A bin Laden sister-in-law (she’s going for a divorce) is reminiscing about her life in that family. Judging by this account in the Sunday Telegraph, it will make interesting reading. As for Osama himself, readers seem likely to be reminded that his is a piety that has long since tipped over into psychosis:

“A sister-in-law of the world’s most wanted terrorist leader has described her life in Saudi Arabia as a “prison” and says that the young Osama bin Laden was so religiously zealous that he “froze” when he saw her face unveiled.

“Carmen bin Laden, who is divorcing the al-Qa’eda leader’s half-brother, Yeslam, said that even in the privacy of her home, Osama bin Laden “couldn’t bear looking at my naked face. He never deigned to speak a word to me”.”

As for life in ‘Saudi’ Arabia:

“The book chronicles her marriage to Yeslam and her life in Jeddah, a city where, she says, “women are no more than house pets” and their “bright minds are brainwashed”.

As I write this I am watching the TV movie Helter Skelter about the Manson family. It seems curiously appropriate.