According to the Islamist Montasser al-Zayyat, author of the Arabic book, Al Zawahiri: As I Knew Him (translated in English as The Road to Al Qaeda: the Story of Bin Laden???s Right-Hand Man), Zawahiri was ???an avid reader??? who ???loved literature and poetry.??? He ???believed that sports, especially boxing and wrestling, were inhumane???. people thought he was very tender and softhearted???. n