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149th out of 161 books
—
52 voters
The Nudist on the Late Shift: And Other True Tales of Silicon Valley
by
Po Bronson
As a novelist and writer for Wired and other publications, Po Bronson has earned a reputation as the most exciting and authentic literary voice to emerge from Silicon Valley. In his national bestseller The Nudist on the Late Shift he tells the true story of the mostly under-thirty entrepreneurs and tech wizards, immigrants and investors, dreamers and visionaries, who see t...more
Paperback, 252 pages
Published
May 2nd 2000
by Broadway
(first published 1999)
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This is a book about life in the Silicon Valey when the bubble economy was still booming. People were in frenzy investing, starting up a company, changing jobs to the highest offer, etc.
Being an IT student at that time, I was a little discouraged. That is not the kind of life I want to lead. Despite the heroism, I think they just simply dont have a life.
Being an IT student at that time, I was a little discouraged. That is not the kind of life I want to lead. Despite the heroism, I think they just simply dont have a life.
re-read some of the chapters. Still a great read. Anyone who is a 'true entrepreneur' will enjoy this. I read it when it first came out, when real strains in the dot-com bubble were appearing. Far too many people were coming to the valley with the 'get rich scheme' mentality rather than as true entrepreneurs - who simply want to make something better and maybe change the world in the process. great to read again now, as it seems we're entering another bubble... this isn't a 'how-to' book, more o...more
I thought this book would be more interesting than it was. It follows some unusual stories about techees in the corporate world. Who cares if a guy likes to work naked in a corporate office when no one is there. It may have been just me but I would have been more interested in it if there wasn't the presumption that techees don't do stupid things that normal people do. I also found the writing style to be more critical of its subject than I cared for. Almost like he was making fun of them and no...more
This book was WAY cooler in the mid-90's, when working in a tech firm was still the coolest thing you could be doing in America. Nevertheless, it's still an insightful read. Po Bronson has a good head on his shoulders, and his writing is as relevant in bust today as it was back then. I really need to find out what he's up to now.
Bronson started out swiftly but the book runs out of steam about two-thirds of the way through. Over ten years old now but the book still paints a picture of the go-go times in the late 1990s when customer acquisition was the driving force and profits were ignored. We all know what happened.
Read this years ago on a recommendation from my editor. Seemed dated even then, but maybe that's because my dotcom experience took place in TX and MA, not Silicon Valley itself.
Overall though, I remember thinking that the book was all title and no point.
Overall though, I remember thinking that the book was all title and no point.
Jul 29, 2011
Ning
added it
Awesome overview of the valley zeitgeist and reflections from the first dot com boom. The characters are perfectly suited for follow up now that a decade has passed. Especially intriguing is the profile of Eric Schimdt before the Google phase.
Apr 29, 2013
Skyring
marked it as to-read
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11879547
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11879547
If you really wonder what really happen to the peoples in Silicon Valley this is the book that can show you the real live of those peoples.
if you've lived in the valley or chased the IPO dream ... then these are fun stories ... tall tales and true from the legendary past ...
Mar 29, 2013
Lori Grant
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
small-business-success-stories
A should-read book on entrepreneurial success stories for the knowledge worker or aspiring entrepreneur.
The copy I read was publisher's advance copy, so there were 'TK's sprinkled amongst the pages.
I love reading books about the 90s Internet bubble, and this is one of my favorites.
brilliant book about silicon valley workers during the dotcom boom in the 90's
I read this a while ago ... remember liking it. :0)
enjoyable reading
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Although this is a little bit dated, this collection of disparate stories has some very interesting and telling tales of the odd and confused life of people in venture capital fueled software development. The section on sales is one of the best descriptions of the motivations of high tech sales people I have ever read. Some may think these days are over; I can tell you there not.
I read that book in late 2000, right at the end of the dot.com boom. The book went into the culture and atmosphere of Silicon Valley, how weird it was, how exciting it was, how people came to find their fortunes, how money was thrown around like no tomorrow. It was fascinating, and around that time, my boss and I were working on a dot.com thing that never took off.
I loved the author's writing style; it reminds me of Stephen Ambrose. He tells other people's experiences and links them together to illustrate the boom and plunge of the .commer era of the 90s in Silicon Valley.
This is not the typical book I would have read, but it furthered my theory that real life is more interesting than fiction.
This is not the typical book I would have read, but it furthered my theory that real life is more interesting than fiction.
Really, the name was the most clever thing about this book. The author would bring up an interesting subject - a dot.com billionaire that still sleeps under his desk! - and then blah the story down until it was stumbling and pedantic to read. Good hook, no backup.
"Many vignettes of Silicon Valley in the late 90s, totaling to an insightful portrait. Catches my motivations very well in the outset by describing how the Valley creates a place where you can have a real job and wild adventures at the same time."
a fascinating piece of journalism. starts off with the attempt at creating a visual anecdote or metaphor of the silicon valley and ends up brining in the human element and emotions to hardcore business.
To be honest, I could never get through this book. Outdated before it was published, I just couldn't enjoy it. Maybe I should take it off my bookshelf
about silicon valley. tale about computer guys starting a business. really liked, because I like the author and you get a real feel for dot coms etc…
I have been reading some of those silicon valley and Internet boom books, not yet found the one I like the best.This one has some good stories
Jul 13, 2008
Sasha
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
people who want to know what the .com boom was like
Recommended to Sasha by:
Chirag Khopkar
Shelves:
smartypants
I liked this book until my friend Taras pointed out that the first chapter was ripped off from the movie Weird Science.
Great stories about the Silicon Valley during the dot com boom. Interesting to live through it and read about it as well.
Oct 31, 2008
Brett
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
engineers, nerds, disaffected college students
An enjoyable book about Silicon Valley. Kind of depressing at times, but overall a good read.
Full review here: http://landismom.wordpress.com/2008/0...
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Po Bronson has built a career both as a successful novelist and as a prominent writer of narrative nonfiction. He has published five books, and he has written for television, magazines, and newspapers, including Time, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and for National Public Radio's Morning Edition. Currently he is writing regularly for New York magazine in the United States and for...more
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