The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11

This national bestseller and award-winning book is now available in paperback. A gripping narrative that spans five decades, The Looming Tower explains in unprecedented detail the rise of al-Qaeda and the intelligence failures that culminated in the attacks on 9/11. n nNATIONAL BESTSELLER - PULITZER PRIZE WINNER - A heart-stopping account of the events leading up to 9/11 (The New York Times Book Review), this definitive history explains in gripping 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. n nIn gripping narrative that spans five decades, 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. n nPacked with new information and a deep historical perspective, The Looming Tower is a sweeping, unprecedented history of the long road to September 11. n nn