Matthew's review
The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 by Lawrence Wright
Matthew's review
rating:
bookshelves: learning-from-history
recommended for: Those who watched the towers fall
status: Read in November, 2007
rating:
bookshelves: learning-from-history
recommended for: Those who watched the towers fall
status: Read in November, 2007
Look, I avoid just about any book that has anything to do with al Qaeda, 9/11, or the Taliban. I don't want to hear yet another vindictive rant about "what should have happened" or how "religion is destroying the world." But I'm really glad my friends convinced me to read Wright's book.
First of all, this book is one first-rate piece of journalism. Wright draws on dozens of interviews and hundreds of sources to put together this obviously well-researched book. It's worth reading just as a reminder of how good research can turn into a page-turning book.
Second, Wright does not come across as another disgruntled American with an ax to grind. Take, for example, his approach to radical (terrorist) Muslim sects. While too many writers seem content to paint radical Muslims as blood-thirsty savages born with the desire to nuke the world, Wright asks the right question: How (and why) did people like Osama bin Laden develop such a strong hatred for America? I wouldn't ...more
First of all, this book is one first-rate piece of journalism. Wright draws on dozens of interviews and hundreds of sources to put together this obviously well-researched book. It's worth reading just as a reminder of how good research can turn into a page-turning book.
Second, Wright does not come across as another disgruntled American with an ax to grind. Take, for example, his approach to radical (terrorist) Muslim sects. While too many writers seem content to paint radical Muslims as blood-thirsty savages born with the desire to nuke the world, Wright asks the right question: How (and why) did people like Osama bin Laden develop such a strong hatred for America? I wouldn't ...more
