeking to understand the philosophical underpinnings and motivations behind these kinds of terrorist attacks, Wright's book provides a highly readable and informative primer on the sources of the most pressing conflicts of our time.

Wright's book traces the emergence of Al-Qaeda ("The Base") from a rag-tag bunch of largely uneducated religious zealots who got their first taste of jihad fighting against the Soviets in the late 1970s and early 1980's to the highly disciplined force capable of executing international acts of terror such as embassy bombings, an attack on the USS Cole and the destruction of the World Trade Center towers and the death of thousands.

By analyzing the intersections of radical Islamic thought, Middle Eastern political developments and the rigidity of the U.S. intelligence and investigative bureacracies in the post-Cold War global context, Wright helps to explain how America came to be the target of Al-Qaeda's struggle against "The West" and how the very agencies charged with our public safety let us down. In so doing, he provides details on how these developments culminated in the global conflict we find ourselves engaged in today.

Wright's narrative make a crucial distinction between more traditional Islamic laws -- against murder (especially of innocent bystanders) against suicide, etc. -- and the ways bin Laden and other radical Islamists twisted teachings from the Quran to justify killing and mass destruction. Like adherents of fundamentalist Christianity who espouse a so-called "Pro-Life" position, yet see no contradictions in the bombing of abortion clinics or the murder of doctors who provide safe procedures for women, the advocates of radical Islam engage in similar contortions of logic fueled by religious zealotry.

As Wright makes clear, the central contradiction of Al-Qaeda's actions on 9/11 is that while they sought to strike at "the head of the snake" (the source of the evil of The West) by attacking a symbol of American dominance, they left a vast array of humanity in their wake:

"In so many ways, the Trade Center dead formed a kind of universal parliament, representing sixty-two countries and nearly every ethnic group and religion in the world....The manifold ways in which they attached to life testified to the Quranic injunction that the taking of a single life destroys a universe. Al-Qaeda had aimed its attack at America, but it struck all of humanity." (p. 368)

The Looming Tower connects the legacy of Al-Qaeda's attacks on 9/11 with our ever deepening military entanglements in Afghanistan. Wright's analysis provides much needed historical context to help us understand why more troops and more expenditures in a misguided attempt to gain control of this region will not make us more secure. Wright explains that through Al-Qaeda's terrorist strikes: "Bin Laden wanted to lure the United States into Afghanistan, which was already being called the graveyard of empires" (emphasis added mine -- p. 272).

If the United States is not to end up buried in "the graveyard of empires", we would do well to read and draw lessons from the history Wright so articulately presents.

Wright gives the reader a wonderful discussion of the development of al queda,its principals and those incidents that led to 9/11. He also aptly describes the operational conflict between the FBI,CIA and Defense Department which prevented information exchanges and allowed the 9/11 attack to occur. If you have wondered why we were attacked and why we find ourselves in a "war on terror", this is a great starting point.

Lawrence Wright's writing holds your attention. The events he recounts in "The Looming Tower" read like chapters in a thriller genre novel. Their historical significance and Wright's great talent for storytelling create a compelling read. Wright is a natural writer gifted with clarity and rhythm. His uncluttered language leads you from one beat to the next. You find yourself following him deeper and deeper into the dark world of Islamo Fascism. Although the book's characters are repellant and the prevailing zeitgeist insane, the overall effect of "The Looming Tower" is one of enlightenment if not understanding.

Wright's book entitled The Looming Tower serves as scripture for the War on Terror. The book fulfills the following Zionist goals.

(1) It ties a lot of disconnected information together to fabricate a compelling script defining a vast Islamic fundamentalist terrorist conspiracy, which UBL is supposed to head but really does not exist and which can only be fought by stripping Americans of their Constitutional rights.

(2) It transformed the Zionist genocidal war against Palestinians into the American War on Terror with the goal of forever hitching the USA to Zionist ideology and policy.
The Israeli Coin and Mint's Twin Towers Medal
A Perfect Example of Zionist Opportunism


(3) It justified an Afghanistan and then an Iraq invasion as well as attacks on Somalia, Lebanon, Gaza, and Pakistan that made no sense whatsoever for the USA however much Zionists might welcome the incineration of Arabs and Muslims.

(4) It creates a framework to demonize the most mainstream currents of Islam in order to facilitate the marginalization of American Muslims and to make sure that they cannot participate in a meaningful way in the debate over American foreign policy.

(5) It provides a rationalization for a pointless continuation of the War against Terror in Afghanistan in order

* to forestall attempts to bring Bush administration criminals to justice,
* to discourage scrutiny of Zionists in the Obama administration,
* to keep Israel and Zionist plutocrats on the expanded military gravy train,
* to continue intimidation of American Muslims, and
* to prevent the American public from realizing that the US and Israel have no interests in common whatsoever.

Remnick made this achievement possible by providing Wright with full use of the fabled New Yorker resources for research and fact checking although in this case they were corrupted to provide distortion and fabrication conforming to the desires of wealthy Zionist advertisers, who brought the magazine back from the brink of bankruptcy.

With such talented support Wright's lies are sophisticated. They depend on subtle mistranslation or elipsis and calculated distortion of the timeline. They start from the beginning of the book with the discussion of Sayid Qutb and continue right through to the end.

The crowning example is Wright's explanation of the meaning of the book's title on pp. 394-395.

"The duties of this religion are magnificent and difficult," bin Laden said in a videotaped speech that was later discovered on the computer of a member of the Hamburg cell. "Some of them are abominable."

Bin Laden spoke about the Prophet, who warned the Arabs that they would become weak because of their love of lif and their fear of fighting. "This sense of loss, this misery that has befallen us: all these are proof that we have abandoned God and his jihad," bin Laden said. "God has imposed inferiority on you and will not remove it from you until you return to your religion."

Recalling the Prophet's injunction on his deathbed that Islam should be the only religion in Arabia, bin Laden asked, "What answer do we have for God on the day of reckoning? ... The ummah in this time have become lost and have gone astray. Now, ten years have passed sine the Americans entered the land of the two holy places. ... It becomes clear to us that shying away from the fight, combined with the love of earthly existence that fills the hearts of many of us, is the source of this misery, this humiliation, and this contempt."

These words reached into the hearts of nineteen young men, many of whom had skills, talent, and education, and were living comfortably in the West; and yet they still resonated with the sense of shame that bin Laden sang to them.

What do we want? What do we want?
Don't we want to please God?
Don't we want Paradise?

He urged them to become martyrs, to give up their promising lives for the greater glory that awaited them. "Look, we have found ourselves in the mouth of the lion for over twenty years now," he said, "thanks to the mercy and favor of God: the Russian Scud missiles hunted us for over ten years, and the American Cruise missiles have hunted us for another ten years. The believer knows that the hour of death can be neigher hastened nor postponed." Then he quoted a passage from the fourth sura of the Quran, which he repeated three times in the speech -- obvious signal to the hijackers who were on their way:

Wherever you are, death will find you,
even in the looming tower.

No English translation of the Quranic verse 4:78 renders ÈÑæÌ ãÔìÏÉ as in the looming tower.

Muhammad Asad interprets the verse as:

Wherever you may be, death will overtake you -- even though you be in towers raised high.

The mistranslation of mushayyadat meaning lofty may be a confusion of the Hebrew word shed meaning demon with the colloquial Arabic pronunciation musheyyda.

The faulty rendering is only a small piece of the Wright's big lie. He states in his "Notes" (p.485) that he took "Speech of Sheikh Osama Bin Laden on the occasion of the Fitr celebration of the first schawal 1420"/"Rede des Scheich usamma Bin LADEN anlasslich des Fitr-Festes erster schawal 1420" from the "Motassadeq Document which Chester Rosson translated.

Ramadan 1420 took place in Dec-Jan 1999-2000. Eidu-l-fitri was Jan. 7, 2000.

The Quranic passage 4:78 is a hardly inappropriate reminder to people in the midst of a celebration that they should still think about the time when they will be called to final accounting after death.

Probably many Eidu-l-fitri sermons with which UBL grew up contained such recommendations.

The speech had absolutely no connection to the 9/11 attack as is almost certainly true for UBL himself.

Because the entire mythology of the War on Terror is filled with the sort of misrepresentations littering the Pulitzer Prize winning Looming Tower, Zionists like Frum (and Judea Pearl) are absolutely unwilling to countenance any critical reevaluations of the case for the war from which they and the State of Israel have benefitted so much.

[...]

This book is so well written and so well researched that it is no surprise Mr. Wright won the Pulitzer Prize. Wright gives a straight-forward, highly in-depth, and insightful account of the ideology and politics of the men responsible for creating al-qaeda and other fundamentalist terror groups, such as al-jihad. He traces al-qaeda's roots all the way back to Qutb's writings and the discontent with the secular Egyptian government and the profligate Saudi royals.
Wright also gives incredible insight into the ineptitude that pervaded the CIA and FBI throughout the 1990's. A little communication goes a long way. Unfortunately, as Wright explains, our nation's agencies failed to work together, and as a result failed to prevent a disaster that it agents expected to occur.
I eagerly anticipate Wright's next work, which hopefully will continue where Looming Tower left off.

If you've ever wondered where al-Qaeda and groups like it get their twisted, pathetic ideology, "The Looming Tower" has some answers for you.

Starting in the '40s with Sayyid Qutb, an Egyptian who visited America and condemned the nation for its individualism, secularism, and women's rights, among other things, militant Islam started as a movement to overthrow the Egyptian government to establish an Islamic state there by violent means.

Through the years, others, like Ayman Zawahiri and Osama bin Laden, latched on to the idea of an Islamic state, a return to the caliphate. For bin Laden, America was the biggest obstacle to achieving his goal, and he lost no sleep killing anyone who got in the way.

Okay, with that little summary, let me tell you this book is an illumination. Lawrence Wright explains what drives al-Qaeda, how they planned the bombings of the embassies in Africa, the bombing of the USS Cole, and a brief time line of the planning that went into the 9/11 attacks.

Wright singles out the CIA, and justifiably so, for the IDIOTIC refusal to share intelligence with other agencies, especially the FBI. The catastrophe on that Tuesday in September, 2001, could have been prevented absolutely had the FBI received the intel it needed to monitor, detain, and prosecute al-Qaeda members in the United States. Wright makes this point very clear, and his research seems unimpeachable.

The book makes clear that the Islamic enemies of liberty will not rest until everything we freedom lovers hold dear is utterly destroyed.

What a wake up call for me. I feel more aware than ever of the need to combat this cult of death and destruction that militant Islam represents.

You, yes you, should read this book to understand what we're up against.

A thorough and readable account of the rise, influence and scope of Al Qaeda and all the players that led to 9/11.

This is strictly for those who have a desperate need to believe the official story of 9/11: that 19 untrained men (at least 10 of whom were later found to be still alive after 9/11) under the direction of a known ex-CIA asset (who was dying in a cave), who had never before flown a passenger plane somehow managed to hijack four of them and fly without navigational assistance (using compasses, presumably) around the USA for a total of nearly two hours without the much-vaunted and trigger happy USAF managing to get off a single shot, without any of the 4 sets of crew managing to get off a single warning - despite the necessity to do nothing more than press a button, without any of the sets of crew, many ex-military, putting up the slightest bit of resistance to men of small stature carrying nothing more than Stanley knives. These 19 men then crashed their planes unerringly into targets they had no possible chance of finding in reality, and the buildings, weakened by the impacts and by the massive fires of jet fuel, melted to the ground, exhibiting at least 10 classic signs of explosive demolition. And of course there's WTC7, hit by nothing except falling debris, yet it also melted to the ground in freefall speed at 5:20 in the afternoon, interestingly enough after both the BBC and CNN had already reported this building as having collapsed - in both cases while it stood clearly in the background behind the unwitting and ignorant reporter. The fact that the financial records from Enron, Worldcom and many other financial scandals were held in the SEC offices in WTC7 should be examined very closely, as should the "insider trading" which was traced to the door of the Executive Director of the CIA, Buzzy Krongard and then dropped. Also of interest is the massive amount of gold bullion stored under the WTC, only a fraction of which has so far been acknowledged as recovered.

This book, however, is a fiction which merges a small amount of fact and a large amount of media propoganda to paint a story that simply cannot be true. For an extremely advanced form of nano-thermite (Google the term) was recently discovered in the debris from the WTC which proves beyond doubt that the WTC in fact WAS explosively demolished. The fact that the Bush family had close ties to the company that ran "security" at the WTC is an indication of how this could have been done, added to the fact that most of the known research into and development of nano-thermite had been conducted by NIST up to that point. Lawrence Wright has, wittingly or unwittingly, fallen into the trap of believing an official story (sorry, but there's not a single "official story" that can be taken at its word) with no basis in reality and woven a cunningly plausible but ultimately erroneous version of events, and should be read (and, if truth be told, classified) as fiction. Additionally his treatment of the logistics and preparation for the attacks themselves are totally unconvincing, lacking the substance and believability that should be present if the official story were true.

To get a truer picture of the events leading up to 9/11 a far more believable (and far more thoroughly researched) book is The Terror Timeline: Year by Year, Day by Day, Minute by Minute: A Comprehensive Chronicle of the Road to 9/11--and America's Response by Paul Thompson. Or anything by David Ray Griffin.

One thing I like about Wright's book is that he correctly traces the origins of modern Islamic terrorism to the Muslim Brotherhood and it's chief theorist, Sayyid Qutb. And the human stories behind such figures as Qutb, Zaiman al-Zawahiri, and Osama Bin Laden are very interesting. Perhaps most riveting is the story of how artificial legal barriers blocked the sharing of information between the CIA and the FBI. It is very possible that 9/ll would have been foiled had not these artificial barriers, as well as a culture of mutual hostility, prevented the sharing of information between the NSA, FBI and CIA. (Of course, this was one of the reasons for the creation of the Office of director of National Intelligence, a position over all of the intelligence agencies; it remains to be seen whether this makes any difference.)

One thing Wright gets wrong, I believe, is that he assumes without proving that Sayyid Qutb's version of Islam is a minority position, and that the majority of Muslims embrace some moderate or liberal form of the religion. I don't think that's true but, as I said, it is simply an assumed subtext and not what the book is about.

This is a very informative and interesting book. The author traces the philosophical roots of Al-qaeda and delves into the personalities of both Al-qaeda figures and Americans in the CIA and FBI. One is left with the impression that although the philosophies of the opposing figures are very different, their lifestyles and personalities have many similarities.

This book is a non-fiction history book written like a novel. I was riveted from the opening page....and I am a reader of novels for the most part! The names are difficult to pronounce in your mind as you read, but you can just make up your own pronunciation and keep reading. I started taking notes to keep track of the characters, because they were just that significant....but then that became too cumbersome. So I just kept reading and let the story flow. The last 1/3 or so of the book concentrates on the planning of the 9/11 attack....what a learning experience. As for President Obama and his administration, I kept thinking that I hope he has read this and recommended to his staff. Why? Because of the current war in Afghanistan and the decisions that are being made right now. This book spends a lot of time talking about past wars in Afghanistan, the rugged terrain, and the people who live there now and how they think.

Looming Tower is not so much about the events of 9/11 but much more about the development of the radical Islamic philosophy that spawned that tragedy beginning in the late 1940s, as well as the events which fueled and validated, at least in the eyes of many muslins, that radical school of thought. It gives the dispassionate reader an understanding of how the Islamic hatred of the United States has developed. And most importantly, at the end of the book, one understands, or at least sure ought to understand, that we will never win the so called "war on terror" militarily or by killing muslins. That said, the book paints a sad picture of infighting and jealousy between the FBI and CIA that destroyed the opportunities that were quite clearly present to prevent 9/11.

This book is well-written and enlightening as well as enjoyable. It presents facts I was not aware of in a highly readable manner, and gives an insight into events that we all experienced but didn't really understand. I went back and read some sections again - not because I was confused, but because I found them fascinating.

My enjoyment of the book was slightly diminished by the fact that the glue used in assembling my paperback copy didn't hold the physical book together. Whole sections fell out as I was reading. Amazon quickly resonded to my report of this problem by providing another copy, which was somewhat better in this respect - but not entirely. I don't blame Amazon for this defect, but the printer.

However, this annoyance didn't prevent my enjoyment of the writing.

The Looming Tower (TLT) is a most worthwhile read. I have read many books on al-Qaeda and the bombing of the Twin Towers and all have given me a broad base understanding of the thinking behind the jihad movement. TLT provided me an insight into the mind thinking of Osama Bin Laden and the genius behind his diabolical thought process.

Interestingly, most of the books I have read dealt very lightly on the radical origins in Egypt, the exception being the Muslim Brotherhood. The "Brotherhood" via the fatwa issued by Abdullah Azzam seems to be the genesis for the version of Jihad brought to al-Qaeda by one of Azzam's disciples, namely Ayman al-Zawahiri. Doctor Zawahiri, brilliant for his medical expertise brought the fundamental teachings of Azzam and married it with the thinking of bin-Laden. While Zawahiri's goal was to make an Islamic state in Egypt it was initially incongruent with bin-Laden's goal of fatwa and jihad against the United States of America.
TLT provides great insight into the development of the thinking of these fundamental Jihadists and shows beyond any doubt there commitment to destruction of the infidels where ever they may be or whomever they may be. TLT gives a stunning glimpse of the struggle against the Soviets in Afghanistan and the development of America as the great "Satan".

While the study of bin-laden is one of contradictions, his zealotry is remarkably consistent.
TLT does not only view the efforts and successes of jihadists, it also points out in very painful terms the folly of the intelligence services of the United States in trying to understand and coordinate countermeasures against the plans of the new jihadists.
Having known and worked with John O'Neil of the FBI and having read the book "The Man Who Warned America" by Murray Weiss I understood some of the demons that haunted O'Neil who died in the World Trade Center. TLT gets into some of the very specific battles between the CIA and NSA and how information with held allowed 911 to succeed.

TLT is a must read for anyone wanting to understand some of the "whys" of the tragedy of 911. The book was extremely well written and was at times "a page turner". The Arab names are sometimes awkward to follow but perseverance in following along will broaden your understanding of many of the Islamic terms that have become a part of our language and understanding of this malignant thinking that is holding Islam hostage.

I have read a couple of other books about 9/11, and the events leading up to it, but nothing compares to 'The Looming Tower'. This book has a lot of depth, talking about the begins of the radical Islamic movement, the begins of Osama bin Laden, and his family, and the workings in the US between the FBI and CIA leading up to this horrible time.

As stated in the title, the book is also very addicting. Being much more than 500 pages, I felt this would take a while to finish. However, Lawrence Wright does a tremendous job of keeping you engaged in the book, always wanting to know the next step in this story.

Lastly, the book is very important, as it not only shows us the mistakes that were made leading up to this tragedy, but also gives a very deep look into the Islamic faith, the reasoning behind these and other attacks, and why these radicals feel they are doing the right thing. All in all, this is a great book, and a must read for anyone looking to get a very deep, true story about the events leading up to 9/11.

I've read a number of books about the `war on terrorism' over the past couple of years. Among them are Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001, The Age of Sacred Terror: Radical Islam's War Against America" and finally, The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 (Vintage). This last is the one I recommend if you are only going to read one book on this topic.

There is more than enough shame to go around about the failure of Western governments to adequately understand the nature of radical Islamic terrorism and to predict the calamity of 9/11. However "The Looming Tower" shows that basic institutional intransigence is probably the biggest failure. The CIA, NSA, and FBI all failed in one way or another. All knew elements of the impending disaster and all failed to communicate with the others and failed to communicate internally as to the real nature of the threat.

Finally of all the books I have read this is by far the best written, probably because Lawrence Wright is the only one not directly involved and with no axe to grind; his reportage is first rate and if this book fails to cause an emotional response I would be surprised.

As in many of the other books on the attack on 9/11, FBI Director Louis Freeh and the culture of the CIA get the lion's share of blame for the debacle of intelligence failure. Surprisingly Wright does not try to cast all blame on the George W. Bush Administration, but shows how failure to take non-state sponsored terrorism going back to the 1980s is the real culprit.

I cannot say how much I admire this book. I strongly recommend it to anyone who wants to understand the problems in our modern era.

Well-researched and brilliantly executed. This book is terrifying, more so because you know how it all ends. This was no slap-dash circumstance. This was the culmination of decades of plotting and planning. Any serious person who wants to comment on current geopolitics must read this book.

Giving a fascinating history of the Islamist movement and an insider's account of the CIA and FBI agents who investigated al-Qaeda, this is a very well-researched book. The assertions and information are based on a wide variety of credible and knowledgeable sources. It is interesting and relevant, well-written and smartly organized, and perhaps most importantly, offers a well-constructed narrative.

While this book doesn't present any new groundbreaking theories or explanations of 9/11, of Islamist terrorist groups, or of the performance of the two agencies charged with defending us from such groups, it does however provide vivid details and weave a captivating narrative of the individuals that make up the story. Based on numerous interviews with the key actors, it is a riveting inside the locker room look at the groups that provide the greatest threat to our national security and those who are its sworn protectors.

Wright strikes a balance between maintaining journalistic integrity and neutrality while working in astute observations and analysis, and leaves the reader pondering many relevant issues, considering what might have been and what could be.

This is a highly readable account of the events leading up to the 9/11 tragedy. It details the activities of it's masterminds and the status of the determined men and women in the US who were putting the pieces together. There is an impressive number of interviews with key players and informed bystanders. While this has been a well covered event, still, without Wright's diligence much of what he presents could have been lost to history.

I've recently read Steve Coll's The Bin Ladens: An Arabian Family in the American Century which covers the Bin Laden family with a focus on its leaders and Osama, its black sheep. From that work I realized how on the run Bin Laden was and how the Saudi Royal family's power depends on the radical religious leaders. This book fleshes out Osama's life and his increasing radicalization and extent of Saudi money in support of the ideology that results in violence.

Wright humanizes the principle players and this draws you in. He describes Bin Laden and Al Zawahiri as friends and rivals, the basis for their differences and how they came to unite. Wright shows the waning fortunes of Bin Laden in his Sudan years as he loses his money and his access to the family. Bin Laden is shown to be an eclectic and lackluster businessman he had been leading a jihad that has trouble getting traction. Wright gives you insight on Hassen al Turabi and Mullah Omar and how troublesome their "guest" made their lives. Interestingly, we learn of the jihadi who changes his mind about suicide just before entering the Nairobi embassy.

Stateside, you learn about the personalities and rivalries of investigators, how they doggedly pursue clues despite little cooperation or support from above. The Cole investigation and John O'Neill's (an almost made for TV character) treatment in both Yemen and in the US. The end, when key photographs are faxed to our ONE Arabic translator in Yemen, your heart almost breaks.

It's hard to put down this book. I highly recommend it.

Well-researched and based on a carefully constructed timeline, The Looming Tower reveals facts about the rise of al-Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks that most readers will find surprising. For instance, a common misconception is that Osama Bin Laden was wealthy and therefore able to self-fund the training and equipping of al-Qaeda fighters. In Lawrence Wright's account, we learn instead that while certainly wealthy, Bin Laden's strength is as a prolific fundraiser. He is able to tap both wealthy Arab governments and private donors, particularly as he demonstrates al-Qaeda's increasing lethality. Much more significant perhaps, Wright portrays Bin Laden as a master of public relations. Indeed, he demonstrates early on that his charisma and soft-spoken charm could both inspire followers and unleash horrific violence.

In the lead up to 9/11 Bin Laden captures the imagination of disaffected but well-educated young Muslim males searching for validation and a deeper meaning in their lives. Already steeped in traditional Muslim thought (many studied in madrasses in Western Pakistan), these individuals merely need a catalyst and some direction for their aims and readily find it in Bin Laden's radical proselytizing. Proving Josef Goebbels' famous quote, "make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it", Bin Laden convinces his followers that America (and its staunch ally, Israel) is the source of all persecution in the Islamic world. He eventually gains a critical mass of converts and hence a blunt instrument to wage global jihad.

The scheme to strike at the soft underbelly of American 'infidel' society and the means to do it are born.

Wright also exposes the many seams in the U.S. national security infrastructure and schisms within the law enforcement and intelligence organizations that existed prior to 9/11. Ironically, those same intelligence organizations were created with the single purpose of detecting and preventing terrorist attacks. Simply tragic...

The mosaics the author pieces together in developing his characters (based on scores of interviews) bring to life such leading U.S. counterterrorism officials as Richard A. Clarke and John P. O'Neill. These individuals' relentless efforts to protect America's domestic and international interests undoubtedly prevent countless attacks. Yet, as Wright alludes, their persistent demands to go on the offense against an emergent al-Qaeda are stymied by poor communication and internecine rivalries between government agencies combined with bureaucratic inertia and simple inaction on the part of our country's political leaders.

The Looming Tower traces the roots of al-Qaeda to radical Islamic organizations such as Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the Muslim Brotherhood and fiery Islamic scholars like Sayyid Qutb and Dr. Abdullah Yusuf Azzam. We learn that while their extreme views prove a source of discomfort for mainstream Islamic governments - they espouse violent uprising to achieve their ends - their aggressive activism is largely contained. Interestingly, despite Azzam's pleas for moderation, Bin Laden exhorts his charges to commit suicide bombings as a means of achieving al-Qaeda's aims (and those of greater Islam) while punishing America for 'occupying' the Arabian Peninsula.

Additionally, we discover that Ayman al-Zawahiri and Bin Laden find refuge and a sympathetic ear in failed states such as Somalia, Sudan, and Afghanistan and co-opt their governments to help nurture and train radicals for jihad. Their demands ever more insistent and their attacks growing in ferocity, Islamic extremists in the Bin Laden era gain a new sense of urgency. Yet, incredibly, despite many alarm bells Western intelligence agencies remain unable to convince their governments of the seriousness of the threat posed by al-Qaeda.

Wright pieces together through hundreds of interviews each militant Islamist plot from the 1993 World Trade Center bombing through the 2000 USS Cole suicide attack. He painstakingly traces the steps of the jihadists as they gradually ratchet up the stakes while leaving unmistakable clues as to their grand design. Only a handful of astute, hyper-vigilant FBI and CIA agents grasp the significance of those clues, but their voices are seemingly drowned out by the bureaucracy with, of course, calamitous results.

The Looming Tower ranks with Rohan Gunaratna's Inside Al Qaeda and Steve Coll's Ghost Wars in its narrative sweep. Not nearly as dense as the Pulitzer Prize-Winning Ghost Wars, The Looming Tower combines the right amount of detail with the author's lighter prose style. Wright manages to entertain as much as he informs. Perhaps most enjoyable about Wright's book, it details unusual aspects of his characters' personalities that make them seem more human. Bin Laden, the devoted family man; John O'Neill, the sentimental romantic; and, Richard Clarke, the ambitious product of blue collar roots... These are the figures who grace Wright's pages. And a truly fascinating cast of characters it is!

Lawrence Wright's book, though a work of investigative journalism, reads like a Greek tragedy.

A sobering insider's look at the first (and arguably most) serious threat facing the West in the 21st Century and an immensely satisfying read...

Captivating!

Well-researched and based on a carefully constructed timeline, The Looming Tower reveals facts about the rise of al-Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks that most readers will find surprising. For instance, a common misconception is that Osama Bin Laden was wealthy and therefore able to self-fund the training and equipping of al-Qaeda fighters. In Lawrence Wright's account, we learn instead that while certainly wealthy, Bin Laden's strength is as a prolific fundraiser. He is able to tap both wealthy Arab governments and private donors, particularly as he demonstrates al-Qaeda's increasing lethality. Much more significant perhaps, Wright portrays Bin Laden as a master of public relations. Indeed, he demonstrates early on that his charisma and soft-spoken charm could both inspire followers and unleash horrific violence.

In the lead up to 9/11 Bin Laden captures the imagination of disaffected but well-educated young Muslim males searching for validation and a deeper meaning in their lives. Already steeped in traditional Muslim thought (many studied in madrasses in Western Pakistan), these individuals merely need a catalyst and some direction for their aims and readily find it in Bin Laden's radical proselytizing. Proving Josef Goebbels' famous quote, "make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it", Bin Laden convinces his followers that America (and its staunch ally, Israel) is the source of all persecution in the Islamic world. He eventually gains a critical mass of converts and hence a blunt instrument to wage global jihad.

The scheme to strike at the soft underbelly of American 'infidel' society and the means to do it are born...

Wright also exposes the many seams in the U.S. national security infrastructure and schisms within the law enforcement and intelligence organizations that existed prior to 9/11. Ironically, those same intelligence organizations were created with the single purpose of detecting and preventing terrorist attacks. Simply tragic...

The mosaics the author pieces together in developing his characters (based on scores of interviews) bring to life such leading U.S. counterterrorism officials as Richard A. Clarke and John P. O'Neill. These individuals' relentless efforts to protect both America's domestic and international interests undoubtedly prevent countless attacks. Yet, as Wright alludes, their persistent demands to go on the offense against an emergent al-Qaeda are stymied by poor communication and internecine rivalries between government agencies combined with bureaucratic inertia and simple inaction on the part of our country's political leaders.

The Looming Tower traces the roots of al-Qaeda to radical Islamic organizations such as Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the Muslim Brotherhood and fiery Islamic scholars like Sayyid Qutb and Dr. Abdullah Yusuf Azzam. We learn that while their extreme views prove a source of discomfort for mainstream Islamic governments - they espouse violent uprising to achieve their ends - their aggressive activism is largely contained. Interestingly, despite Azzam's pleas for moderation, Bin Laden exhorts his charges to commit suicide bombings as a means of achieving al-Qaeda's aims (and those of greater Islam) while punishing America for 'occupying' the Arabian Peninsula.

Additionally, we discover that Ayman al-Zawahiri and Bin Laden find refuge and a sympathetic ear in failed states such as Somalia, Sudan, and Afghanistan and co-opt their governments to help nurture and train radicals for suicide attacks. Their demands ever more insistent and their attacks growing in ferocity, Islamic extremists in the Bin Laden era gain a new sense of urgency. Yet, incredibly, despite many alarm bells Western intelligence agencies remain unable to convince their governments of the seriousness of the threat posed by al-Qaeda.

Wright pieces together through hundreds of interviews each militant Islamist plot from the 1993 World Trade Center bombing through the 2000 USS Cole suicide attack. He painstakingly traces the steps of the jihadists as they gradually ratchet up the stakes while leaving unmistakable clues as to their grand design. Only a handful of astute, hyper-vigilant FBI and CIA agents grasp the significance of those clues, but their voices are seemingly drowned out by the bureaucracy with, of course, calamitous results.

The Looming Tower ranks with Rohan Gunaratna's Inside Al Qaeda and Steve Coll's Ghost Wars in its narrative sweep. Not nearly as dense as Coll's Pulitzer Prize-Winning Ghost Wars, The Looming Tower combines the right amount of detail with the author's lighter prose style. Wright manages to entertain as much as he informs. Perhaps most enjoyable about Wright's book, it details unusual aspects of his characters' personalities that make them seem more human. Bin Laden, the devoted family man; John O'Neill, the sentimental romantic; and, Richard Clarke, the ambitious product of blue collar roots... These are the figures who grace Wright's pages. And a truly fascinating cast of characters it is!

Lawrence Wright's book, though a work of investigative journalism, reads like a Greek tragedy.

A sobering insider's look at the first (and arguably most) serious threat facing the West in the 21st Century and an immensely satisfying read...

Captivating!

Well-researched and based on a carefully constructed timeline, The Looming Tower reveals facts about the rise of al-Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks that most readers will find surprising. For instance, a common misconception is that Osama Bin Laden was wealthy and therefore able to self-fund the training and equipping of al-Qaeda fighters. In Lawrence Wright's account, we learn instead that while certainly wealthy, his strength is as a prolific fundraiser. He is able to tap both wealthy Arab governments and private donors, particularly as he is able to demonstrate al-Qaeda's increasing lethality. Much more significant perhaps, Wright portrays Bin Laden as a master of public relations. Indeed, Bin Laden demonstrates early on that his charisma and soft-spoken charm could unleash horrific violence.

In the lead up to 9/11 Bin Laden captures the imagination of disaffected but well-educated young Muslim males searching for validation and a deeper meaning in their lives. Already steeped in traditional Muslim thought (many studied in madrasses in Western Pakistan), these individuals merely need a catalyst and some direction for their aims and readily find it in Bin Laden's radical proselytizing. Proving Josef Goebbels' famous quote, "make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it", Bin Laden convinces his followers that America (and its staunch ally, Israel) is the source of all persecution in the Islamic world. He eventually gains a critical mass of converts and hence a blunt instrument to wage global jihad.

The scheme to strike at the soft underbelly of American 'infidel' society and now the means to do it are born...

Wright also exposes the many seams in the U.S. national security infrastructure and schisms within the law enforcement and intelligence organizations that existed prior to 9/11. Ironically, those same intelligence organizations were created with the single purpose of detecting and preventing terrorist attacks.

The mosaics the author pieces together in developing his characters (based on scores of interviews) bring to life such leading U.S. counterterrorism officials as Richard A. Clarke and John P. O'Neill. These individuals' relentless efforts to protect both America's domestic and international interests undoubtedly prevent countless attacks. Yet, as Wright alludes, their persistent demands to go on the offense against an emergent al-Qaeda are stymied by poor communication and internecine rivalries between government agencies combined with bureaucratic inertia and simple inaction on the part of our country's political leaders.

The Looming Tower traces the roots of al-Qaeda to radical Islamic organizations such as Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the Muslim Brotherhood and fiery Islamic scholars like Sayyid Qutb and Dr. Abdullah Yusuf Azzam. While their extreme views prove a source of discomfort for mainstream Islamic governments - they espouse violent uprising to achieve their ends - their aggressive activism is largely contained. Interestingly, despite Azzam's pleas for moderation, Bin Laden exhorts his charges to commit suicide bombings as a means of achieving al-Qaeda's aims (and those of greater Islam) while punishing America for 'occupying' the Arabian Peninsula.

Additionally, we learn that Ayman al-Zawahiri and Bin Laden find refuge and a sympathetic ear in failed states such as Somalia, Sudan, and Afghanistan and co-opt their governments to help nurture and train radicals for suicide attacks. Their demands ever more insistent and their weapons growing in lethality, Islamic extremists in the Bin Laden era gain a new sense of urgency. Yet, incredibly, despite many alarm bells Western intelligence agencies remain unable to convince their governments of the seriousness of the threat posed by al-Qaeda.

Wright pieces together through hundreds of interviews each radical Islamist plot from the 1993 World Trade Center bombing through the 2000 USS Cole suicide attack. He painstakingly traces the steps of the jihadists as they gradually ratchet up the stakes while leaving unmistakable clues as to their grand design. Only a handful of astute, hyper-vigilant FBI and CIA agents grasp the significance of those clues, but their voices are seemingly drowned out by the bureaucracy with, of course, calamitous results.

The Looming Tower ranks with Rohan Gunaratna's Inside Al Qaeda and Steve Coll's Ghost Wars in its narrative sweep. Not nearly as dense as Coll's Pulitzer Prize-Winning Ghost Wars, The Looming Tower combines the right amount of detail with the author's lighter prose style. Wright manages to entertain as much as he informs. Perhaps most enjoyable about Wright's book, it details unusual aspects of his characters' personalities that make them seem more human. Bin Laden, the devoted family man; John O'Neill, the sentimental romantic; and, Richard Clarke, the ambitious product of blue collar roots... These are the figures who grace Wright's pages. And a truly fascinating cast of characters it is!

Lawrence Wright's book reads like a Greek tragedy.

A sobering insider's look at the first (and arguably most) serious threat facing the West in the 21st Century...

Captivating!

Well-researched and based on a carefully constructed timeline, The Looming Tower reveals facts about the rise of al-Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks that most readers will find surprising. For instance, a common misconception is that Osama Bin Laden was wealthy and therefore able to self-fund the training and equipping of al-Qaeda fighters. In Lawrence Wright's account, we learn instead that while certainly wealthy, his strength is as a prolific fundraiser. He is able to tap both wealthy Arab governments and private donors, particularly as he is able to demonstrate al-Qaeda's increasing lethality. Much more significant perhaps, Wright portrays Bin Laden as a master of public relations. Indeed, he demonstrates early on that his charisma and soft-spoken charm could unleash horrific violence.

In the lead up to 9/11 Bin Laden captures the imagination of disaffected but well-educated young Muslim males searching for validation and a deeper meaning in their lives. Already steeped in traditional Muslim thought (many studied in madrasses in Western Pakistan), these individuals merely need a catalyst and some direction for their aims and readily find it in Bin Laden's radical proselytizing. Proving Josef Goebbels' famous quote, "make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it", Bin Laden convinces his followers that America (and its staunch ally, Israel) is the source of all persecution in the Islamic world. He eventually gains a critical mass of converts and hence a blunt instrument to wage global jihad.

The scheme to strike at the soft underbelly of American 'infidel' society and the means to do it are born...

Wright also exposes the many seams in the U.S. national security infrastructure and schisms within the law enforcement and intelligence organizations that existed prior to 9/11. Ironically, those same intelligence organizations were created with the single purpose of detecting and preventing terrorist attacks. The mosaics the author pieces together in developing his characters (based on scores of interviews) bring to life such leading U.S. counterterrorism officials as Richard A. Clarke and John P. O'Neill. These individuals' relentless efforts to protect both America's domestic and international interests undoubtedly prevent countless other attacks. Yet, as Wright alludes, their persistent demands to go on the offense against an emergent al-Qaeda are stymied by poor communication and internecine rivalries between government agencies combined with bureaucratic inertia and simple inaction on the part of our country's political leaders.

The Looming Tower traces the roots of al-Qaeda to radical Islamic organizations such as Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the Muslim Brotherhood and fiery Islamic scholars like Sayyid Qutb and Dr. Abdullah Yusuf Azzam. While their extreme views prove a source of discomfort for mainstream Islamic governments - they espouse violent uprising to achieve their ends - their aggressive activism is largely contained. Interestingly, despite Azzam's pleas for moderation, Bin Laden exhorts his charges to commit suicide bombings as a means of achieving al-Qaeda's aims (and those of greater Islam) while punishing America for 'occupying' the Arabian Peninsula.

Additionally, we learn that Ayman al-Zawahiri and Bin Laden find refuge in failed states such as Somalia, Sudan, and Afghanistan and co-opt their governments to help nurture and train radicals for suicide attacks. Their demands ever more insistent and their resources growing in lethality, Islamic extremists in the Bin Laden era gain a new sense of urgency. Yet, incredibly, despite many alarm bells Western intelligence agencies remain unable to convince their governments of the seriousness of the threat posed by al-Qaeda.

Wright pieces together through hundreds of interviews each radical Islamist plot from the 1993 World Trade Center bombing through the 2000 USS Cole suicide attack. He painstakingly traces the steps of the jihadists as they gradually ratchet up the stakes while leaving unmistakable clues as to their grand design. Only a handful of astute, hyper-vigilant FBI and CIA agents seem to grasp the significance of those clues, but their voices are seemingly drowned out by the bureaucracy with, of course, calamitous results.

The Looming Tower ranks with Rohan Gunaratna's Inside Al Qaeda and Steve Coll's Ghost Wars in its narrative sweep. Not nearly as dense as Coll's Pulitzer Prize-Winning Ghost Wars, The Looming Tower combines the right amount of detail with the author's lighter prose style. Wright manages to entertain as much as he informs. Perhaps most enjoyable about Wright's book, he details unusual aspects of his characters' personalities that make them seem more human. Bin Laden, the devoted family man, John O'Neill, the sentimental romantic, and Richard Clarke, the ambitious product of blue collar roots - these are the figures who grace Wright's pages. And a truly fascinating cast of characters it is!

A sobering insider's look at the first (and arguably most) serious threat facing the West in the 21st Century...

Captivating!

Well-researched and based on a carefully constructed timeline, The Looming Tower reveals facts about the rise of al-Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks that most readers will find surprising. For instance, a common misconception is that Osama Bin Laden was wealthy and therefore able to self-fund the training and equipping of al-Qaeda fighters. In Lawrence Wright's account, we learn instead that he was a prolific fundraiser, tapping both wealthy Arab governments and private donors, particularly as he was able to demonstrate al-Qaeda's increasing lethality. Much more significant perhaps, Wright portrays Bin Laden as a master of public relations. Indeed, Bin Laden demonstrates early on that his charisma and soft-spoken charm could unleash horrific violence.

In the lead up to 9/11 Bin Laden captures the imagination of disaffected but well-educated young Muslim males searching for validation and a deeper meaning in their lives. Already steeped in traditional Muslim thought (many studied in madrasses in Western Pakistan), these individuals merely need a catalyst and some direction for their aims and readily find it in Bin Laden's radical proselytizing. Proving Josef Goebbels' famous quote, "make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it", Bin Laden convinces his followers that America (and its staunch ally, Israel) is the source of all persecution in the Islamic world. He eventually gains a critical mass of converts to his views and thus a blunt instrument to wage global jihad.

The scheme to strike at the soft underbelly of American 'infidel' society and the means to do it are born.

Wright exposes the many seams in the U.S. national security infrastructure and schisms within the law enforcement and intelligence organizations that existed prior to 9/11, some ironically created with the single purpose of detecting and preventing terrorist attacks. The mosaics the author pieces together in developing his characters (based on scores of interviews) bring to life such leading U.S. counterterrorism officials as Richard A. Clarke and John P. O'Neill. These individuals' relentless efforts to protect both America's domestic and international interests undoubtedly prevent countless other attacks. Yet, as Wright alludes, their persistent demands to go on the offense against an emergent al-Qaeda are stymied by poor communication and internecine rivalries between government agencies combined with bureaucratic inertia and simple inaction on the part of many of our country's political leaders.

The Looming Tower traces the roots of al-Qaeda to radical Islamic organizations such as Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the Muslim Brotherhood and fiery Islamic scholars like Sayyid Qutb and Dr. Abdullah Yusuf Azzam. While their extreme views prove a source of discomfort for mainstream Islamic governments - they espouse violent uprising to achieve their ends - their aggressive activism is largely contained. Despite Azzam's entreaties, Bin Laden exhorts his charges to commit suicide bombings as a means of achieving al-Qaeda's aims while punishing America for 'occupying' the Arabian Peninsula.

Radicals such as Ayman al-Zawahiri and Bin Laden, through manipulation and deceit, find refuge and manage to co-opt corrupt governments in failed states such as Somalia, Sudan, and Afghanistan to nurture and train radicals for suicide attacks. Their demands ever more insistent and their resources growing in lethality, Islamic terrorism assumes a new urgency. Yet, Western intelligence agencies remain unable to convince their governments of the seriousness of the threat posed by al-Qaeda.

Wright pieces together through hundreds of interviews each radical Islamist plot from the 1993 World Trade Center bombing through the 2000 USS Cole suicide attack. He painstakingly traces the steps of the jihadists as they gradually ratchet up the stakes while leaving unmistakable clues as to their grand design. Only a handful of astute, hyper-vigilant FBI and CIA agents seem to grasp the significance of those clues, but their voices are seemingly drowned out by the bureaucracy with catastrophic results.

The Looming Tower ranks with Rohan Gunaratna's Inside Al Qaeda and Steve Coll's Ghost Wars in its narrative sweep. Not nearly as dense as Coll's Pulitzer Prize-Winning Ghost Wars, The Looming Tower combines the right amount of detail with the author's lighter prose style. Wright manages to entertain as much as he informs. Perhaps most enjoyable about Wright's book, he details unusual aspects of his characters' personalities that make them seem more human. Bin Laden, the devoted family man, John O'Neill, the sentimental romantic, and Richard Clarke, the ambitious product of blue collar roots - these are the figures who grace Wright's pages. And a truly fascinating cast of characters it is!

Captivating!

Well-researched and based on a carefully constructed timeline, The Looming Tower reveals facts about the rise of al-Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks that most readers will find illuminating. For instance, a common misconception is that Osama Bin Laden was wealthy and therefore able to self-fund the training and equipping of al-Qaeda fighters. In Lawrence Wright's account, we learn instead that he was a prolific fundraiser, tapping both wealthy Arab governments and private donors, particularly as he was able to demonstrate al-Qaeda's increasing lethality. Much more significant perhaps, Wright portrays Bin Laden as a master of public relations. Indeed, Bin Laden demonstrated early on that his charisma and soft-spoken charm could unleash horrific violence.

In the lead up to 9/11 Bin Laden captures the imagination of disaffected but well-educated young Muslim males searching for validation and a deeper meaning in their lives. Already steeped in traditional Muslim thought (many studied in madrasses in Western Pakistan), these individuals merely needed a catalyst and some direction for their aims and readily found it in Bin Laden's radical proselytizing. Proving Josef Goebbels' famous quote, "make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it", Bin Laden convinces his followers that America (and its staunch ally, Israel) is the source of all persecution in the Islamic world. He eventually gains a critical mass of converts to his views and thus a blunt instrument to wage global jihad.

The scheme to strike at the soft underbelly of American 'infidel' society and the means to do it are born.

Wright exposes the many seams in the U.S. national security infrastructure and schisms within the law enforcement and intelligence organizations that existed prior to 9/11, some ironically created with the single purpose of detecting and preventing terrorist attacks. The mosaics the author pieces together in developing his characters (based on scores of interviews) bring to life such leading U.S. counterterrorism officials as Richard A. Clarke and John P. O'Neill. These individuals' relentless efforts to protect both America's domestic and international interests undoubtedly prevented countless other attacks. Yet, as Wright alludes, their persistent demands to go on the offense against an emergent al-Qaeda are stymied by poor communication and internecine rivalries between government agencies combined with bureaucratic inertia and simple inaction on the part of many of our country's political leaders.

The Looming Tower traces the roots of al-Qaeda to radical Islamic organizations such as Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the Muslim Brotherhood and fiery Islamic scholars like Sayyid Qutb and Dr. Abdullah Yusuf Azzam. While their extreme views prove a source of discomfort for mainstream Islamic governments - they espouse violent uprising to achieve their ends - their aggressive activism is largely contained. Despite Azzam's entreaties, Bin Laden exhorts his charges to commit suicide bombings as a means of achieving al-Qaeda's aims while punishing America for 'occupying' the Arabian Peninsula.

Radicals such as Ayman al-Zawahiri and Bin Laden, through manipulation and deceit, find refuge and manage to co-opt corrupt governments in failed states such as Somalia, Sudan, and Afghanistan to nurture and train radicals for suicide attacks. Their demands increasingly insistent, their resources growing in lethality, Islamic terrorism assumes a new urgency. Yet, Western intelligence agencies remain unable to convince their governments of the seriousness of the threat posed by al-Qaeda.

Wright pieces together through hundreds of interviews each radical Islamist plot from the 1993 World Trade Center bombing through the 2000 USS Cole suicide attack. He painstakingly traces the steps of the jihadists as they gradually ratchet up the stakes while leaving unmistakable clues as to their grand design. Only a handful of astute, hyper-vigilant FBI and CIA agents seem to grasp the significance of those clues, but their voices are seemingly drowned out by the bureaucracy with catastrophic results.

The Looming Tower ranks with Rohan Gunaratna's Inside Al Qaeda and Steve Coll's Ghost Wars in its narrative sweep. Not nearly as dense as Coll's Pulitzer Prize-Winning Ghost Wars, The Looming Tower combines the right amount of detail with the author's lighter prose style. Wright manages to entertain as much as he informs. Perhaps most enjoyable about Wright's book, he details unusual aspects of his characters' personalities that make them seem more human. Bin Laden, the devoted family man, John O'Neill, the sentimental romantic, and Richard Clarke, the ambitious product of blue collar roots - these are the figures who grace Wright's pages.

Captivating!

This is an excellent read if you want to understand the history and thinking of the radical Muslim. I also recommend the book "Milestones" as a supplement to this.

Compelling account of the road to 9/11; a must read for anyone who wants to understand the events leading up to that awful day, the mindset of the perpertrators and the lapses in our security that allowed it. If we don't learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it.

"The Looming Tower" by Lawrence Wright is an excellent account of the events that led up to the 9/11 attacks. Read the book in its entierty if you have the time. I can especially recommend this book to all "Loose Change" and "Zeitgeist" conspiracy theorists who are out on that wild goose chase claiming that the US had something to do with the planning of these attacks. Check your facts:

Afghanistan has often been called the empires graveyard because several empires have met their doom there. The British did in the 1800s, and the Russians followed the same fate when they invaded the country in 1979. When Osama Bin ladin orchestrated the two bombings of American embassies in Africa in Nairobi and Dar El Salam in 1998 his intention was to draw America into the quagmire that is Afghanistan. They were also meant to serve as a distraction while the major 9/11 attacks where being prepared. The first stage in the American reprisals was when America bombed the factory in Khartoum that they claimed was manufacturing chemical weapons.This factory later showed to be producing regular and veterinary medicine. Sudan therby lost one of its major producers of medicine. The Clinton administration also fired six cruise missiles towards jihadi training camps in Aghanistan. What these operations really suceeded in doing was to paint Bin Ladin as the great freedom fighter. On the streets of Kenya and Tanzania you could see children wearing Bin ladin tshirts, even though these countries had been hit hard by his organisation.

The Taliban leader Mullah Omar was now forced to ask himself wether to let Bin Ladin stay in his country or not. Being allied with America this was a difficult choice. But eventually he would choose to let him stay in Afghanistan. The Saudis, who also supported the Taliban tried to have Bin Ladin extradited but Mullah Omar would not comply. The next hit would be the attack on the USS Cole. An American battleship stationed in Jemen. This proved to be a huge success for Bin Ladin causing there to be a massive upswing in recruits and cash donations to the Jihadi training camps in Afghanistan. But the American revenge did not come to Afghanistan as he had planned. Therefore it was necessary to orchestrate an even bigger attack. Due to an ongoing conflict between the CIA and the FBI much of the relevant information concerning the identities of the future plane hijackers would go unoticed by those who needed them most.

By the time the bombers of the African embassies where put on trial in America all 19 of the 9/11 operatives where living in America and planning their mission. There was an awareness that something big was about to happend within the major intelligence organisations in America (something on the scale of Hiroshima). But due to the lack of cooperation within the different agencies the perpetrators could not be traced. The agent Kenneth Williams even sent an email in july to his FBI bosses saying that Bin Ladin might send his protgees into the country to train at pilot schools for some kind of organized attack. His advice was to make a list of all suspect individuals in the countries flying academies. A decision was made within the agency that it would be too time consuming and costly to review all the 30000 individuals that this list contained.

The attack finally happend on the morning of the 11th of september 2001. Almost 3000 Americans lost their lives in the building, many of them having to have to jump to escape the burning flames. the fires burned for over 100 days. From all over America caravans of people came to the scene to aid in the cleaning of the area and helped to search for survivors. Among the dead where citizens from over 62 nations and representatives of all the worlds different religions and ethnic groups. By the 6th of october American and British airforce planes would be bombing taliban positions in Afghanistan. Most of the Al Qaida warriors had fled the training camps and moved on to positions within the Tora Bora mountain range. There they fought against hostile Afghani troops and where repeatedly bombed by American B 52s. They successfully killed about 18 of Al Qaidas top leaders and about 100 of their troops. But Bin Ladin had managed to escape across the border into Pakistan which was seen as a huge failure for the American administration.

In March 2002 Operation Anaconda was launched in the eastern mountains of Afghanistan with troops from Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany and Norway combing the mountains looking for the perpetrators. They are still looking.

Probably one of the best books out there on the run-up to 9/11, starting from the 1950s middle east. More of a history book than a current events book. Solid research (on a difficult topic to research) and no bull. Focus is on Al Qaeda; other books cover terrorism a little more broadly. After reading this book, I was amazed that this poorly organized group that did little in the Afghan war of the 1980s (as the author explains thoroughly) managed to pull off one of the biggest terrorist attacks in world history. Highly, highly recommended.

"Know your enemy and know yourself and you can fight a hundred battles without disaster." - Sun Tzu .The quote would quite appropriately capture the spirit of the book as an excellent attempt at knowing the enemy. I write the review a good 3 months after another heinous terrorist attack on another large metropolis , Mumbai 26/11, which is largely touted as an Indian version of 9/11. Its quite apparent we neither seem to know the enemy nor do we know ourselves.
The book is extremely well laid out and researched, and even if this were an act of fiction, the tale was gripping enough to easily clamber up any bestseller list. Where the book succeeds is to choose a start line which is relevant. Rather than dive back into the crusades as the genesis of civilization-al conflict, it very clearly identifies the role of personalities in the process. The book starts off with the remarkable Syed Qutb who is enigmatic to the core. An academic who developed a strong anti-western ideology while studying in the west. He is the pivot around whom the entire anti-western tirade takes a modern outlook. While the role of personalities form a critical driving force of this book, there is a good amount of emphasis on the historical events of the period with Palestine and Israel generating disproportional amount of hatred in the region. The book moves on to Ayman Zawahiri and his obsession with bringing about revolutionary change in Egypt and you get the feeling that he could well be the most dangerous largely because of the frustrations of his dreams facing repeated setbacks. The book then moves on to Bin Laden and his development into a Afghan war hero - rather uncharacteristically. Rather than appear as an overnight phenomenon, the struggle that Al Qaeda had to face to get to where they finally did is well captured in the book. Frusrating years in Pakistan where the in-fighting among rival militant groups seemed to drag the ideology into a mire, severe setbacks in Sudan which brought exile from Saudi Arabia and almost complete financial ruin. 9/11 comes against the grain of events, a sort of jolt that got the world to wake up.
The book also captures the pre-9/11 American investigations, the rather late dawning of the presence of an enemy who was slowly building a formidable network of dissent. The battle was almost single handedly fought by a dedicated and extremely complex FBI agent. We follow John's investigations through the bombing of the USS Cole, the arrest of Ramzi Yousef and his eventual tragic demise in the fall of the WTC. The American counter intelligence looked hopelessly out of sync with the degree of preparation that Al Qaeda displayed.
It is a great book by all standards and as I mentioned earlier the true genius behind the book is to narrow down the scope of the book to an extent that there exists a coherent narrative- and what a tale emerges. But therein seems to lie the flaw, the book seems to have missed significant aspects of the American contribution to the root of the disintegration of a liberal society in Pakistan and hence creating a sustainable fount of anti-American dissent. The book lets you know the enemy, but misses the self-diagnosis.

Hiroshima is the definitive apocalyptic post mortem. "The Looming Tower" is as good. High praise indeed, since John Hersey's "Hiroshima" is arguably the best magazine journalism in the history of journalism.

You owe it to yourself: Read "The Looming Tower."

This is a very well done, can't put it down type thriller that covers the inception and birth of Al-Queda up to the horrific events of Sept. 11, 2001. Mr. Wright traces the movements of many key figures in the terrorism movement in great detail, including Osama bin Laden. Which leads naturally to the question, why can't we catch him?

As this book documents it is not from a lack of trying. The SOB has been awfully lucky. But Wright also points out that the lack of coordination between our intelligence agencies, FBI, CIA, etc. has allowed bin Laden to slip through several loopholes. Wright also makes the case that without bin Laden, there is no 9/11. While acknowledging that the broad historic forces in the region may have inevitably led to some terrorist activity, the strategic vision and organizational expertise for a co ordinated attack on the United States came from bin Laden.

It is a rare work of nonfiction that is so riveting and engrossing that - if you'll excuse the cliche - I can't put down. But The Looming Tower is just such a book. After all that has been spoken and written about Al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, and September 11, I was absolutely amazed at the wealth of information I learned from this book.

Lawrence Wright did an amazingly thorough job of researching his subject, as evidenced by the huge list toward the end of the book of people he interviewed. Readers are taken on a whirlwind tour of the history of Al Qaeda and the people and events that led to the September 11 attacks. I was also pleased that the author avoided any kind of ideological or political bent, sticking instead to the facts. The closest he ever comes to assigning blame is his indictment of the CIA and its refusal to share information with the FBI and other investigatory bodies. I do think it would have been helpful if the book had explored in greater detail how - if at all - decisions by the executive branch affected various decisions over the years, but I suppose that could be a book unto itself.

So in short, this is an absolutely outstanding book. It will not only challenge some of your preconceived notions about the topic, but will also certainly provide you with a much deeper understanding of where Al Qaeda came from and how it operates. You will not regret reading it.

I started this book on a flight from Boston to LA. I could not put it down. Superb story of the start of the terrorist movement.

As cliche as this sounds, this book is a "must read" for anyone who values peace, freedom, love, and America. All the good points on this book have already been said, I just wanted to give it my 5 stars!

I found this to be a great book to start understanding not only Al-Qaeda and 9/11, but the implications of US foreign policy and the blowback it creates. This is one of the first books I recommend to people who have not dug into the matter as it opens up many doors to areas of further study. Like an earlier reviewer said, its coverage of more recent events, like 9/11, is rather flimsy and unsubstantial. However, I attribute this to the events' proximity, rather than a lack of scholarship.

1. This is a semi-dry book, but an important / landmark book; required reading for all those who wish to be part of the increasingly small but well informed electorate.

2. Buy it, read it, and deal with the realities of the 21rst century.

Great book with great background. However somewhat questionable on the validity on information considering his lack of intelligence experience (or a clearance for that matter). But gives the the reader the most comprehensive view of Bin Laden's inner circle and personal mindset.

This narrative traces the beginnings of modern Islamic terrorism from the idealogy of Eygptian Sayyid Qutb in the middle of the 20th century to the culmination of many of his ideas in the construction of terrorist cells and eventually the events of September 11, 2001.

Much of the book follows the characters of Qutb, Zawahari, Bin Laden and friends from their childhoods. Less time is spent on the USA's pre-9/11 counterterrorism tactics which is seen through the lens of the FBI's John O'Niel.

Many will read this book hoping to find the answer as to "Why do they hate us and want to kill us?". The answer is simple and complex and we would do well to look at it without the rhetoric of "they hate us because of our freedom" (though it may be true in some indirect sense). They do hate us because of our freedom - for example our sexual freedom which we often export to the nations that we intrude upon imperialistically. It is a paradox for the modern day multiculturalist - so insistent on, for example, women's rights or abortion access, but also so careful not to offend Muslims and respect Islamic culture.

Readers will be frustrated at how little the CIA (and less so the FBI, I gather) did to apprehend the known Al Qaeda members in the USA who perpetrated the attacks. We knew they were here and we knew they were dangerous.

Many state that killing Bin Laden will be of little use in curbing terrorism since others will fill his shoes. I believe The Looming Tower paints a different picture. Islamic terrorism is not a very coherent institution and infighting occurs constantly much to the West's benefit. Bin Laden is a uniting figure who's absence could plunge Islamin terrorists back into rival factions.

Some gripes:
-Near the end, there is a silly comparison between Islamic and Christian fundamentalists without terms being defined.
-The book stops very abruptly on 9/11 though I suppose that is to be expected from the title
-I would have liked to see more analysis on the number of Islamic terrorists and how typical Muslims view them
-I would have liked to see more effort in relaying the American perspective of terrorism ante-9/11. And more analysis on why we failed to stop it.

I bought the 14-CD unabridged set. I felt that the performance was slightly short of the quality needed to tell this story. Having said that, it's an exhaustingly detailed and lengthy report of the entire arc of how terror got from then to now - so getting it perfect would have been expensive.
The benefit of the book, or recording in my case, is that it makes the motivations and internal battles within Muslim terror sects seem less vague. It's not very hard to understand.
Basically a wacko gets an idea and another wack-job listens to him and now we've got a club of idiots who believe a bunch of mixed up stuff that no one else in Islam ever believed.
Bin Ladin devotees try to convince us they'd be fine carrying on without him. I disgree with this puffery. Bin Ladin is very important to current Islamic terrorists. They'd lose a lot of mojo without him.

Read this book after seeing the author on a CBS program regarding 911. I found that his telling of the of what led up to the tragic event of 911 balanced and well researched. This should be required reading for everyone as it gives insight into the psyche of the politics/religious influences in the Arab world. Many thanks to Mr. Wright for his book.

I once asked a professor what he thought about DeLillo's book Falling Man, and his response was that, "It just isn't what America needs right now."

At the time, I remember being exasperated by such a political response from a professor of liberal arts, but after reading this book, I can see what he meant. The Looming Tower is what America needs right now.

What struck me first when I opened it was how quickly I was able to read through it. Non-fiction books are often daunting, boring, heavy-handed, or badly written, but this book is proof that those don't have to be flaws of the genre.

Take a look in the back of the book at the number of books Wright went through in research, and how many people he interviewed, and you'll get a feel for why this book feels so real. Every character is portrayed in details that are fascinating and enthralling. You will probably find yourself confused at first by how sympathetically the characters in bin Laden's network are portrayed, or how darkly we see the American FBI agent John O'Niell; but the strength of this book isn't just that it's as interesting as any postmodernist novel, it's also how even-handedly the characters are reconstructed.

No decision seems to be made by the author--obviously, some people may be upset by that. But the author is not condemning anybody; that's not his job. He steps back, and gives us the information that allows us to feel like we can reproach the actors as we see fit; we may also find that the weaknesses of these sometimes uncomfortably real people are ones that we share. Our own flaws are at stake in any good piece of writing, and this book is absolutely that.