Noam ChomskyAFP / Getty Images
The Looming Tower
Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11by Lawrence Wright, Vintage, 351 pages, $21
This Pulitzer-winning work begins 50 years before 9/11, tracking the rise of Islamic fundamentalism and al-Qaeda, and the failures of Western intelligence to prevent the attacks.
The Longest War
The Enduring Conflict Between America and al-Qaeda, by Peter L. Bergen, Free Press, 475 pages, $18.99
Bergen traces the history of the war on terrorism since 9/11 to the present day. He offers a comprehensive account of the conflict, from the point of view of both the U.S. forces and al-Qaeda.
9-11
Was There an Alternative?, by Noam Chomsky, Seven Stories, 170 pages, $15.95
Chomsky's 9-11, published immediately after the attacks, was the first clear-headed attempt to discuss 9/11 in the context of U.S. foreign policy.
Poetry After 9/11
An Anthology of New York Poets, edited by Dennis Loy Johnson and Valerie Merians, Melville House, 111 pages, $16.95
Another 10th-anniversary edition, and the first book published by Melville House, Poetry after 9/11 features the work of 45 of the city's leading poets.