The Bin Ladens

Steve Coll is one of my favorite authors of books, as well as periodical articles. This book traces the story of one of the most notorious family names in the world. It was a family involved in the creation and moderinization of the state of Saudi Arabia. Due to Islamic law and their progenitor's prolificacy, there were dozens of children and hundreds of grandchildren.

This is as close to an episode of the American television program, Dallas, as one could find in reality. Perhaps that is what makes them so intriguing: their family is like a soap opera.

There were some family members who wished to live a Western lifestyle, were educated in Europe or the United States, married Europeans and Americans and lived and played amongst some of the world's most elite families. They knew presidents and princes, they flew airplanes and wore designer suits. They were really no different in many respects from the Rockefellers or Kennedys.

And there were those who lived and worked in the kingdom, lived austere lives and continued upon Muhammad's legacy of construction. They were close personal friends with the royal family and devout followers of their religion.

Of course, every family has a black sheep, and Osama bin Laden is theirs. This book does a very good job trying to weed through the myth surrounding him, his upbringing, their family's wealth and the likelihood of family support, even at this point in time.

All in all, this is an excellent biography of the bin Laden family with all the intrigue and drama you would expect from a good soap opera.