National Book Award FinalistA Time, Newsweek, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and New York Times Book Review Best Book of the YearA gripping narrative that spans five decades,
The Looming Tower explains in unprecedented detail the growth of Islamic fundamentalism, the rise of al-
Qaeda, and the intelligence failures that culminated in the attacks on the World Trade Center. Lawrence Wright re-creates firsthand the transformation of
Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri from incompetent and idealistic soldiers in
Afghanistan to leaders of the most successful terrorist group in history. He follows FBI counterterrorism chief John O’Neill as he uncovers the emerging danger from al-Qaeda in the 1990s and struggles to track this new threat. Packed with new information and a deep historical perspective,
The Looming Tower is the definitive history of the long road to September 11.
Background Information
Afghanistan was invaded in 2001 as a result of the refusal of its Taliban government to reject Osama Bin Laden.
