by Steve Coll
First published 2008
From a famine-stricken Yemeni canyon to global luxury and power, the Bin Laden family's meteoric ascent is a saga of religious contradictions, cultural collisions, and moral reckoning. As patriarch Mohamed builds an empire of construction in booming Saudi Arabia, his children navigate the dizzying forces of modernity, America, and extremism. When one son, Osama, ignites a devastating jihad, the family's dark descent threatens to undo their wealth and influence forever.
Genres: history, 20th-century, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century, middle-east
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: family-secrets, rise-and-fall
Setting: Saudi Arabia
Period: 20th Century
671 pages · Hardcover · Penguin Press
Content warnings: violence