****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
I just finished this book and it was one of the most interesting books I've read in a long time. Most people never heard of Osama bin Laden until shortly after 9/11/2001, and for those who pay closer attention to the news, may remember him from the 1998 when his followers bombed American embassies in Kenya and Tanazania, or some may even remember him from before then. Either way, few people know of his life outside of his terrorist activities.This book reveals basically his entire life from his childhood up until 2001. Osama was not always the mastermind terrorist we know him as now. He was a strict Muslim kid from an extremely wealthy and prominent family in Saudi Arabia who married his cousin, Najwa, when they were both teenagers. Najwa loved Osama, but he imposed strict limitations on her life. She had eleven children for Osama before leaving him literally days before 9/11.Her fourth son, Omar, emerged as Osama's favorite and preferred successor to takeover Al Qaeda due to his intelligence. However, Omar was much different than Osama. He wanted peace, he did not want to kill anyone or anything, including animals, which he loved. Yet he was living in an environment where he was surrounded by killing and hatred. This made for an extremely difficult childhood for Omar.Jean Sasson does an excellent job summarizing Osama's political activities at the end of chapters to relate how his political involvement related to what was going on in his home life.This is honestly an excellent book that I think everyone should read if they want to know about Osama bin Laden or what it would be like living with him. What people need to realize is that Osama did not become the person he was overnight; it was an evolution of him becoming more and more reactionary towards the non-Muslim world. He was one of the wealthiest Saudis in the country and lived a comfortable life, but due to his belief that non-Muslims were taking over the Muslim world -- starting with the Russian-Afghanistan War, which is what really changed him and when he became a hero in much of the Muslim world -- he forfeited everything he had, and made his LARGE family endure misery with him, in support of his Jihad.It's just fascinating to read about how a dedicated Muslim from an extremely wealthy and elite Saudi Arabian family grew into a militant fanatic who gave up everything (and made his family suffer with him) to fight an un-winnable war against "the West." Another interesting part of the book is when Omar discusses why Osama devotes so much of his hatred towards the United States instead of towards Israel, like many Muslim militants do.This book will educate you on how Osama treated his wives, his children, how and why he went from a wealthy elite Saudi Arabian to a living in war-torn towns and mountains in Afghanistan, why he hated the United States and other non-Muslim nations, how he developed the beliefs he did, and -- perhaps most importantly -- how courageous some of his family members were, especially Omar bin Laden and Najwa bin Laden, who were very brave in the way they resisted, one way or another, Osama's paternal and militant dominance of the family.If you're like me, you may finish this book feeling like the beliefs of Osama bin Laden, despite a small amount of fanatical followers, are becoming increasingly irrelevant in the Arab and Muslim world, especially in light of the Arab Spring. Many Muslims are rising up against their governments -- not for Jihad against the West like Osama wanted, -- but for democracy and human rights. Hopefully we are witnessing significant democratic movements during this Arab Spring. However, the resentment towards the US and its indisputable support for Israel will likely continue to plague relations between the US and many Muslim nations until Israel -- perhaps with a nudge from Washington -- agrees to negotiate with Palestinians.
