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

Deep insight and great lessons to learn

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

Yes, giving a great and deep view about Jobs's experiences, also highlighting a very important era that started what is now the PC, the book talks about the competition between major companies in the field.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Ive, the head of design at Apple.

What about Dylan Baker’s performance did you like?

Yes, great performance

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Steve jobs getting cancer and the value of life in his eyes, that reflected how bad those who have doubts about Allah's existence and religion can look to the life.

Ethereal

I cried at the end..... and loved the stories and interactions he had with many. Helped me once again realize and come to grips with my own mortality. In short we should all strive to have great lives and do great things.

This book is worth reading/listening to - I loved listening on m commute to work. Enjoy.

Wow. Just wow.

Any additional comments?

My husband and I listened to this over the course of a month on our hour long commute. Amazing book. Amazing man. Amazing writing. We couldn't recommend this more.

Apple didn't fall far from tree.

What did you love best about Steve Jobs?

Well written, informative and properly paced narrative.

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

Very difficult to compare to another, SJ was a very unique person.

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

Steve Jobs.

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

10,000 (SJ) stories in every product.

Any additional comments?

As a huge Apple fan and follower, it was remarkable to hear the genesis of his ideas and thought processes that not only came to fruition but were 100% Steve driven to perfection. These are products (tools) that impact my life everyday.

A wonderfully personal look at the man

What did you love best about Steve Jobs?

As an Apple user since 1986 I am well acquainted with both the technology and the man to a large degree. I recently this year read Walter Isaacson's biography on Einstein and was very pleased with it so am also acquainted with the author. In this biography Isaacson did a splendid job to fill in the gaps of what I had known about Jobs and Apple. What was most wonderful about Isaacson's biography on Steve Jobs is how he was able to bring a simplicity and clarity to the complex character of Jobs. Isaacson's access to Jobs over so many years and his free access to both friend and foe make this the most comprehensive and intimate biography I have read to date bring out the sensitivity and tension that existed in the man. This is a worthwhile read that will bring you close to the man Steve Jobs and the philosophy of Apple.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

There has been several comments on the narration. It is not the best nor the worst I have heard. But it did not take away from my thoroughly enjoying this book from start to finish.

Skip the movies about Steve Jobs....

25 wonderful hours of getting to know Steve Jobs. Amazing story of an amazing man. Good job, Walter Isaacson.

Excellent

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

The quality of the story and the narration are exemplary. I learned a lot from listening.

Amazing!

Great look into the life of one of the best minds of history. Learned a lot about Mr. Jobs as well as the history of technology. Highly recommend this.

Great book

Great biography book that is read very well. Steve Jobs and Walt Disney truly changed the world. I enjoyed listening to both of their biographies.

Great inspiring story

This met all my expectations and was a great listen. Very inspiring and balanced view of Jobs. I just wish the chapter order was a little better as it jumped around in the timeline of things.