The Looming Tower

Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11

By: Lawrence Wright

Narrated by: Lawrence Wright

NATIONAL 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.

One of the New York Times’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century • A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the Century • A Los Angeles Times Best Nonfiction Book of the Last 30 Years

In 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.

Packed with new information and a deep historical perspective, The Looming Tower is a sweeping, unprecedented history of the long road to September 11.

Incredible story

Great narration, absolutely compelling recant of history. Highly recommend to anyone curious about the history of Al Qaida leading up to 9/11

Well worth the wait

I thought I had read all of the pertinent articles and books on 9/11 over the last 17 years. This book by Lawrence Wright was well worth the wait. It was well-researched, richly detailed and refreshingly opinionated. For a non-voice-over actor, he even did a decent job in the narration!

Incredible

The author does a tremendous job with the details. And the fact that he narrates it, makes it even better.

Well researched!

it's the backstory of 9-11.
Worth the listen though the written format would help with the names of those involved.

hard to keep all the names straight

still very good and disturbing how bad us intelligence messed up. worth reading, but a reference sheet of names would help. harder to keep straight while listening