May Catch Up

Well The Power Broker  by Robert A. Caro proved to be too much for one month. That wasn't really a surprise. It is excellent reading however, interesting and nicely paced. I haven't made nearly the progress that I wanted to. I've been distracted by my women's history blog which I love writing for.

A friend from times long past has joined me in writing for it. She is very enthusiastic which has encouraged me to write at a faster rate than I have in the past. Her name is Susan as well and her expertise is in European royalty, primarily British royalty. Susan's expertise is much more extensive than mine. She majored in history and has continued to read everything she could get her hands on about the areas that interested her. Unlike moi, who took a detour into STEM. People seem much more interested in reading about her queens than my mathematicians and scientists. Go figure!

While I continue through The Power Broker, I am reading a couple of other things that you might find interesting: Other Powers: The Age of Suffrage, Spiritualism, and the Scandalous Victoria Woodhull by Barbara Goldsmith, which I've read before, but am rereading while I start a blog series on women's suffrage, and Sisters: The Lives of America's Suffragists by Jean H. Baker about five of the women who were instrumental in American women getting the vote (Lucy Stone, Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Frances Willard, Alice Paul.) I just got it, but am very excited about reading.

Well, I have a lot of reading to do! What are you reading?

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

I'm not a technophobe or a "gadget geek" as I call a friend of mine. I use technology when it suits my needs, but don't feel the need to run out and get the latest, sexiest new device. That may explain why I've always been a PC gal, but the people I know who have Apple products love them.

Steve Jobs was a genius at combining technology with artistry, which was one of his goals along with building a great company. This is also a somewhat simplistic statement. Jobs' goals, along with the man himself, were complex. From his feelings about being adopted to his abandonment of his own daughter, from his refusal to work with anything less than "A players" to his "reality distortion field", Isaacson does a superb job of walking us through the complexities of the life and accomplishments of the man behind Apple and Pixar.

I am old enough to have taken Fortran IV and used keypunch cards to submit my programs, so I remember when Apple computers were first introduced and the fierce debates between PC and Apple fans over the years. However, I have not followed the career of Jobs, so much of the book was new to me. If you follow technology news closely, I suggest that you read a number of reviews before buying the book. If you are looking for a rundown of events, or a history of Jobs' companies and the technology, you might be disappointed. If you read biographies for a look inside the person, to try to understand what makes them tick, their admirable and non-so-admirable traits, and what contributed to their success, I don't think you will be disappointed. I wasn't.