Book Review: Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

“We’ve always tried to be at the intersection of technology and liberal arts, to be able to get the best of both, to make extremely advanced products from a technology point of view, but also have them be intuitive, easy to use, fun to use, so that they really fit the users – the users don’t have to come to them, they come to the user.” - Steven P. JobsIf you were wondering why this review is in my non-tech blog, the above quote explains it. As much as I have written about Jobs and Apple on my tech blog, I felt it was apt to write the review of Job's official biography here.Ever since I heard of him, I have been filled with wonderment for Jobs, the technology visionary. I have written multiple posts on his company, their products and the vision of Jobs. But much of my knowledge was about Apple after Jobs came back in 1997. I had heard stories of the development of Apple II and the original Macintosh but again, short vignettes and nostalgic memories from ex-Applers. I was looking to know more- the whole picture. What made Jobs, the person so admired (and hated) was something of a mystery. So, when the book was first announced, it made its way to my Kindle preorder list. What was supposed to release in the summer of 2012, got moved up to November when Jobs retired and when he passed away, moved up to Oct 24.The book was delivered to my Kindle, wirelessly on Oct 23rd and I started reading it almost immediately after. What a book it was to read. I have since then quoted anecdotes from it to friends and colleagues and even some strangers. I was alternately inspired, thrilled, shocked and even disappointed with the enigma that was Jobs. Credit to Walter Isaacson for weaving a biography that reads like a fast paced novel. It comes across as well researched, well put together and overall what a biography should feel like. The life of Jobs, reads like an epic and it seems like it was really one.It is a remarkable story told through a series of remarkable interviews, most fascinating of them being the ones with Jobs himself. The amount of access Jobs had offered Isaacson shows in the level of detail we get to events that shaped the PC, phone and tablet industry. From the time Apple II was a success to when the iPad stormed the industry, we get a first person perspective on how the relationships were cobbled together to make the products what they were. Throw in the maverick ways of Steve, a one of a kind CEO of a mega successful company and you have a saga. Relationships with Google, Adobe, Microsoft are given good coverage.Jobs' first innings with Apple, then getting kicked out unceremoniously, his hiatus time with Next Computers and Pixar and his second coming at Apple are chronicled with great detail. The personal life of Jobs also gets a lot of page space. It can be argued that much of Jobs' life is laid bare in front of the reader and not all of it is pretty and inspirational. It is to the credit of both the artist and the muse that no attempt is made to iconize or glorify. At times the protagonist is a hero, a visionary. At times, he is a despicable person unwilling to take responsibility. And at times, he is a one-of-a-kind CEO whose unwavering attention to detail made his company and its products, truly iconic. Jobs is unique in that unlike other great CEO's whose biographies are books to be followed, revered and their lives idolized, his is a tale that is sordid at times and awe inspiring at others. Jobs could very well fall from the high pedestal at which you have placed him but he offers no apologies to being so. And that makes his life one of a kind.This book offers not just a great insight into the unique life of Steve Jobs, but also the growth of the PC industry and the emergence of Silicon Valley as a preeminent location for tech companies. Jobs life is not just filled with milestones of Apple but milestones of the tech industry blossoming in the Valley to being the powerhouse that it is today.If I were to pick things that could have been better with the book, I don't have much to say. Certain chapters could have been organized a little better. They start off as the chronological next step to the previous chapter but end up jumping up and down in time. Otherwise it is as good as a good biography can be.I can't recommend this book highly enough. If you were inspired or touched by Steve Jobs or Apple products, get this book. You won't regret it one bit.You can get your print and Kindle copy here and in most bookstores around the world.