I can't entirely recommend it, because it has its tedious sections, but the dual voices of purdah-confined mother and slightly-more-worldly son provide a fascinating contrast, and many of the facts were new to me. For example, I had no idea that bin Laden had his whole family around him in his Kandahar training camp, nor did I know that several of his very young children disappeared with him after 9/11 and have never been seen since. As the study of a man growing away from his roots and toward Jihadist extremism, it's not entirely successful, since neither son nor wife really understood the guy--but it's worth a few hours of your time.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Reading List
I can't entirely recommend it, because it has its tedious sections, but the dual voices of purdah-confined mother and slightly-more-worldly son provide a fascinating contrast, and many of the facts were new to me. For example, I had no idea that bin Laden had his whole family around him in his Kandahar training camp, nor did I know that several of his very young children disappeared with him after 9/11 and have never been seen since. As the study of a man growing away from his roots and toward Jihadist extremism, it's not entirely successful, since neither son nor wife really understood the guy--but it's worth a few hours of your time.
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