A review by cgriesemer
The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 by Lawrence Wright

4.0

This has to be the most exhaustive published study of the history of Al-Qaeda and the events leading up to 9/11 ever. I first watched the miniseries before reading the book, and this is one of those rare times where I actually enjoyed the TV show more than the book.

That is not a slight against the book, it is just so dense on the history of the jihadist movement. I wish it would’ve delved more into the actual planning of 9/11 rather than the sequence of events in the 40s and 50s that led to the ideological movements that culminated in today’s incarnation of radical Islam.

Superbly written, but I enjoyed the show more, for a first.