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Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography by [Walter Isaacson]

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Walter Isaacson

Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography Kindle Edition

by Walter Isaacson (Author)

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'This is a riveting book, with as much to say about the transformation of modern life in the information age as about its supernaturally gifted and driven subject' - Telegraph

Based on more than forty interviews with Steve Jobs conducted over two years - as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues - this is the acclaimed, internationally bestselling biography of the ultimate icon of inventiveness.

Walter Isaacson tells the story of the rollercoaster life and searingly intense personality of creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies,music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.

Although Jobs cooperated with this book, he asked for no control over what was written, nor even the right to read it before it was published. He put nothing off limits. He encouraged the people he knew to speak honestly. And Jobs speaks candidly, sometimes brutally so, about the people he worked with and competed against. His friends, foes, and colleagues provide an unvarnished view of the passions, perfectionism, obsessions, artistry, devilry, and compulsion for control that shaped his approach to business and the innovative products that resulted.

Length: 593 pages	Word Wise: Enabled	Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled
Page Flip: Enabled	Language: English

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Amazon.com Review

Amazon Best Books of the Month, November 2011: It is difficult to read the opening pages of Walter Isaacson’s Steve Jobs without feeling melancholic. Jobs retired at the end of August and died about six weeks later. Now, just weeks after his death, you can open the book that bears his name and read about his youth, his promise, and his relentless press to succeed. But the initial sadness in starting the book is soon replaced by something else, which is the intensity of the read--mirroring the intensity of Jobs’s focus and vision for his products. Few in history have transformed their time like Steve Jobs, and one could argue that he stands with the Fords, Edisons, and Gutenbergs of the world. This is a timely and complete portrait that pulls no punches and gives insight into a man whose contradictions were in many ways his greatest strength. --Chris Schluep

Review

The attention to detail is astounding, and this is an encyclopaedic record of Jobs's life right up to his battle against cancer and death . . . a fitting legacy to a flawed genius - Evening Standard Isaacson has done an outstanding job. He keeps a sturdily detached perspective about Jobs' many eccentricities. His biographer has written a captivating account of this digital visionary whose products have enthralled millions of people - Spectator This is a riveting book, with as much to say about the transformation of modern life in the information age as about its supernaturally gifted and driven subject - Telegraph A must read - Sunday Times

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Product details

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 5541 KB
Print Length: 593 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 034914043X
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group; 8 edition (24 October 2011)
Sold by: Amazon Asia-Pacific Holdings Private Limited
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1408703742
ISBN-13: 978-1408703748
ASIN: B005J3IEZQ
Text-to-Speech: Enabled

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Enabled

Word Wise: Enabled
Screen Reader: Supported

Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled

Customer Reviews:
Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #132 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #18 in Biographies & Autobiographies (Books)
- #11 in Biographies & Autobiographies (Kindle Store)

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Sneha Latha

A must read!!

Reviewed in India on 23 September 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I am not a fan of Apple products. I also dont own one of them. Many of my friends despised Steve Jobs and used to tell me stories about his part in the development of Apple being negligible. I wanted to know the truth. Trust me this book is a jewel. Not just for those who admire him but also for all tech nerds. There is so much described about the times of early inventions in electronic industry to present day iphone. All of this is beautifully wound around Jobs' story and he fist perfectly into that world. I wish i were alive during that time to witness all that he achieved. I surely believe he put a dent to the universe!

I recommend to read this, to those who love apple and Jobs but I insist to those who hate him. You will love him by the time you reach the end and wish there was more to read.

91 people found this helpful

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Hemant Sonawae

Passionate Leader believing in simplicity

Reviewed in India on 8 April 2018

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Steve was passionate, dominant and wanted to control everything related to products he designed, developed, marketed. He hurt many people in his professional career and didn’t care about it.
I like the part which describes Steve’s Distortion Reality Field and simplicity is ultimate sophistication.
I recommend this book to the Apple product users. I am a big fan and used of most Apple product (and now became fan of Steve Jobs) while reading this book I could correlated all the sequence of event happened in Apple and how the great products were made.
Well written Walter.

21 people found this helpful

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Nishant Kumar

Remarkable biography of the man as the man himself is

Reviewed in India on 14 September 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Very few people had imagined the way PC and smartphones would change the world until Steve Jobs did it actually, with his undaunted leadership and ability to simplify everything from user interface to the hardware design which had led to the creation of astonishing and brilliant devices which always challenged and raised the status quo in every market segment it ever entered.

This book goes through all the ups and downs of his social and professional life, covering all the intricacies involved during his lifetime which led to the birth of Apple as it is today. It also explains his reality distortion field which played a very crucial role in developing a remarkable user friendly products.

He revolutionized whole music, journalism and book publishing industries through the digitalization of music, magazines, books and news, which itself led to the creation of multibillion dollars app industry as we all see today.
He always believed in end-to-end control of right from the device design (which includes both hardware and user interface), raw materials used and manufacturing process to its marketing and sales of devices till it reaches hand of the users. He always strive to perfect every aspect of device even if the user didn't notice it.

All he cares about is perfection in everything he ever did or ever wanted to do, his creations has unambiguously pushed the human race forward.

28 people found this helpful

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Akshat J.

Thru Cons and Pros! Still a 5 starer for me.

Reviewed in India on 6 August 2018

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I am not an avid reader so please, if you are looking for a proper book review then please back off.
Now talking about the book built and overview, then let me tell you that the pages quality is low but won't tear away even after a rugged use. Yes, the paperback is of a low quality then a usual quality in other books, but it is still ok for me (but not necessarily the same in your case). Overall I found the book a perfect reader's choice for everyone. So, just move ahead of the cons and focus on the ultimate pro that is inscribed in the book.

7 people found this helpful

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Rahul

My favourite book😊😊😊

Reviewed in India on 19 October 2018

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

It's my one of the favourite book and jobs hardwork really inspires me alot. Just go for it if you are a computer.. reading this book makes me feel like tomorrow I'm gonna open a small computer company like steve does... u never gonna feel bored when reading this book...

7 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

Apple in making

Reviewed in India on 26 December 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

It was like going back in time when none of our imp gadgets existed. And how Steve Jobs made these incredible stuff our generation cant live without. Impressed by his leadership and the way turned around Apple in his sevond stint

6 people found this helpful

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DS94

One good book to see his Journey

Reviewed in India on 22 August 2018

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Print quality is good as every novel has
Medium in size and very light book
Includes so many personal pics of him

6 people found this helpful

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Subodh Sharma

A good read on what makes Apple so different to other product companies

Reviewed in India on 16 April 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

For all readers - whether you know something about Steve Jobs or Apple or not or hate/love their products (my disclaimer - I use all his products and love them for their simplicity and easy to use features).

The book is divided in two parts - Page 1 to 300 covers Steve's early life, battles, tantrums, courting & appointment of Sculley, Steve being removed, and joining Pixar. This is all rather drab and widely available information in print & web so nothing new. Its slow going and I kept the book down several times as the slow pace wore me out.

However, page 300 onward when Steve returns to Apple is when the book makes up for the first half. A - we understand the motivation for the 'i' series of products, B - we understand his need for simplicity, and C - we understand his micro managing every function to the nth degree. Steve drew his inspiration from several sources and all of them converged on the customer as the focal point. Simplicity came from purity or his definition of practical issues that a customer would face and how to solve them. Micro management is important and some people may say its a bad thing however when your vision runs several years ahead, you have to micro manage to get the best out of people and also for them to realize that they can achieve it. It's part of the process to make things better for everyone.

Apple is a great consumer product company and despite the naysayers, it has been built to last. The innovativeness that people predicted will die with Steve just has not happened and nor will it ever as long as the culture of innovation continues at Apple. 3M had an innovative culture and when James McNerney brought in processes to manage innovation, 3M became a laggard. Once the CEO changed and the innovation culture was reignited, 3M is back and doing extremely well. Same is the case with Apple.

They will continue with Innovation, Simplicity, Customer Delight, and make products that create a burning desire to own them.

2 people found this helpful

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Top international reviews

SnippetMaster

A real biography

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 September 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Quality from start to finish. How a biography should be and even turned me into an Apple convert. The story of a driven man who probably did manage to put a dent in the universe (time will tell).

Snippets:
Believed first and foremost in making great things before making money. Pretend to be completely in control and people will assume that you are. The goal of starting a company is to make something you believe in and that will last, not to get rich. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication - "less but better". To be truly simple, you have to go really deep. Design must reflect a product's essence. Good execution is as important as a great idea. A-players like to work together, not tolerate B-players. You can't afford to tolerate the B-players. Even the aspects that remain hidden should be done beautifully - a great carpenter isn't going to use lousy wood for the back of a cabinet just because it isn't seen (how many CEO's behave like that as opposed to finding cost-cuts?). Don't accept "no" for an answer, even if it means adopting a "reality distortion field". Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do. People who know what they're talking about don't need PowerPoint. If something isn't right, you can't just ignore it and say "we'll fix it later" - that's what other companies do! Motivations really matter - if you don't love music, don't create a music product. The best way to begin a speech is to say "let me tell you a story", because nobody wants a lecture. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way to avoid the trap of thinking that you have something to lose: memento mori. "Here's to the crazy ones".

24 people found this helpful

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William Cohen

Inspiring and insightful

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 July 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I sat on the plane reading this book. The chap next to me had an iPhone, the lady on the opposite aisle had an iPad, and the lady by the opposite window had an iPhone. It brought home the impact this man had on the world.

Steve Jobs was one crazy guy. He was into spirituality, but he didn't seem to be spiritual at all really. In a weird way he spiritualised products while denigrating fellow human beings. He served humanity by making elegant technology, not by maintaining healthy relationships with those around him.

From a business perspective, it was inspiring to read about his commitment to the vision: the passion for simplicity. The founding of the Apple store, the drive and courage to produce the iPod, iPad and iPhone, the stories are powerful and uplifting . Indeed the story is a big part of his business success - Ross Perot paraphrased it and got a lot of it wrong, but people wanted to retell it because it inspired people.

His genius for selling manifested at his product launches. He was at ease making multi-million dollar deals. He didn't try and play God - there were loads of people who felt cheated by him, but he wasn't bothered. The Pixar subplot was astonishing. To have played such a role in animation, on top of everything else, was just incredible.

But as a human being, he was an untreated compulsive. He was insanely fussy in his demands of Apple technologists, but he showed the same attitude to the people who cooked for him, or treated him for his illness.

I loved the book and read it in a week. I feel I need to have a bigger vision for my life and business for the next 10 years - so I'm grateful for that.

3 people found this helpful

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Sheba

WEll written book about a remarkable man

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 December 2018

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Walter Isaacson has done an incredible job writing this book. It seems accurate and candid. This is no sycophantic tribute. However, it is still a tribute the the genius and vision of a remarkable man and what he created by sheer determination, obstinacy and self belief. It is people like Steve Jobs who change the world and make our lives so much better. I did not really know much about him, and my only Apple product at the time of reading this biography, was my trusty old ipod.
After reading this book, I am full of admiration for the genius of this man and the incredible legacy he has left behind for us all. I was fortunate, in that we chose it for our Self Development bookclub, and were therefore able to stretch it over 5 sessions. It allowed us to do justice to the book.

3 people found this helpful

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Roarton

A Must Read for the Tech Generation

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 September 2019

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Apart from being an interesting read, for me it was also an eye-opening experience regarding my naive belief that I was someone 'in at the start of contemporary computing'. In 1974, I was employed by the John Lewis Partnership and worked on IBM 360/50 and 370/135 mainframe computers. I really did believe I was at the forefront of computing and yet, in California, Jobs and his compatriots were already producing computers that would make the leviathans I was blissfully serving, completely redundant. They probably didn't realise it but they were inventing disruption technology that would change computing from being an unwieldy corporate tool into a personal device to be used whether you worked for a company or just wanted to play games at home. IBM, Burroughs, Univac, NCR,CDC and Honeywell had to either reinvent themselves or disappear over the following years. Most people can remember the early Apple products, some will remember playing Atari Pong in the pub and more, products such as the early home computers. This book takes you back to the genesis of these inventions which came about not just through genius hardware and software engineering but also from enthusiastic use of LSD and transcendental meditation.
A surprising man for a surprising time.

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Sally Walker

Well written and commendable

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 July 2014

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This is a very readable account of Steve Job’s life. Whilst it does go into some detail as to how each Apple product was produced this is not overly technical and so for me, as a non-techy, I did not find it boring. Rather I found that I developed a real appreciation for their products and to view them in a whole new light.

What shines through is Jobs’ unique personality which enabled him to achieve great things, namely ground breaking digital products combined with ground breaking designs with an emphasis on purity and simplicity. Uniquely Jobs worked at the interface of art and technology.

Oh, and did I fail to mention that he also, and at the same time! developed a world-class animation film company that slapped Disney around the face.

Now of course Jobs did not achieve all of these single-handedly he made great partnerships and then selected A players to be on his team. Jobs’ uniqueness is the way that he brought out the best of people’s abilities; he regularly made them go further than they thought they as people could go and that it was possible to go period. How he did this is not particularly pretty with a combination of staring, timed silences and simply telling somebody that what they had produced what s**t and that they could do a whole load better. Jobs’ world was black or white, something was either great or s**t and his opinion on a person or their work could vacillate between the two within the space of one working day! He said it like it was and regarded it as his job to do this.

He must have been a boss from hell but yet so great was his enthusiasm and so great was the product that was being developed that people stepped up to the plate to deliver. Their job satisfaction was in the delivery and getting that final ounce of praise, even if on occasion Jobs’ took all of the credit.

He was also a charismatic and fearless negotiator who would charm and bully the necessary people to get the best deal.

By him not shilly-shallying around and taking people’s feelings into account and being fearless he was able to achieve greatness.

Jobs’ attention to finite detail and laser-like focus was such that he would not baulk from going to a major re-design, just weeks away from the launch of a product. Design meant everything to him.

His laser-like focus enabled him to block out of his life things that he did not want to deal with. Most notably this occurred in his personal life when he was deciding whether to marry Laurenne Powel, or, most dramatically his own health. We’ll never know whether if Jobs had had the surgery on his pancreas when his doctors first advised him to have it, he would still be here continuing to develop great products.

The last one hundred pages left me with a heavy heart. It is within these pages that Jobs’ battle with cancer is recounted. I found myself willing him to beat the cancer, whilst knowing that he was already dead. His passing is a great loss because of the uniqueness that I have described above, namely the dove-tailing of art and technology.

So even if you’re a non-techy you will still enjoy this book. I highly commend it to you.

6 people found this helpful

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B. A. Smith

A very absorbing read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 April 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Writing a biographical insight into an extremely complex genius like Steve Jobs was never going to be easy, but this is surely the best one, even if it gets a bit laboured at times. It's seeks to capture the highs and lows, successes and failures of Jobs business and personal life and as such is a fascinating read.

5 people found this helpful

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Conphused

‘The Disruptor’

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 December 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

A comprehensive biography that traces the rise of Jobs and his beloved Apple from its modest beginnings to its place as the technological behemoth we see today. Whilst it’s clear from the narrative that Jobs was not an easy man to work with, his genius was unquestionable, as was his ability to disrupt the status quo, and create technologies and processes of which we had not even conceived. The way Steve Jobs stood at the nexus of art and technology is a lesson to us all - he did indeed make us “Think Differently”.

2 people found this helpful

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A Biochemist

Balanced and thought provoking

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 April 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I waited a long time to read this, having bought it not long after it came out. I wanted the space to come to my own conclusions and wanted to read the book on my own terms.

First of all, I think Walter Isaacson did a great job putting this together. I covers all the major aspects of Steve's life and as much as I can tell, it's a fairly objective presentation of the man as he really was. I am a big fan of Apple and have been since the mid nineties. That said, one of my great frustrations is when people in business talk about the need to be "more like Apple", as if it's a tangible choice. It's like saying to win the 100 metres at the Olympics, you just need to run like Usain Bolt - it's not untrue but it's not especially helpful. In my view the book gave some insight into what made Steve Jobs and Apple successful and it also illustrated some of the behaviors that nearly destroyed Apple, many of them manifested personally by Steve Jobs. I find myself asking if you can reach the highest heights in business without burning bridges as you go. It always takes me back to Bernard Shaw..."The reasonable man adapts himself to the conditions that surround him... The unreasonable man adapts surrounding conditions to himself... All progress depends on the unreasonable man." To be the "unreasonable man" (and Steve Jobs could clearly be unreasonable), is an easy enough strategy to take. However, success depends on so much more than choosing to be unreasonable by itself and for many of us perhaps it's a sure fire strategy to achieving less.

So if you have an interest in Apple, Steve Jobs, innovation or building business, this book will definitely have something in it for you!

4 people found this helpful

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Gurminder

Fascinating, but skewed in Jobs' favour

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 May 2013

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This is a fascinating and well-written biography of one of the most famed business leaders of all time. Isaacson has done a lot of research and, more importantly, had a lot of access to Jobs, his family, friends and colleagues while writing this book. I'm not quite sure how some people have managed to read this book in a day or two - it's long. I ended up buying the Kindle version too because I was struggling to read the hard back format.

The books provides an intriguing and fascinating insight into Jobs' life, from birth right through to the terminal cancer that riddled his body. At first, the book seems well-balanced and impartial, but the more I read, the more I felt Isaacson was at the mercy of Jobs' reality distortion field. And by this I mean that while the book was meant to be balanced, it's ended up skewed strongly in favour of Jobs. The people Isaacson interviewed were happy to discuss the times when they were in direct conflict with Jobs, but it was always followed by "but, he was a genius" or "but, that's Steve" - as if they were absolving Jobs of any blame. I'm not sure when they were interviewed, but towards the end of the book, I felt that they knew Jobs' condition was terminal and that it would be wrong to say anything negative about him.

I was hoping Jony Ive and the Apple board would have had more exposure in the book (more quotes and interviews), but that's not been the case - it was almost a family and they wouldn't have said anything. It would also have helped if there were interviews with people who didn't get along with Jobs. Hence, I feel the book is heavily skewed in Jobs' favour - despite the promise of being impartial. It also felt like the book was rushed at the end. Jobs' death isn't covered, rather the final chapter provides a summary of all the great things he did - which I didn't really need to go over again. There's no sense of what will happen at Apple with his death, and the impact it's had on family, friends etc. Indeed, the last third of the book glosses over many details and doesn't seem as well-researched as first two thirds - and I say this in the sense that the quotes and interviews got few and far between, and there was more filler text than new material. Isaacson must be praised for exploring Jobs' relationship with his family and colleagues, and in particular his children, those closest to him at Apple, and the Pixar team, but I think the book is let down towards the end.

If you're into technology, business, or biographies, then this should be in your collection. If you're a business leader looking for management tips and how to lead a company, then you won't find them in here. For me, when I've read biographies, I've come away feeling inspired - in this instance I came away feeling admiration for what Jobs achieved rather than inspiration.

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Melvin

Fascinating insight into Steve Jobs!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 August 2012

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This readable book gives a good impression of who Steve Jobs was. For me it provides the reader with an insight into five aspects of the man: himself as a person and as a professional, his philosophy and the inventions he created with Apple and his other companies.
1) I was slightly surprised to learn about him as a person. Sharp contrasts, slightly eccentric and quite difficult for his co-workers and family. A stubborn man, lots of energy and sharp as a knife
2) I would have liked to read a little bit more about his professional style. The storyteller puts emphasis on what he did, and where he did it, but not so much how he worked and pushed himself to great highs. Interesting is him Monday morning meeting and his approach to some of the big deals he made.
3) His philosophy is well laid-out: Integrated hardware and software, the importance of design and his obsession with the quality, even on parts hidden from the public eye.
4) The companies he created (Apple, Next, Pixar). Quite an impressive track record.
5) And of course the inventions Apple made. Not only through its devices but also the impact it had on whole industries such as the music business and the online book business. The Mac home computer, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad. Four insanely beautiful and successful inventions. Some companies would die to have one miracle hit like that. Steve and his people created four!
Makes one wonder where he would have gone had he not died. Overall a pretty good overview of his career although I might have appreciated more attention to the business side of Jobs instead of his obsession with food and Zen.

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Mark B

Fascinating story, fascinating man, but a bit dull as a book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 14 March 2013

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Generally I'm not big on autobiographies, but having read Andre Agassi's Open (a gift) in the summer, which I absolutely loved (beautifully ghostwritten by J. R. Moehringer), I found myself more receptive when a friend recommended this.

The story of Steve Jobs and Apple is an mind-boggling spectacular one, and for the extraordinary insight into the man and the company this book is superb. Jobs was, in many ways, a monstrous personality, prone to extreme bullying, abuse and ludicrously unreasonable behaviour. And yet clearly he possessed a magic and a charisma that not only drew people, despite those traits, to him, but inspired profound loyalty and indeed affection.

On those terms, I really enjoyed the book, and I'd definitely recommend to anybody business or entrepreneurially minded, and more generally if you're interested in technology, or just flawed humanity.

All that being said, as a general read I found it plodding and dull, with extremely pedestrian and flat prose. Jobs was a mysterious, almost mystical, figure in many ways, and the absence of even the tiniest element of poetry from the writing loses something, I think. This happened, that happened, he said this, they said that, they met here, he went there. Dull dull dull.

Still, the writing wasn't by any means enough to put me off, and it certainly doesn't get in the way, it just doesn't add anything beyond the factual representations.

All told, definitely recommended for an insight into one of the worlds most extraordinary businessmen.

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KymH

A seemingly honest portrait of Jobs

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 June 2015

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

This is a really fascinating and seemingly quite an honest portrait of Jobs. He's portrayed as obsessive, rude, driven and yet capable of inspiring great love and loyalty from colleagues, family and friends. His knack for finding the line between controlling everything - in a world where consumers want everything made especially 'for me' - and delivering the consistent experience that these very same consumers want is extraordinary and I thought that the chapter about the development of the Apple stores particularly showcased his ability to put himself in the consumers' shoes, despite the fact he never seemed to (be able?) do the same for the people around him. A great read.

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Daniel Priestley

Mixed feelings

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 March 2012

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It's Steve Jobs. A story so wild and unimaginable that if his life were presented as fiction it would be rejected as implausible.

Writing his story is therefor something most biographers would dream of. The opportunity to tell such a tale comes once a generation.

So I was surprised to discover that the angle Isaacson took was to emphasise again and again and again and again the perceived character flaws of the greatest innovator of our time.

It was as if the author expected this man to be just like the rest of us and was shocked to the core to discover a person who was very different to the typical man.

But of course that's the point. A typical man barely scratches the surface of his full potential. He is bound by social norms, constrained by his desire to be accepted and liked and tempered by his need to balance his life.

A typical man doesn't build an Apple or a Pixar. He reads about it and dreams of what it would be like to flush out his constraints and let loose on the world.

So like most typical men, I was shocked to read this biography. Rather than celebrate the quirks, the drive, the temper, the demands, the fight, the spark, the seething, the aggression and the torment, Steve Jobs is constantly present as deeply flawed.

Almost every page seems to beg the reader to imagine how successful Steve would have been had he been kinder, more nice, more caring, more softly spoken, less opinionated, less focused, less uncompromising.

But I don't buy it. It was his "flaws" that made the guy so damn good. If you throw them away you can throw away the rest as well.

After reading "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell I'd come to believe that guys like Steve Jobs were mostly successful because they were born in the right time at the right place, had the right lucky breaks and then did the work.

Much of that is true but what this book shows is that Steve Jobs added a whole new dimension because he was willing to fight a big fight for his vision and for every detail along the way. Any other person with normal inclinations would have backed down over 1000 of the things Steve stood for and the edge would be lost.

I'm grateful to the author (and the Jobs/Powell family) for the opportunity to read about his life but I must say I would have told the tale with a different emphasis. With such a rich story as inspiration I wouldn't focus so much scrutiny on Steve Jobs as flawed character who lacked the ability to fit in.

I would have liked a more celebratory tone that called on me to be a bit more of a misfit and a rebel. After all, when it comes to a guy like Steve Jobs you can quote him, disagree with him, glorify or vilify him. About the only thing you can't do is ignore him because he changed things.

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Michael Wadge

A marvellous biography of a very complex and flawed genius.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 5 December 2013

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I am doing this review on my new IPad, which was, of course, one of the last products conceived by Steve Jobs and his team before his untimely death. I have used a number of Apple products over the years, all of which have proved to be excellent and, in many cases, ground breaking. However, I had no idea until reading the book how Apple started and how difficult things were for the Company in the early years. I was also only vaguely aware that Jobs left Apple for some years and was intimately involved with Pixar, which has produced a number of very memorable films.

Jobs' somewhat strange personal behaviour was something I did not know about until I read this book and overall I felt the Author has produced an excellent, comprehensive and well rounded portrait of a man whose influence on our lives still reverberates years after his death and in all probability will continue to do so for many years to come.

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Nick

What a Guy!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 December 2013

Verified Purchase

What did I like/dislike about the product?
This book is very insightful about the person who has been an enigma of sorts throughout his life. It has great details about his life both from his perspective and from people who knew him at various stages of his life. I like this book as this is the only book that Steve himself contributed to. I mean there are personal questions asked and answers given by Steve. Now, whether those answers are 100% genuine or not is not a point of discussion here. Who is to know. We can only form an image based on what other contributors had to say about questions that were put to both Steve and them. I have read this book once and listened to it in audiobook format couple of times and for some reason the book keeps be hooked. A great book about a great guy who changed the world

Why did I choose the rating?
A Great book about a great guy who genuinely made a difference to the world.

Who would I recommend the product to?
Anyone who cares to know about the real Steve Jobs

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