5. Options: The Secret Life of Steve Jobs, A Parody by Daniel Lyons
This is another instance of "only the geeks would get it." The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs, a once-anonymous blog created by Forbes editor Daniel Lyons (under the pseudonym "Fake Steve Jobs"), was a runaway hit with the Techmeme set as it lampooned the iconic Apple CEO and all the people around him. Unfortunately, Fake Steve's influence failed to reach very far outside Silicon Valley, and so the novelized version of the blog, published in November, has a narrow potential audience indeed.
Additionally, three CNET News.com reporters who read Options agreed that the book just isn't that good. It has its funny moments, but the plot doesn't really work (especially considering that a shareholder lawsuit over Apple's stock options mess was just dismissed), and some of the most hilarious characters from the Secret Diary, like Squirrel Boy (a.k.a. Google CEO Eric Schmidt) and Mr. Bigglesworth (Valleywag gossip blogger Owen Thomas) failed to merit any appearances in the novel.
So, yeah, skip this one. Get your favorite Apple geek some new iPod accessories instead.
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