Steve Jobs

By: Walter Isaacson

Narrated by: Dylan Baker

Length: 25 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

Featuring a new epilogue read by the author.

From the author of the best-selling biographies of Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein, this is the exclusive biography of Steve Jobs.

Based on more than 40 interviews with Jobs conducted over two years - as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues - Walter Isaacson has written a riveting story of the roller-coaster life and searingly intense personality of a creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.

At a time when America is seeking ways to sustain its innovative edge, and when societies around the world are trying to build digital-age economies, Jobs stands as the ultimate icon of inventiveness and applied imagination. He knew that the best way to create value in the 21st century was to connect creativity with technology. He built a company where leaps of the imagination were combined with remarkable feats of engineering.

Although Jobs cooperated with this book, he asked for no control over what was written. 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.

Driven by demons, Jobs could drive those around him to fury and despair. But his personality and products were interrelated, just as Apple's hardware and software tended to be, as if part of an integrated system. His tale is instructive and cautionary, filled with lessons about innovation, character, leadership, and values.

©2011 Walter Isaacson (P)2011 Simon & Schuster

Genius.

I never really had any good opinions about Steve Jobs or Apple as a company. I was always unimpressed by their products and the controlled environment in which they both
operated. However this book was an indepth view of the man and the company he founded. And how his desire for control made manifest the many problems that plagued his life as well as shaped the lives of many others. Jobs has many undesirable traits of a sociopath; however if left to his own desires these traits changed the world. And create an endearing affection for the myth of the man.
Well written and well read this audio book is easily one of the best available.

Captivating Biography

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This was a fun book to listen to on my runs. Steve Jobs accomplished some amazing things in his life, and a lot of what we take for granted today was pioneered by him or by those around him. The book is a series of stories about the life of Jobs, some of them better than others, but all of them painting a picture of a man who got what he wanted by willing that what he wanted be so, whether it was possible or not.

My First audio book... 177 books later I'm hooked

Where does Steve Jobs rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I would say it falls in the top 10% of the books I have read on business and innovation.

What other book might you compare Steve Jobs to and why?

Hatching Twitter... Both books talk a lot about the highs and lows of technology companies.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Seems like a silly question given the length of the book.

An asshole but a great revolutionary entrepenuer.

This biography was very detailed. It covered all of Jobs's life aspects in a striking detail. The book keeps on focusing on a certain matter on his life and going all the way chronologically telling the evolution of this thing, then it goes back and mentions the other things happening at that time. This book was an enjoyable and hart warming experience.

Oh Steve

Would you listen to Steve Jobs again? Why?

Probably not but i don't read books twice. Once you've truly lived through an experience then you don't need to do it again.

What did you like best about this story?

Steve's indomitable spirit.

Which scene was your favorite?

any of the scenes when steve said. let me show you how to do it.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

pretty extreme. I loved and hated steve at different points in the book.

Any additional comments?

This is a must read for anyone who was alive during the same time as Steve was. So that you can see what your fellow human being are up to.

excellent book, great narrator.

Would you listen to Steve Jobs again? Why?

Yes, it's a great story.

What did you like best about this story?

It showed the good and the bad.

Have you listened to any of Dylan Baker’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No i haven't, but i would.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

That is s@$t!

Informative, captivating, amazing story

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I thought the book overall was packed full of info and genuinely interesting. I was quite amazed with how in depth Walter Isaacson talked about some periods of Jobs' life. At times, it was almost too detailed and I began to lose interest and look forward to the next chapter, but overall I felt that the audiobook held my attention and I would be excited to get back to listening. I particularly found Jobs' interactions with others to be fascinating, and I believe Isaacson did a decent job at portraying these relationships. I believe the way Jobs interacted with others, specifically how he would morph people into his "reality distortion field," was the most fascinating and unique aspect of Jobs' life and I thought it was beneficial and educational to hear the author's take on it.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Since this was a book on Steve Jobs, I'll have to go with him. He was a pretty crazy dude.

Which character – as performed by Dylan Baker – was your favorite?

Dylan Baker did an excellent job narrating the book. I felt that he portrayed Steve Jobs well.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

At times I would laugh out loud. Jobs' interpersonal qualities are quite entertaining when listening in as a third person.

Any additional comments?

Good audiobook overall. Would recommend to anyone. He's such an influential and unique person of society that I think most people would benefit from hearing a detailed take on his life.

What a fantastic biography

If you could sum up Steve Jobs in three words, what would they be?

inspiring, balanced and insightful

Who was your favorite character and why?

N/A

What about Dylan Baker’s performance did you like?

The voice is great!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Cry. The last part, Steve's last words are so moving.

Long, but worth the time

It really is a must read for anyone interested in changing the world. It was very long as books go, but what a ride.

More than I expected

I was skeptical when buying a audiobook with so many hours but I have to say very humbled by the life of Steve Jobs. Through his life that’s laid out and his many accomplishments and shortfalls I feel like I have personally come to know him through this author.
Well done thank you