Osama Bin Laden: A War with Th

by Elaine Landau

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Library Binding
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0761317090
• ISBN13: 9780761317098
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: Twenty-First Century Books (CT)
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.4" x 9.2"
• Age Range: 12 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 12

Customer Reviews

Valuable Information.

Elaine Landau's Osama bin Laden: A War Against the West could have been written for adults who want information without a lot of academic language; she does not water down her subject or simplify the language. However, she misses the mark when she makes assertions such as describing the Twin Towers as "a towering landmark that reflected the United States as its best." If she were more exact, she might have said it reflected Western Capitalism at its best. Landau succeeds in presenting a well researched life of bin Laden using chronology -where he has lived, worked, his coming of age in his political position, and his development as a terrorist - to structure the book. She treats the subject fairly in the following ways: She explains the full meaning of Jihad and what it means to the majority of Muslims: a war within oneself to purify one's spirit. She presents bin Laden's jihad within a framework of his desire to have an Islamic Middle East free of Western control and influence. She defines what Western means in Fundamentalist Islamic terms: families in disarray, drug use, a society without morality, etc. Also, she examines the role of the United States in supporting the Fundamentalist cause in terms of money and arms. The United States supplied arms to Muslim fighters in Afghanistan because we viewed Russian as a larger threat. The CIA has a photograph from that war of Osama bin Laden holding a U.S. supplied Stinger-a heat seeking ground to air missile. There are several telling photographs:1. A man with a stack of radios confiscated by the Taliban.2. A child by an army tank in Somalia (with a questionable caption: " Exploiting brutal unrest and famine in Somalia, bin laden sought to establish jihad, or holy war, in that country in an effort to expel Western Influence.3. A protester in Pakistan with a poster of support for Bin Laden. 4. And several photographs of bin Laden. There is a glossary, chapter notes, and a full index. I would suggest adding maps to show where the many countries are that bin Laden has either lived, visited, or impacted through his money and vision: Chad, Somalia, Algeria, The Philipines, Sudan, Bosnia, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Afghanistan, etc. The cover is the most biased piece: a collaged face of bin Laden that resembles a ghoulish African Tribal mask flanked by a bomb and a money bag with cross bones at his neck. On the back are recommended books, some of which I have read, as well. Represented in that list of recommended books are books that hold a critical lense to the Middle East but nothing that deconstrusts the United States history within that region. Hopefully Landau is at work on that now. This is a subject which will impact the world for countless generations and the need for accurate information is critical. Overall, I really liked this book and would recommend it for anyone wanting to understand the spread of an extreme, fundamentalist Muslim ideology and Osama bin Laden's role. Readers and librarians

Weak first chapter, then very good

This short, easy-to-read book is a biography of Osama bin Laden, the founder of al Qaeda. The book begins with a look at Islamic fundamentalism, showing how their philosophy differs from non-fundamentalist Islam. This is probably the weakest part of the book, as the footnotes all show that the author used Western journalists are resources, rather than Islamic scholars.After that, the book looks at Osama bin Laden's life, from earliest childhood through to the beginning of the American involvement in Afghanistan (where Osama bin Laden disappeared). I found the book to be very informative, and quite interesting. I did not notice any particular demonizing of him, and the author seemed to be at pains to separate him from non-fundamentalist Islam. I was very disappointed with that first chapter, but other than that found this to be a very good book, one that I highly recommend.

Weak first chapter, then very good

This short, easy-to-read book is a biography of Osama bin Laden, the founder of al Qaeda. The book begins with a look at Islamic fundamentalism, showing how their philosophy differs from non-fundamentalist Islam. This is probably the weakest part of the book, as the footnotes all show that the author used Western journalists as resources, rather than Islamic scholars. After that, the book looks at Osama bin Laden's life, from earliest childhood through to the beginning of the American involvement in Afghanistan (where Osama bin Laden disappeared). I found the book to be very informative, and quite interesting. I did not notice any particular demonizing of him, and the author seemed to be at pains to separate him from non-fundamentalist Islam. I was very disappointed with that first chapter, but other than that found this to be a very good book, one that I highly recommend.

A good book for younger people...

If you are looking for a good book to introduce your children to the criminal terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden, this book is what you are looking for. This book expertly explains the story of bin Laden without introducing details that would confuse children.