Growing Up Bin Laden

"GROWING UP BIN LADEN is a critical missing corner piece of the Osama bin Laden puzzle, filled with astonishing secrets that could only be told by the al-Qaeda leader's loved ones." Dalton Fury - 'New York Times' bestselling author of 'Kill bin Laden' "Fascinating! Worth far more than dozens of intelligence reports, this enthralling portrait of Osama bin Laden, sharply drawn by his senior wife and favored son, captures as no other work has done--or could do--the degeneration of the world's most-notorious terrorist from a loving, if stern, teenage husband to a fanatic who covered his cherished faith in blood. Skillfully framed by Middle-East authority Jean Sasson, this book will grip you, make you shudder..." Ralph Peters - author of 'Beyond Terror' and 'The War After Armageddon' "Growing Up bin Laden opens up a rare window into a hidden culture, giving the reader much to contemplate...A fascinating example of how, in a family sharing genes and environment, fathers and sons emerge with different life missions. Osama, a compassionate and fun-loving young boy, becomes today's most sought-after terrorist. Omar, raised in a world of violence, longs for peace. This is an unforgettable story." Betty Mahmoody - author of the international bestselling book 'Not Without My Daughter' "Growing Up bin Laden opens up a rare window into a hidden culture, giving the reader much to contemplate...A fascinating example of how, in a family sharing genes and environment, fathers and sons emerge with different life missions. Osama, a compassionate and fun-loving young boy, becomes today's most sought-after terrorist. Omar, raised in a world of violence, longs for peace. This is an unforgettable story." Betty Mahmoody - author of the international bestselling book 'Not Without My Daughter' "Fascinating! Worth far more than dozens of intelligence reports, this enthralling portrait of Osama bin Laden, sharply drawn by his senior wife and favored son, captures as no other work has done--or could do--the degeneration of the world's most-notorious terrorist from a loving, if stern, teenage husband to a fanatic who covered his cherished faith in blood. Skillfully framed by Middle-East authority Jean Sasson, this book will grip you, make you shudder..." Ralph Peters - author of 'Beyond Terror' and 'The War After Armageddon' "Growing Up bin Laden is a critical missing corner piece of the Osama bin Laden puzzle, filled with astonishing secrets that could only be told by the al-Qaeda leader's loved ones." Dalton Fury - 'New York Times' bestselling author of 'Kill bin Laden'

Granting extraordinary access to their private world, Osama's wife and son reveal the frightening transformation of a loving husband into a hardened terrorist. 

As the western world’s most wanted terrorist, Osama bin Laden has fought to keep his personal life a mystery – loyalty and fear keeping those who know him from speaking out – until now.

For the first time, two of Osama’s closest family members, his first wife Najwa and their fourth son Omar, go behind the headlines to reveal the truth about the character and life of a man feared and revered around the globe.
In gripping detail, they recount the drama, tensions, and everyday activities of the man they knew as a husband and father. Married at fifteen, Najwa describes the transformation of the quiet, serious young man she fell in love with into an authoritarian husband and stern father, an entrepreneur, and – finally – the leader of a complex international terrorist network. Uprooted from a life of extraordinary luxury and privilege in Saudi Arabia, they suddenly found themselves living life on the run, fleeing from country to country under assumed names and fake passports. Omar describes how he and his siblings were brought up in remote ranches and fortified Afghani mountain camps, handling Kalashnikovs and learning desert survival skills. Their eventual escape from Afghanistan would come just days before the terrible events of 9/11 changed the world forever.
With unprecedented access and exclusive family photographs, Jean Sasson, author of the bestselling Princess, presents the story that we were never meant to hear.