Finally finished Walter Isaacson’s Steve Jobs bio this morning. It was very good, not insanely great. Extremely comprehensive and obviously required reading for Apple fans, students of business or technology and the generally curious, but probably not the transcendent and definitive work biographer and subject had in mind when they got together a few years ago, maybe a few years too late.
Overall, the pages are heavy on fact but not too long on perspective, probably because there wasn’t really the opportunity to tackle that piece, assuming the subject had the inclination - and that is a necessary assumption. It’s an enjoyable read that has the feel of a slightly hastily-prepared “as told to” recollection, with long copy block quotes, historical data and supplemental interviews thrown in to help provide an occasional counterpoint, as needed - Gates, Wozniak, Ive, Cook, family members, etc.
You find yourself left wanting more but realizing that, from the man himself, in his own voice, you’re never going to get it. Isaacson was his chosen vessel, with not much time left in an extraordinary life to really fully probe it, as opposed to trying to cover it. The writer clearly had unprecedented access, but you wonder about the length and depth of those “more than 40” personal interviews with someone who was struggling with the rigors of running a preeminent company, being the focal point of a family and navigating his own mortality.
One gets the sense Isaacson didn’t have the opportunity or inclination to hassle an unwell Jobs about details that might have provided a more insightful lens, like why he sent food back in restaurants so often, how he could treat some people so badly without really internalizing his actions and what it took to perceive that frequently razor-thin line between “complete shit” and perfection. He was more reporter than biographer in this engagement, almost certainly compromised, or at least co-opted, by the experience of watching his subject’s final days, as part of his trusted inner circle. I think back to the affable Isaacson’s promotional appearances on Charlie Rose and 60 Minutes, and what I saw was genuine affection for his partner in the project and an “aw shucks” giddiness at having been chosen for the assignment. It didn’t sound like Caro talking about Robert Moses, or a detached and contemptuous Edmund Morris sniffing about Reagan. It sounded like someone who got invited to a once-in-a-lifetime party, happy for the chance to - with a reasonable degree of distance and decorum - gush about his host.
The rare glimpses into Jobs’s family life at home, final years at Apple and struggle to stay one step ahead of the cancer that killed him were fascinating, current, accessible and real. Highlights of the book, for me. The record of his early career and success - clearly something Isaacson set out to nail - is meticulously reconstructed. The bio is long and wide on what, and - at times - frustratingly wanting on why. You get the history and the incredible things Jobs accomplished, you get to hear him talk about it, but you don’t really, ultimately, get him. Maybe he was ungettable. You kind of wish he and Isaacson had twice the time together, under less arduous circumstances, to really take their shot at putting it all down in print.
What did he think about the rise and impact of social media? How were the specific elements of his famous keynotes put together, the process of presenting? Why did he develop and maintain such bizarre dietary habits, even when they threatened to shorten his life? What were the specific words he liked to use to fire someone? It would even have been interesting to have seen one of those marathon 3-hour Monday morning senior staff meetings deconstructed - what did they sound like, who spoke when, what kinds of things did Steve write down on his whiteboard? We don’t get much of that here.
Maybe one of his key lieutenants will write a book at some point, further round out the picture. Maybe with some time and space his sister Mona Simpson puts fingers to keys as a follow-up to her extraordinary eulogy. Maybe Walt has something more in mind. Maybe someone stands on the shoulders of Isaacson and his singular source material and produces a deeper and richer look. Just based on his quotes and proximity to Jobs in the early years, I’d pay good money for anything Andy Hertzfeld had to say. We don’t get the sense wife Laurene Powell - the saint of the book, rock of the family and a truly elevating partner - has any inclination to transgress privacy by sharing her perspective, which would be fascinating.
“Steve Jobs” is well worth the time and will clearly serve as the definitively comprehensive volume on Steve and Apple. I’m glad the words are rattling around upstairs and am sure I’ll return to portions of the text again - came as close as ever to wearing out my virtual iPad highlighter. Isaacson offers up a very large helping of key and rare pieces of the puzzle, but not the fully-assembled look you were hoping for. That will take some time, and likely a few more voices, if it ever comes to be.
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