This unauthorized biography came out in 2001, after the return of Steve Jobs to Apple and the undeniable success of the iMac. It’s by no means a definitive book about Steve Jobs (the mercurial technology guru wasn’t interviewed for this book and had no part in it) and certainly not the best (it spends way too much time with amateur psychoanalysis and is at times frustratingly dirt-dishing), but it has a few things to recommend it: first, I found the writing of Alan Deutschman by-and-large entertaining, and second, there’s a parallel story about the early days of Pixar that at least to me, was new information.

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The Second Coming Of Steve Jobs begins with his removal from Apple Computer, and follows the computer visionary as he struggles to rise, phoenix-like from his ashes by starting a new company, NeXT computer, and purchasing the floundering Pixar from George Lucas. Throughout the process it shows how his personal quirks affect many aspects of each startup, from the expectation of perfection from employees, his anger at Apple computer, to the value of style in addition to (and sometimes over) substance.

This book is filled with anecdotes offered up by acquaintances and co-workers of Jobs, and even delves into some minutiae that is far too gossipy in nature for my taste: the various “New York” women Jobs dated, his relationship to Larry Ellison (including a bizarre prank they played on an Apple fan who naively wanted to be CEO of the struggling, late nineties Apple), and his propensity to manage underlings through rants, tirades, and expletives.

Although many of the stories were taken from a wide range of personal interviews and sources, I noticed some common threads throughout:

1. Many voiced difficultly understanding how Jobs could be charming one moment while cruel and cutting the next.
2. Whether or not his tirades were real or faked for effect, for many they were a powerful motivator to do their best work. By obsessing over tiny details (maybe 1% of the actual work), many reacted by putting their full energies into making the other 99% exemplar, even if Jobs never personally commented on it.
3. The psychology of failure (NeXT layoffs, and Disney halting production on Pixar’s first attempts at Toy Story) were quite possibly cathartic, enabling him to move beyond his past business failures, and return to Apple renewed, while simultaneously bringing Pixar forward to astounding (even by Hollywood standards) success.

All in all, I found this book a mesmerizing read. I’d advise keeping in mind that it was based on many anecdotes likely tainted by the passage of time (and sometimes unclear motivations) and therefore should be taken with a grain of salt. Until we get the Steve Job’s version of iWoz, the Jobs legacy will still largely be a question mark.

But if you concentrate on the facts presented here, it provides a nice framework - and there’s no denying Apple’s moves from 2001 to the present give more evidence to this book’s basic concept that Steve Jobs did in fact “return” from the technological grave - stronger than before - and along the way, turned Apple and Pixar into brand names that evoke quality and excellence.

Disclosure: I own a tiny amount of Apple stock.

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