Whanganuilibrary.com
Syndetics cover image
Image from Syndetics

The finish : the killing of Osama bin Laden / Mark Bowden.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York : Grove Press, 2013Description: xv, 276 pages ; 20 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9781611855753 (pbk.)
  • 1611855756 (pbk.)
Other title:
  • Killing of Osama bin Laden
Subject(s): Summary: "There wasn't a meeting when someone didn't mention Black Hawk Down ." - A senior Obama administration official, as quoted in The New York Times, 02/05/2011 From Mark Bowden, internationally bestselling and acclaimed author of Black Hawk Down and the preeminent chronicler of the actions of the US military and special forces writing today, comes an intensely gripping account of the hunt for and elimination of Osama bin Laden. With unprecedented access to key sources and his great gift for storytelling, Bowden takes us inside the rooms where decisions were made and where the action unfolded. The story focuses on bin Laden, who maintained a steady stream of despairing correspondence in hiding in the year before his death, and on President Obama, perceived by many as an anti-war candidate because of his opposition to the Iraq War, whose evolving views and enormous responsibilities have turned him into one of the most determined warriors to ever inhabit the White House. It details the rapid evolution of war-fighting methods over the last decade, as American special forces and intelligence agencies have adapted to fight non-state enemies like Al-Qaeda, and how they came together seamlessly in May 2011 to kill the world's most notorious terrorist. Tracing the operation in blow-by-blow detail, Bowden's book is an unrivaled account of the most high-profile special forces operation ever to have been undertaken, and a page-turning narrative of how the man behind 9/11 was finally brought to justice.
Holdings
Item type Current library Collection Call number Copy number Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Non-Fiction Davis (Central) Library Non-Fiction Non-Fiction 363.32 BOW 1 Available T00547205
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In his most important and commercial book since Black Hawk Down , Mark Bowden draws on unprecedented access to the figures involved to produce the definitive account of the assassination of Osama bin Laden.

Originally published: New York: Grove/Atlantic.

"There wasn't a meeting when someone didn't mention Black Hawk Down ." - A senior Obama administration official, as quoted in The New York Times, 02/05/2011 From Mark Bowden, internationally bestselling and acclaimed author of Black Hawk Down and the preeminent chronicler of the actions of the US military and special forces writing today, comes an intensely gripping account of the hunt for and elimination of Osama bin Laden. With unprecedented access to key sources and his great gift for storytelling, Bowden takes us inside the rooms where decisions were made and where the action unfolded. The story focuses on bin Laden, who maintained a steady stream of despairing correspondence in hiding in the year before his death, and on President Obama, perceived by many as an anti-war candidate because of his opposition to the Iraq War, whose evolving views and enormous responsibilities have turned him into one of the most determined warriors to ever inhabit the White House. It details the rapid evolution of war-fighting methods over the last decade, as American special forces and intelligence agencies have adapted to fight non-state enemies like Al-Qaeda, and how they came together seamlessly in May 2011 to kill the world's most notorious terrorist. Tracing the operation in blow-by-blow detail, Bowden's book is an unrivaled account of the most high-profile special forces operation ever to have been undertaken, and a page-turning narrative of how the man behind 9/11 was finally brought to justice.

11 37

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Kirkus Book Review

A best-selling author explains the 10-year effort to find, fix and finish the world's most-wanted terrorist Bowden (Worm: The First Digital World War, 2011, etc.) devotes a taut chapter to the attack on Osama bin Laden, and he lavishly credits the courage and professionalism of the military men at the finish. But more than anything, he pays tribute and attention to "the effort and patience and will" of America's intelligence network and counterterrorism professionals, to the often-overlooked virtues of a bureaucracy endlessly grinding away to connect the dots of information that would lead to the sheik's lair. An effective opening chapter focuses on the day the Twin Towers fell and reminds us of the many then-obscure individuals who would rise to levels of immense power and responsibility during the long decade it took to kill bin Laden. Throughout those 10 years, through changes of administrations, the U.S. spent its time figuring out "exactly how to fight back" against an elusive, stateless enemy, employing tools old (on-the-ground human intelligence), new (supercomputers, drones) and improved (special ops) to eliminate al-Qaida's mastermind. As he efficiently tracks America's progress in this exquisitely difficult task, Bowden interleaves chapters depicting bin Laden's increasing isolation and frustration in Pakistan. He also explodes a few myths surrounding the raid itself: the president's "gutsy call" in fact had the near-unanimous support of his top advisers; there was no firefight at the compound; bin Laden was not in fact living in luxury, nor was he in effective control of his own organization; at least some of the information that led to his capture almost surely derived from torture or coercive interrogation. A superb storyteller, Bowden captures the tense drama accompanying the final months of the bin Laden hunt, even as he underscores the quiet, essential work of years.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Powered by Koha