Becoming Steve Jobs

Why it’s on the list: Schlender covered Jobs for twenty-five years; the book’s argument is that the NeXT and Pixar wilderness years are what turned him into the operator who ran Apple’s second act.

Where I heard about it

• Replies to @typesfast — named in the answers to his question “What’s the best history book you’ve read?” (the thread, June 2025). The full list of replies is on What’s the best history book… (tweet).

Connections

• Steve Jobs — The subject.
• Apple — The company.
• Pixar — The wilderness years the book argues were the making of him.
• Leadership — The book’s actual claim: that he learned it.
• Biography — The form.
• What’s the best history book… (tweet) — the thread this recommendation came from.