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  • The Looming Tower

  • Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11
  • By: Lawrence Wright
  • Narrated by: Lawrence Wright
  • Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (532 ratings)
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The Looming Tower

By: Lawrence Wright
Narrated by: Lawrence Wright
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Summary

A sweeping narrative history of the events leading to 9/11, a groundbreaking look at the people and ideas, the terrorist plans and the Western intelligence failures that culminated in the assault on America. Lawrence Wright's remarkable book is based on five years of research and hundreds of interviews that he conducted in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sudan, England, France, Germany, Spain, and the United States.

The Looming Tower achieves an unprecedented level of intimacy and insight by telling the story through the interweaving lives of four men: the two leaders of al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri; the FBI's counterterrorism chief, John O'Neill; and the former head of Saudi intelligence, Prince Turki al-Faisal.

As these lives unfold, we see revealed:

  • The crosscurrents of modern Islam that helped to radicalize Zawahiri and bin Laden
  • The birth of al-Qaeda and its unsteady development into an organization capable of the American embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania and the attack on the USS Cole
  • O'Neill's heroic efforts to track al-Qaeda before 9/11, and his tragic death in the World Trade towers
  • Prince Turki's transformation from bin Laden's ally to his enemy
  • The failures of the FBI, CIA, and NSA to share intelligence that might have prevented the 9/11 attacks

The Looming Tower broadens and deepens our knowledge of these signal events by taking us behind the scenes. Here is Sayyid Qutb, founder of the modern Islamist movement, lonely and despairing as he meets Western culture up close in 1940s America; the privileged childhoods of bin Laden and Zawahiri; family life in the al-Qaeda compounds of Sudan and Afghanistan; O'Neill's high-wire act in balancing his all-consuming career with his equally entangling personal life - he was living with three women, each of them unaware of the others' existence - and the nitty-gritty of turf battles among US intelligence agencies.

Brilliantly conceived and written, The Looming Tower draws all elements of the story into a galvanizing narrative that adds immeasurably to our understanding of how we arrived at September 11, 2001. The richness of its new information, and the depth of its perceptions, can help us deal more wisely and effectively with the continuing terrorist threat.

©2006 Lawrence Wright (P)2017 Random House Audio
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

Critic reviews

"A searing view of the tragic events of September 11, 2001, a view that is at once wrenchingly intimate and boldly sweeping in its historical perspective...a narrative history that possesses all the immediacy and emotional power of a novel, an account that indelibly illustrates how the political and the personal, the public and the private were often inextricably intertwined." (Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times)
"Important, gripping...One of the best books yet on the history of terrorism." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Comprehensive and compelling...Wright has written what must be considered a definitive work on the antecedents to 9/11...Essential for an understanding of that dreadful day." ( Kirkus)

What listeners say about The Looming Tower

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Astounding

I am a Muslim. I was left speechless once again at the extent one person's drive and hatred can change the course of history. That, and the arrogance and hubris of those we have elected to keep us safe.

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11 people found this helpful

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A must listen

An excellent insight to the history of al qaeda, the horrific violence of a minority of fanatics and the mistakes that allowed the terrorist pilots to carry out the awful crimes. Brilliantly narrated by the author.

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5 people found this helpful

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Brilliant narrative on this historic period of our lives

A brilliant audiobook that has gone such a long way to deepening my understanding of the complexities of AQ.

To the many AQ are a bunch of extremists with little to live for and are hell bent on the defeating the infidel. This book takes the listener through the earliest incarnation of a man who may have taken a different path if not for the steering of others - money was evidently never an issue, OBL was happy to give it away or waste it even but with it brought spinsters who wanted whatever they could get hold off, even if it was simply bikes.

The signs and intelligence failures of the West have been portrayed so glaringly in this book, I feel lost at the simple complacency and bureaucracy of government, who’s single most important objective is to protect its people, not to protect the egos of the few who are charged with this responsibility.

Listen and enjoy.

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4 people found this helpful

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Great history lesson

Very good halve way through it took time to get going so many arabs muslims from different countryies hard to keep up with them uae egypt algeria turkey saudi arbia pakistan al kdia afganistan but well narraton and good history lesson

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3 people found this helpful

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Disturbing and amazingly insightful

The author sometimes goes into excruciating detail in an effort to bring these events to life. Sometimes this can be horrifying and other times it can be very protracted and mundane. But this detail serves to demonstrate how attentive and studious the author really is in their work.

The frustration felt by those involved in the investigations is conveyed so well that I sometimes found myself having to stop the book because I was so on dumbfounded by the degree to which so much pain and destruction could have been averted had there been fewer pissing contests between the fbi and cia.

I would recommend this to anyone looking for a historical or more personal depiction of the events that culminated in the worst day in US history.

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3 people found this helpful

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Good but disturbing and sad.

A great deal of the background and detail make this an interesting and disturbing book. From the egotistical rants of the disaffected and weak to the ineptitude of the CIA. What a waste of life.

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1 person found this helpful

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excellent

really good. very informative and insightful. learned a lot , with a very engaging narrative.

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1 person found this helpful

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Fantastic, well worth the listen

Loved it. Really well told story of what really happened. For those who doubt what happened on 911 simply listen to the story.

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1 person found this helpful

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Fascinating

A great history of how we ended up where we are. It appears very well researched, fair and balanced.

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just brilliant

what incredible research and then written and narrated perfectly from start to finish. Just brilliant.

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