The New New Thing: A Silicon Valley Story

This sort of thing can only happen in the US. I wish there were more places like this in the world, where people put money into your vision of the future. The story told here is just that - how an eccentric man, Clark, imagines the future and creates it through the help of the best brains in software, the VCs in Silicon Valley and of course from the investing public. The book is good to give the reader an overview of how companies and their visionary owners are creating the future. Lewis is a writer of deep insight ( this comes through in many parts of the book). He has kept the pace of the book very close to probably the pace of life in the Valley. Read it once. Its good entertainment.

The parts of the growth of Clark's companies and the more centrally focused Silicon Valley focus: superb and riveting.

The parts about Clark;s boat: utterly disposable, hence the rating I give the book. (I could, I would rate it a 3.5/5)

Lewis writes with great wit and charm. This book takes you to the beginning of Internet stock-market mania, chronicling Jim Clark, an engineer, company founder, and sailing enthusiast who is always focusing on "the new new thing."
As much as I enjoyed this book, I found that it ran out of steam about three-quarters of the way through. Still, it was lots of fun.

I was really expecting to like this a lot. Although I enjoyed parts of the book, it is not 1/100th as good as Liar's Poker. I don't know much more about Jim Clark than before I started reading the book. I found the details about the Hyperion boring. Still other parts are mildly entertaining. If you haven't read Po Broson's First $20M is Always the Hardest Part don't waste your time on this. I hate to get caught on details, but indicating Microsoft as an NYSE company was an enormous loss of credibility for me. Lewis' IPO, easy money for him, not much for the benefit of the reader.

I bought this book after listening to Michael Lewis on NPR. It turned out to be, probably, one of my favorite leisure books of all time. It is a remarkable story about a remarkable and ingenious man (Jim Clark) mostly taking place on a fantastic yacht called the Hyperion. You can appreciate this book at many levels. If you are an engineer/scientist you will enjoy this book. If you are an Entrepreneur or businessman you will find great company in Jim Clark. If you sail you will be nailed by the Hyperion adventure.
Michael's excellent writing makes this accurate and detailed book a joy to read. I would have loved to read the pages where Jim slashes Bill Gates but they were probably left out to be politically correct. Also some sections in the book were page fillers and should have been left out to save time.

Lewis takes what would be a boring subject to most people and turns it into an interesting and creative book. Lewis combines the history of the Internet and a narrative to create a book that teaches readers about the business world. Since this book was not just history, it made me interested in what Lewis was writing about.
"The New New World" is about Jim Clark setting out to conform his business to the coorporate world he is competing against. Clark is the founder of three multi-billion dollar companies and must compete against other multi-billion dollar companies such as Microsoft to stay successful.
Through this book you are able to see the business world in a new light. It is not what some people might see it as. "The New New World" is an intriging book that changes the conventional thinking to a new world of thinking through the mind of Jim Clark.
It is a good book that combines the business world, economics and a narrative to create a book that allows readers to see the new way to look at the business world.

The Biography of Jim Clark, a Silicon Valley multimillionaire, who dropped out of high school when he was Seventeen. The book went through his life up until present day. It tells the story of a person who from the beginning was always a little different. In grade school he was the class clown, in the navy he was an underestimated genus and in the high tech world he was creative mastermind. His ideas lead him to start Silicon Graphics, Netscape and Healtheon.
This story was very moving to me because of the incredible path which he took to reach his success. It was very interesting because not only was Jim Clark able to start more than one company which achieved incredible success within the high tech stock markets but he was able to do it completely on his own steam. He never asked anyone for help yet he would offer a helping hand.

Jim Clark is god, and Michael Lewis is his prophet. I don't think so, but hey, I'm just a mathematically challenged european.
The book gives a comprehensive insight to Jim Clark's achievements. I agree with the author, that this man really rocked the world of the 90s. The facts around this visionary makes the book worth reading.
Unfortunately, I can't cope with the style, the book is written in. It's pure encomium of Jim Clark and total condemnation of everyone, who had even only a slightly different view of the world than him (or should I say, than the author?). Believe it or not, it even made me feel sorry for Microsoft on few occasions.
Jim Lewis is definitely somebody with an ego even larger than the U.S. health care market. But then, read the book an judge on your own.

I was a big fan of Lewis's Liar's Poker and was hoping for a similar treatment of the dot-com era ridiculousness. However, this is really a biography of Jim Clark -- basically one of those narcissistic, whiny executives who insists that every second of his time is 100x more valuable than your whole life. The problem is, Lewis basically agrees, fawning all over him, hanging on his every move just in case some tiny morsel of wisdom falls from the corner of Clark's mouth. It's also already a little myopic, in that "visionaries" with no real business model and a disdain for human interaction aren't at the top of the food chain these days (good thing Clark already made his $$). Interesting, however, for a glimpse into how foolish VCs can be. I couldn't get past the first half of the book, though, thoroughly uninterested in the fate of Clark's big big boat.

Having read all of Lewis' work, I do not rate this one as high as the others. Liar's Poker and Trail Fever both have far more amuzing anecdotes. Nevertheless, Lewis possesses a descriptive writing style, and he reminds me of Tom Wolfe in his ability to offer subtle insight. Jim Clark's massive sailboat serves as a metaphor for many things, including the man's character. The final 100 pages were more interesting than the first 170. I expected an updated Liar's Poker, but this book is slightly different, although the message is similar. It fits nicely into Lewis' collection, but his first is still his best. Buy it -- it's a fast and interesting read, but read Liar's Poker first -- it is far funnier.

While not Michael Lewis' best book, the story is interesting enough. It's somewhat long and plodding with a lot of unnecessary detail on individual characters' decision making processes. The macro subjects make the book worthwhile. Unfortunately, the narrator's decision to give each character a different voice/accent is a horrible flop and distracts from the story. His Indian accents sound Scottish, Jim Clark is apparently always angry and growling and the whole thing is just painful to listen to.

Loved the book. Lewis has the knack for distilling down the driving force of the decades economy to a single person (Jim Clark) and distilling that person down to his own driving forces (ego, superior foresight and a new new sailboat.) I came away with knowledge and context I'd expect to get from a textbook and a reading experience not unlike Dave Berry. Lewis just has this tremendous sense of irony. There is practical information as well. You may find your self tempted to buy every stock which has a CEO graduated from IIT in India.
Regardless of what he writes in the meantime, I'm already looking forward to his take on what will have driven the world of business for the decade ended 2010.

This book is a quick, enjoyable read. A fascinating look into Silicon Valley, web-world, and Jim-Clark-world. It's maddening though that they couldn't figure out why Hyperion's engine kept dying. Lewis went on and on about the problem, but never tells us what caused it. I think that it was either the pressure transducer or the analog-to-digital converter board in the PLC. What do you think?
I would have: 1. Removed the transducer and checked its calibration. 2. Replaced it with another to see if that corrected the problem. 3. Next, if not yet fixed, swap out the A/D board. 4. Check the transducer wire for connection problems.
Oh well, I'm sure Mr. Clark eventually found it and fixed it. I once had a transducer that had similar behavior - turned out to be a crack in the diaphram. The engineer in me would still like to know though...

Heard this book on tape while driving hundreds of miles towards a broiling turkey of a Thanksgiving dinner. I enjoyed very much the author's earier writings, and was surprised how much I disliked this book. What really irked me were the canned phrases and espressions that are more typical of an inexperienced business writer of a consumer magazine like Business Week. Should I consider this a technology book, I learned very little about the Internet. Should I consider this a character book, the style and caracterization was really really weak.

I adored the first half. I got a bit bored in the second half.

Spoiler alert: This book doesn't touch on the fall of the internet boom. Reading this, you'd think a bunch of the internet stocks did great. All of the main characters here come out super wealthy...so, eh...I think it could have been better.

The New New Thing focuses just as much on the players that made Silicon Valley in the last few years and the business trends that have evolved and helped many to become the new super-wealthy as it does on Jim Clark. Many could take this just to be a biography of Clark's life and career. Let's not lie: mostly, it is. The author seems to have the same kind of admiration for Clark that Gail Wynand displays for Howard Roark in Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead. However, in between the constant and, I'll admit, compelling (read this in one day) story line, there are concepts to understand, and a history to comprehend. Definitely a recommended read for the businessman or computer geek.

This is a very funny book, easy to read, very Michael Lewis style. The problem with it is that Michael Lewis becomes a victim of the strong personality of Jim Clark and spends too much time describing meaningless details of Clark's unorthodox behavior. Instead, I think that Michael Lewis could have gone a bit deeper into the heart and soul of Sillicon Valley and give us a more objective perspective of The New New Riches. Maybe Lewis got a few stock options from Clark to make sure that the book was going to say only good things about him..........

I received this a copy for Christmas and read it in one night! That, in and of itself, is the beauty of this book. Yet again, Lewis captivates his audience with a wonderful story full of great characters and experiences. This book is written in a manner educational and elightening, and so enjoyable and easy to read. This book is a must for anyone who has interest in the Valley, new technologies and the New Economy.

I couldn't put this book down.
When the dust settles and historians chronical it, Jim Clark will be to the Internet what Marconi is to radio: genius, entrepreneur, the one who "got it".
As well as that, he was the first to see that scarcity and game theory would turn the tables away from "vulture capitalist" in favor of engineering talent. Karma.

I enjoyed Lewis' book "Liar's Poker" far more than this one. I grew tired of reading about how selfish, self-absorbed and narcissistic Jim Clark is and wanted to read more about the real stories behind the companies Clark created. The "Hyperion" boat plot became something I skimmed through.
I think that Lewis would have had a better book if he focused on multiple companies and people. This entire book could be cut down into a chapter around Clark and his antics. I would have liked to have seen other chapters on Cisco, Kleiner-Perkins, Hotmail, Larry Ellison, Bill Gates etc.

Lewis' book has one key feature that sets it apart from The Silicon Boys & Nudist on the Late Shift - it's extremely well written....this makes it an engaging page turner - a real story you can sink your teeth into - not a string of poorly written vignettes.
The downside?...unlike Liar's Poker, Lewis isn't actually 'in the fray' here, and the third person perspective dulls it a bit....those who have read Liar's Poker will get this off the bat.
Overall, an entertaining & enlightening read, definitely one to have in your quiver as you make the social/networking rounds.

Never, ever, would I have expected to care so much about the travails of capitalists. One roots for the protagonist here not because you want him to be happy, but because if he should quit doing his stuff the world would be so much less interesting. And this book proves that the world RIGHT NOW is much more interesting than I, at least, ever realized. On just about every page there is reason to say "Oh Lord, no way." I said it at least once out loud on a plane and my seat mate agreed that this was such a book. She had finished it in one sitting.

This book is good, but not great. If I hadn't so loved LIAR'S POKER, I might give this a higher rating. But NEW NEW THING didn't have nearly the energy of LIAR'S POKER, that had Lewis relating HIS OWN experiences. NEW NEW is basically a biography, and not an especially interesting one at that, a lot of the time. Nonetheless, there are some great PARTS in the book, and anyone reading this review obviously has some interest in the internet, and so should find the book of special interest.

Michael Lewis's The New New Thing covers the human element of the corporate world! The text is simple, effective and to the point. I can almost "see" Mr. Lewis telling the story of Jim Clark. This book can be retold which is the secret of good writing. Vertical and horizontal markets are explained in one sentence. The miracle of Jim Clark not conforming to the corporate world is very well illustrated. The idea that a corporate giant is like any other creative person is wonderful. Mr. Lewis did an excellent job of making an Internet giant to a personal level! Well done.

Michael Lewis provides a very insightful look into the psyche of Silicon Valley through the eyes of Jim Clark. At times, the details were a bit dry, but Clark's personality combined with Lewis' humor provided for a single sitting read.

I loved the story line and the wit of the author and Jim Clark. It was too long of a story to read but provided hours of wonderful listening. The story behind the story and the madness behind the man that is Jim Clark! Wonderful!

An incredibly interesting read about a truly maniacal guy. Genius? not so sure; does the man have ANY feel for relating to humans?.
Loved it when it was dealing about Clark's unorthodox, narcissistic approach to business, dealing with VCs, dealing with life. Had absolutely no use and/or interest in the boat stuff, and couldn't get through that fast enough. Why did Lewis need to make that garbage such a centerpiece? That was 11th on a list of 10 reasons why I picked it up in the first place. Thankfully, the tales about SGI, Netscape, and Healtheon were sufficiently interesting to make this a worthwhile reading experience.

I read a couple of books each week. The New New Thing : A Silicon Valley Story by Michael Lewis is one of the best books I've read in a long time. Well written, fun to read, and educational. It gave me some insight into the mind and motivation of Jim Clark, the founder of Silicon Graphics, Netscape, and Healtheon. Its more of a "how to think about new technology" rather than a "how to invest book."

This was my first Michael Lewis book and it did not disappoint. He captures moments like no author I have ever read. I felt like I was right there with Jim Clark and certainly wished I had been privileged enough to be. I have the feeling when you read one Michael Lewis book all you want to do is read more!

An interesting look into the world of Silicon Valley, but very one-sided toward Jim Clark. Although, ater a while, you just don't care about Clark's fantasy of his computer controlled boat, Hyperion. That said, Lewis is a good writer and the book flows well.
The discussions of how VCs operate and the culture of Sand Hill Road is fairly interesting.
You can read it in a weekend.

Jim Clark, whatever you may think of him, doesn't do things in a small way and Michael Lewis, who writes so wonderfully well, captures the essence of Clark and the wackiness of Silicon Valley. Wonderful read.

If you have read any of Michael Lewis's other books and found them enjoyable (either writing style or topic), you will find this a good read, worthy of your time. You will learn a little about the atmosphere of Silicon Valley during the height of the bubble / late 90s as well as about a very unique figure who helped (over exagerated, per Economist) start it all.

Lewis managed to pull off a rare feat: he published a book at the height of the dot-com mania without sounding foolish in hindsight. Lewis exhibited a healthy skepticism of the mania and the book has thus aged well.

Lewis does an excellent investigate job, as always, and his usual exceptional story-telling ability is displayed.

I was very disappointed in this book. It is completely lacking insight into the world of high tech. My impression is that Michael Lewis had enjoyed hanging out with a very rich man and needed to write up something, anything, to sort of justify the time he had wasted and so he just strung some pointless, not very interesting anecdotes together. I feel that I have been had. It really is a rather rubbishy book.

Very well written but gives an insight into Clark's life more than an insight into Silicon Valley. Reads more like a biography and does not capture the wheeling dealing in Silicon Valley whcih the reader might have expected to see.

What a great read! If all non-fiction technology were as much fun as this, it's all I'd read. The use of the yacht throughout the story keeps the book reading as part adventure yarn and lets Lewis move the plot along. Certainly for those folks doing serious web investing this book will give you pause - is there a there, there? Buy it, you'll read it in a weekend.

Combining a fascinating story of colorful characters, his deep insight into economics, and something akin to journalism, Michael Lewis is at his best once again in this portrait of "man of his time", Jim Clark and the awakening of the Internet.

I was really looking forward to reading this book, especially after such rave reviews from the New York Times etc. The book starts out slow and then continues to dribble on. The story is as much about Michael Lewis as it is about Jim Clark. The boat story is dragged on way too long, and what is the message? Maybe I just missed the point, but there appears not to be one. So, Jim Clark was successful and a cowboy. If that is it, then this should have been a good story in a magazine. It is too much of the same thing said over and over again. I really had hoped I would enjoy this book.

This was a very good, entertaining book. It doesn't go into very deep technical detail, but tells another very interesting success story from Silicon Valley. Each chapter has it's own story, but as you read the book, a bigger picture is unfolded.
The book gives a good look at the life of Jim Clark and his importance to the development of computers. Despite a few minor mischaracterizations of Clark, you should read this book if your interested in Silicon Valley history.

The importance of The New New Thing is not as a biography. This book is, at heart, an allegorical diary of a time in economic history which needs telling. Think of it more as a loose diary of a fascinating period where wealth dreams came true for a wide range of people. The central character is simply the extreme dream, required for the book to provide a compelling story line. Many more books are / will be writen of this time. Few will be as fun to read.

Michael Lewis attempts to take on explaining the growth of the Net and the Silicon Valley through the career of Jim Clark, but falls short of expectations. Though lucid and humorous in parts, the overall impact is flat. Focuses too much on the man and not enough on his machines, barring the Hyperion. The book dwells at length on Hyperion to bring out the idiosyncracies of the main protagonist.

A great look inside the life and mind of Jim Clark....a man with vast prescience and hubris. Highly recommended to those with an interest in innovation, venture cvapital, technology, and the Internet.
A solid attempt to break down the porcess of innovation and the lens with which to look at the world in order to find and bring the new new thing to the broad market.

A bit disappointing compared to his other books. But very well-written with the usual great Lewis humor. Very well researched and interesting although the book really doesn't say much. Entertaining but no real insight. A disappoint for Lewis.

For the record, I just want to make it clear that this is a story of Jim Clark's life more than anything else. Considering that Lewis hung out with him for a considerable time to get the story down, I am not surprised. What it does not do, is give you a good idea of what a startup experience is like - Jim Clark is clearly an excepetion, not the rule.

What a nice surprise this book was! I could not put it down. It gave real insight into pieces of news that I read over the years concerning Silicon Graphics, Netscape, Healtheon, and more recently MyCFO. It was entertaining and educational. I laughed outloud several times. If you have one ounce of entreprenuerial spirit, this book will motivate you to follow your instincts and take action.

I just put this book down, and I'm somewhat dissapointed that I put aside other books to devote time to this one. For the most part this book, in a long drawn out way, deifies Jim Clark and his bold, brash personality, an undertaking I don't feel the need to observe. The book offers only a superficial view of the workings of Silicon Valley and its response to new products, and offers no insight into the specific workings of any of the nascent corporations. All in all I walked away from this book disappointed, and with little to no increase in my Internet education.