Subtitle: 'Inside the Secret World of Osama bin Laden'

Written by CNN terrorism analyst Peter L. Bergen, Holy War, Inc. was rushed into publication following the events of September 11, 2001. However we should not classify Bergen's work as one of those shoddy instant books, haphazardly slapped together to exploit the public's appetite for post-9/11 information. Because Holy War, Inc. involved years of original- and occasionally dangerous- research by Bergen, it would have been published anyway (albeit a little bit later), regardless of 9/11.

Bergen's intimate knowledge of Osama and the al-Qaeda network are clearly demonstrated in this book. In fact, he was one of the few journalists to interview Osama inside his Afghan lair, as well as many other figures in the 'jihadist' world.

But even beyond the hard-edged terrorism angle, this book is a sheer delight to read. Many of the chapters take on the format of an Arabian Nights-infused travelogue, with the author vividly describing such exotic locales as Yemen, Kashmir, Pakistan's North-Western Frontier and Afghanistan. We learn, for example, that bin Laden's tribe in Yemen built medieval 'skyscrapers' of mud (some as high as 15 stories!), giving us an interesting historical context to Osama's connection to the construction business.

Holy War, Inc. is a must read and a balanced source for anyone wanting to understand Osama bin Laden, the worldwide jihadist movement and the events leading up to 9/11.

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