The Mind of the Terrorist: The Psychology of Terrorism from the IRA to al-Qaeda,   ISBN:9780230612693

Customer Rating: 

Although largely well written, the book mostly focuses on the history of various terror groups rather than a deeper review of their psychopathology. Mostly the psychological aspects are referred to in recurring themes.

The reason for a rating of two, however, is the asinine notion that since Moses, according to the Book of Exodus, was the deliverer of the Jews from Egypt and that the plagues supposedly orchestrated by him make Moses the first bioterrorist. Sorry, but that is just a bit much.

Furthermore in the tactics old and new section the author confuses biowarfare with bioterrorism.

Lastly, in the main text the author could do more to emphasise the scope of strategic intent of the various terror groups more clearly. Thus the author could more effectively show the national ambitions of some groups and the global megalomania of others.

"Understanding Terror Networks" by Marc Sageman, although dryer, is a far more effective expenditure of time and money.

Customer Rating: 

Bought this for class, it was a great book, which broke down many terrorist organizations!!

Customer Rating: 

if you are looking for a book that will alarm you and justify you own prejudices against certain groups of terrorists, this book is not for you. if you are genuinely seeking an objective analysis of the cognitions and emotions of terrorists, then this is a very good summary analysis of different types of terrorism based on motivation. the writing style is somewhat dry, most of the time. however, he offers very good, cogent insights. he makes sincere efforts to reach out and better comprehend the underlying psyche of the terrorist, so that inroads might be made in reducing the threat of terrorism in the world today. prone to pontificate, i wouldn't recommend this book for those with a closed mind or those not used to this style. for those who want to read one of the very finest texts on psychological understanding of terrorism, this is highly recommended. i give it an "A+". for interested readers, post's book on clinton and hussein is also revealing and fascinating - although dry.

Customer Rating: 

If you ever wonder how those terrorists can do what they do this is the book for you. This book is the best one volume catch all book on about every terrorist group that there is. The author does a great job diagnosing what motivates each of those groups he highlights. He puts you into the mind of each group in a short, concise narrative on the group. You can see what motivates them to do what they do. His information is very applicable, right out of the newspaper. He goes over both FARC and PKK. Both groups recently had their chapters of fame in the world's newspapers just within the past month. Through every chapter you can see terrorists aren't like us. Each group is motivated by a slightly different cause. However it is easy to say that they all aren't like the average American. We are fooling ourselves to think otherwise. The author does offer some great tips on how to fight terrorism. His tips are real thought provoking and worthy of a look by all.

Customer Rating: 

Based on interviews and quotes, the author profiles many movements whether open insurgencies or relatively close - small groups. From Europe to America and the Middle East, strikingly many share the same "normal" perspective: "I'm fighting against the aggressor".