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Elon Musk Young Readers’ Edition
Elon Musk is an inspirational role model for young entrepreneurs, breaking boundaries and revolutionising the tech-world. He is also the real-life inspiration for the Iron Man series of films, starring Robert Downey Junior. From his humble beginnings in apartheid South Africa, he showed himself to be an exceptionally bright child, and overcame brutal bullying to become the world’s most exciting entrepreneur, founding PayPal, SpaceX, Tesla and Solar City.He has emerged as something of a superhero-like figure for today’s generation of children. He’s not only seen as an entrepreneur in the spirit of a Steve Jobs but as an inventor and bold thinker. He’s the guy offering children the possibility of a brighter, more exciting future and has come to symbolize innovation and optimism.
288 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 24, 2017
298 people are currently reading
1937 people want to read
About the author
Ashlee Vance
13 books1,813 followersAshlee Vance is an award winning feature writer for Bloomberg Businessweek magazine. Vance is also the host of the "Hello World" TV show. Previously, he worked for The New York Times and The Register.
Vance was born in South Africa, grew up in Texas and attended Pomona College. He has spent more than a decade covering the technology industry from San Francisco and is a noted Silicon Valley historian.
Vance was born in South Africa, grew up in Texas and attended Pomona College. He has spent more than a decade covering the technology industry from San Francisco and is a noted Silicon Valley historian.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
September 24, 2018
If an autobiography book is able to get into my favorites shelf, there is a life on Mars.
This book was the definition of awesome, amazing, idk you tell me.
Like, Elon Musk is a great entrepreneur, even though he has had some mistakes.
I am aware of the fact that he can act like a complete jerk sometimes, but because his actions are not selfish and for a better future, I will applause him.
Also, anyone Neil Degrasse Tyson likes, I like. That's the rule.
This book was the definition of awesome, amazing, idk you tell me.
Like, Elon Musk is a great entrepreneur, even though he has had some mistakes.
I am aware of the fact that he can act like a complete jerk sometimes, but because his actions are not selfish and for a better future, I will applause him.
Also, anyone Neil Degrasse Tyson likes, I like. That's the rule.
February 15, 2018
Elon Musk for president 2020! I’m officially obsessed with this man, I don’t think the world has ever seen anyone so amazing and I’m sure that after he is gone he will be looked back upon as a wonder.
“When Elon gets into something, he develops just this different level of interest in it than other people,” Farooq said. “That is what differentiates Elon from the rest of humanity.”
“That’s part of what separates Elon from mere mortals” ... “He’s willing to take an insane amount of personal risk.”
...“[Musk] doesn’t say, ‘You have to do this by Friday at two p.m.’ He says, ‘I need the impossible done by Friday at two p.m. Can you do it?’ Then, when you say yes, you are not working hard because he told you to. You’re working hard for yourself. It’s a distinction you can feel. You have signed up to do your own work.”
“SolarCity, like the rest of Musk’s ventures, did not represent a business opportunity so much as it represented a worldview.”
“This tendency for risk has little to do with Musk being insane, as he had once wondered aloud. No, Musk just seems to possess a level of passionate belief that is so intense and exceptional as to be off-putting to some. As we shared some chips and guacamole, I asked Musk directly just how much he was willing to put on the line. His response? Everything that other people hold dear. He would eventually be willing to give up his family and companies to spend his last years on Mars. “I would like to die on Mars,” he said. “Just not on impact.”
“So many people talk about the problems facing the planet and its citizens. They spend years arguing over ideas, while taking precious little action to try and actually solve the issues. Musk is the antidote to such behavior. He’s a man of action.”
“When Elon gets into something, he develops just this different level of interest in it than other people,” Farooq said. “That is what differentiates Elon from the rest of humanity.”
“That’s part of what separates Elon from mere mortals” ... “He’s willing to take an insane amount of personal risk.”
...“[Musk] doesn’t say, ‘You have to do this by Friday at two p.m.’ He says, ‘I need the impossible done by Friday at two p.m. Can you do it?’ Then, when you say yes, you are not working hard because he told you to. You’re working hard for yourself. It’s a distinction you can feel. You have signed up to do your own work.”
“SolarCity, like the rest of Musk’s ventures, did not represent a business opportunity so much as it represented a worldview.”
“This tendency for risk has little to do with Musk being insane, as he had once wondered aloud. No, Musk just seems to possess a level of passionate belief that is so intense and exceptional as to be off-putting to some. As we shared some chips and guacamole, I asked Musk directly just how much he was willing to put on the line. His response? Everything that other people hold dear. He would eventually be willing to give up his family and companies to spend his last years on Mars. “I would like to die on Mars,” he said. “Just not on impact.”
“So many people talk about the problems facing the planet and its citizens. They spend years arguing over ideas, while taking precious little action to try and actually solve the issues. Musk is the antidote to such behavior. He’s a man of action.”
September 30, 2019
I was hoping this book would be more about Musk himself and what makes him tick, but instead it focused on Tesla and SpaceX. It was a good book if you wanted to read about those two companies but not necessarily about Musk himself.
dnfs
February 21, 2024Just read the first chapter for a translating test. The book seemed cool, but didn't have the time to complete it :)
March 3, 2018
"'Can you do it?' Then, when you say yes, you are not working hard because he told you to. You're working hard for yourself.It''s a distinction you can feel. You have signed up to do your own work."
"Musk is a role model for life in the twenty-first century. He's taken on big ideas, found ways to bend technology to his will, and tried his absolute best to ensure that mankind has a bright future. I, for one, can't wait to see what he does next."
"Musk is a role model for life in the twenty-first century. He's taken on big ideas, found ways to bend technology to his will, and tried his absolute best to ensure that mankind has a bright future. I, for one, can't wait to see what he does next."
April 12, 2018
I'm not sure how I ended up checking this book out from the library. I think it was because at the time of the most recent SpaceX launch, I had no idea who Elon Musk was or that there was any private company working on space travel. I'd also heard something about a car company called Tesla. So, obviously not being a person who has followed these recent technologies, this was an interesting book, and I'm glad I read it.
The writing of this book and the depiction of Musk correspond well to the cover. Exciting! Futuristic! Passionate! From the start, it is clear that Musk is an eccentric character. Brilliant, absolutely. But definitely quirky. He is forward-thinking, innovative, demanding, exacting, and precise. The characterization of Musk as being someone who acts very much like a person on the autism spectrum comes across loud and clear from the earliest pages of the book, and I wondered repeatedly through the book whether the author would spell it out in so many words. He did, but not until the last chapter.
Positive elements: Musk overcame a lot. He's brilliant and incredibly tenacious. I'm super impressed by his forward thinking, and also that he figured out ways to build these things so much more cheaply than how the rest of the world was/is doing it. I think the thing which impresses me most is that he has openly shared the technology that is being used to design the Tesla cars. That speaks louder to me than anything else that Musk is truly making these cars, and wants others to make these kinds of cars, for the betterment of the planet. I know little to nothing about the technology industry, but opening that information to the public seems to me like the sort of thing that could put Tesla under. Yet Musk wants so much to SAVE THE PLANET! (please forgive the capitals... it just seems very much like it is in all capitals, all the time, in Musk's mind) that he is willing for Tesla to go under if it means that the planet can be saved. Really an interesting, unusual decision for a billionaire! Making electric cars is not one of my life's passions, but it's certainly one of Musk's, and I applaud that he has gone after it so whole-heartedly. He has repeatedly risked everything on his ventures.
The book skims light on his personal life as an adult. Is this because he has been too busy with his companies to have much of a personal life? It would seem that way. I was surprised that he suddenly divorced his wife. I was even more surprised when he married the next woman he met. Like, he was feeling bad, went to a bar, met a woman, she was pretty, he married her. Although actually, and I think this is accidental, the book only said they started dating. It neglected to mention that they then got married, although it refers to them as a couple throughout the book. It also neglects to mention that they got divorced, then got married again, then got divorced again. I definitely felt the need to do some background research to clear up some questions here.
As written, the book was a pleasant, engaging read. There were a lot of "bit characters," so to speak, and I found myself flipping back multiple times to figure out which person it was who had just quit or was fired by Musk. Hmmm... which one was that... the person who got the company rolling? Yes. Musk's faithful personal assistant? Yes. I'm not sure if the reading of the hiring and firing sections is supposed to be so staccato, or if it's an abbreviation of the longer, adult book version, or if it's just an accurate view of how things go inside Musk's companies. I suspect all three.
I came away from this book glad that I had read it. Having never wanted an electric car before, after reading about Tesla and then watching a few YouTube reviews of Tesla vehicles, I now want a Tesla. So there's that. I am totally skeptical about a colony on Mars ever working out, although I will continue to watch with interest as SpaceX chucks billions of dollars into that project, and it's nice to have more of a clue about the goals there.
I also came away from this book never wanting to work for Elon Musk or work on a project so intensely as to lose focus on all else in life. Yet I think that the book shows accurately Musk's desire to save the world, in the ways that he views it as needing saving, and it seems to accurately reflect that he has counted the cost and found it worthwhile to put these goals - space exploration, electric cars, and solar power usage too - to the forefront of his life, no matter what/who else falls by the wayside.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 18, 2018
This is one I found in a book fair-sale recently and I immediately got it when I saw the name 'Elon Musk' in the cover. I've heard plenty of amazing things about him- and I wanted to broaden my knowledge on other famous entrepreneurs. I heard that the original published book for this was excessively lengthy and there were certain sections that was written too long. Don't get dismayed with this editions title 'Young Readers Edition' (I did at first, thought the writing would have YA feels idk something like that)- but this book is basically just a simplified straight-to-the-point text of Elon Musk's life from childhood to where he's at today. From an event organizer at a young age, the paypal era, complications with Tesla, and the huge project for SpaceX. I feel like if you don't want to spend too much time reading and you just want to get to the point, this edition is for you! Although, I think I'll give the original published book a go just because I'm really interested in Elon Musk and I want to read about his life story in detail. // After reading this book, I definitely idolize Elon Musk. He's extraordinary. He thinks about things people would not dare think about or consider. Even through really tough situations, he manages to be on top. He's determined and it almost seems like nothing will stop him.
April 8, 2018
I read this to introduce to my 5th grade class. I think they will like how passionate he is and the "cool" stuff that he makes. I liked learning more about his background and what drives him as a person. I think we will have some good conversations about this book and whether or not he is a good leader/role model. He certainly is a good example of a person who sees a problem and works really hard to find an answer.
October 30, 2018
On one hand you feel so inadequate in comparison to Musk and his passionate vision. (He's my age...gasp!) Then on the other hand you realize that all that genius comes with a terrible price: a drive so intense that it negatively impacts all his relationships.
Less a full biography on Musk and more about the empire in which he lives and the many people who help keep Tesla and Space X in the forefront of technological advances. An incredibly interesting story.
Grades 7 and up.
Less a full biography on Musk and more about the empire in which he lives and the many people who help keep Tesla and Space X in the forefront of technological advances. An incredibly interesting story.
Grades 7 and up.
May 1, 2021
I gave up on this. I don’t particularly find him impressive and was reading this to please someone I’ve broken with. Got far enough to suspect I still wouldn’t admire him if I had given this a fair try.
November 2, 2020
Ez az ember egy őrült. A szó lehető legjobb verziójában. Nem véletlenül kezdődik úgy az egész könyv, hogy:
„-Őrültnek tart? – ezt a kérdést szegezte nekem Elon Musk…”
Ahonnan indul, amilyen családból és országból jön, a megpróbáltatásokkal teli gyerekkorán át, a küzdelmes egyetemi évekig… Amit ő letett az asztalra. Valami eszméletlen. Csak kapkodtam a fejem olvasás közben: Zip2, X.com, Paypal, Life to Mars Foundation, SpaceX, Tesla, Solarcity… nem tartom hülyének magam, de ezt még én is nehezen tudom követni, hogy mit épített fel a semmiből egymás után, és hányszor ment majdnem csődbe, vagy hányszor lett majdnem vége hirtelen a tündérmeséjének. Hihetetlen egy pasas.
Elon Musk napjaink egyik legsikeresebb (és a világ 3. leggazdagabb!) üzletembere. A könyvtárban sajnos csak az ifjúsági verzió volt éppen bent, amikor eszembe jutott, hogy amúgy régóta el akarom olvasni, ettől függetlenül a könyv kiolvasása után úgy gondolom, hogy sok fiatalnak ad képet arról, hogy ha tényleg vannak terveid, céljaid, proaktív vagy, tanulsz, kockáztatsz, és erőn felül teljesítesz [és…és…és…], akkor elérhetsz valamit. Akár nagyon sokat is. A sikert (általában) nem adják ingyen. És megtartani talán még nehezebb, mint felülni a trónra és felvenni a koronát. Musk sok mindent feladott, tönkrement a családi élete, sokszor táncolt pengeélen, és nézzük meg hol tart jelenleg. Valami hihetetlen. Örülök, hogy elolvastam. Utána is fogok nézni, hogy jelenleg hol tartanak a projektjei (és a részvényei :D).
„-Őrültnek tart? – ezt a kérdést szegezte nekem Elon Musk…”
Ahonnan indul, amilyen családból és országból jön, a megpróbáltatásokkal teli gyerekkorán át, a küzdelmes egyetemi évekig… Amit ő letett az asztalra. Valami eszméletlen. Csak kapkodtam a fejem olvasás közben: Zip2, X.com, Paypal, Life to Mars Foundation, SpaceX, Tesla, Solarcity… nem tartom hülyének magam, de ezt még én is nehezen tudom követni, hogy mit épített fel a semmiből egymás után, és hányszor ment majdnem csődbe, vagy hányszor lett majdnem vége hirtelen a tündérmeséjének. Hihetetlen egy pasas.
Elon Musk napjaink egyik legsikeresebb (és a világ 3. leggazdagabb!) üzletembere. A könyvtárban sajnos csak az ifjúsági verzió volt éppen bent, amikor eszembe jutott, hogy amúgy régóta el akarom olvasni, ettől függetlenül a könyv kiolvasása után úgy gondolom, hogy sok fiatalnak ad képet arról, hogy ha tényleg vannak terveid, céljaid, proaktív vagy, tanulsz, kockáztatsz, és erőn felül teljesítesz [és…és…és…], akkor elérhetsz valamit. Akár nagyon sokat is. A sikert (általában) nem adják ingyen. És megtartani talán még nehezebb, mint felülni a trónra és felvenni a koronát. Musk sok mindent feladott, tönkrement a családi élete, sokszor táncolt pengeélen, és nézzük meg hol tart jelenleg. Valami hihetetlen. Örülök, hogy elolvastam. Utána is fogok nézni, hogy jelenleg hol tartanak a projektjei (és a részvényei :D).
August 31, 2022
I am disappointed this account left out almost any discussion of Elon Musk’s family life. Perhaps the author found it inappropriate to disclose in a young reader’s version, but I think it’s necessary for all readers to understand how a career and a person’s ambition affect their personal life. As far as the account of his professional life? Very thorough. I learned a lot about Musk’s professional demeanor and accolades.
June 30, 2019
An interesting look into Elon's childhood, ambition and cleverness. Shows that anything is possible with hard work, determination and patience. A great book to motivate and inspire the youth especially young engineers like myself.
June 10, 2017
A great story about Elon Musk.
June 18, 2018
Rated 4.5 stars
Ages 11+
Ages 11+
May 23, 2019
i’ve always been very interested in elon musk but boy am i literally IN LOVE WITH HIM! i respect his so much as an engineer, and businessman, and an innovator
July 7, 2019
a story about Iron Man in real life
September 1, 2017
The book Elon Musk and the Quest for a Fantastic Future is a great biography of Elon Musk. It tells the story of a random boy from South Africa who grows up to be one of the most successful businessmen. He has billions of dollars, is changing the world, and has three big companies at his disposal. But here’s the question: How did a small boy who was teased a lot become this person we know?
This book’s theme is “Follow you dreams and if you work really hard, they can come true” This book is a very descriptive biography and is set in the 21st century. The book is set in the South West U.S. You feel like you are right there the entire time! It is most definitely a biography. He does a very good job of portraying Elon Musk.
In my opinion, the book was very well written and there are specific details about how his companies make their materials. It says on page 175 “SpaceX designed its own motherboards and circuits, sensors to detect vibrations, flight computers, and solar panels.” That gives you a great description of how he does things related to manufacturing. The way the book is written give you a glance into the life of one of Earth’s most eccentric billionaires. The writing style is very much like a great biography that flows nicely from one thing to the next, not like some which jump years. Ashlee Vance backs up his points in the book with quotes, pictures, and interviews. The chapters have 5 months to a year usually between them. That makes up a really flowing
read. For example, chapter 8 is set in 2002, and chapter 9 in 2003.
This book is the amazing story of this boy’s quest to ensure human survival. The book tells how he founded Zip2 and X.com which would become PayPal With his earnings, he had a choice. What am I going to do with all that money? Well, he started SpaceX, bought Tesla, and bought SolarCity. They all faced extreme difficulties, but he always has a weird way of running them. SpaceX blew 3 rockets up, Tesla couldn’t produce enough cars, and SolarCity hadn’t been started yet. What did Elon Musk do? He does what he always has done: Manages his companies, but how?I would recommend this book to anyone who likes space, electricity, cars, solar energy, and biographies. If you're looking for inspiration, this is a book to look at. Elon Musk and the Quest for a Fantastic Future tells the story of one person and his quest to make humans interplanetary beings and make this world better, greener, and more adventurous.
This book’s theme is “Follow you dreams and if you work really hard, they can come true” This book is a very descriptive biography and is set in the 21st century. The book is set in the South West U.S. You feel like you are right there the entire time! It is most definitely a biography. He does a very good job of portraying Elon Musk.
In my opinion, the book was very well written and there are specific details about how his companies make their materials. It says on page 175 “SpaceX designed its own motherboards and circuits, sensors to detect vibrations, flight computers, and solar panels.” That gives you a great description of how he does things related to manufacturing. The way the book is written give you a glance into the life of one of Earth’s most eccentric billionaires. The writing style is very much like a great biography that flows nicely from one thing to the next, not like some which jump years. Ashlee Vance backs up his points in the book with quotes, pictures, and interviews. The chapters have 5 months to a year usually between them. That makes up a really flowing
read. For example, chapter 8 is set in 2002, and chapter 9 in 2003. This book is the amazing story of this boy’s quest to ensure human survival. The book tells how he founded Zip2 and X.com which would become PayPal With his earnings, he had a choice. What am I going to do with all that money? Well, he started SpaceX, bought Tesla, and bought SolarCity. They all faced extreme difficulties, but he always has a weird way of running them. SpaceX blew 3 rockets up, Tesla couldn’t produce enough cars, and SolarCity hadn’t been started yet. What did Elon Musk do? He does what he always has done: Manages his companies, but how?I would recommend this book to anyone who likes space, electricity, cars, solar energy, and biographies. If you're looking for inspiration, this is a book to look at. Elon Musk and the Quest for a Fantastic Future tells the story of one person and his quest to make humans interplanetary beings and make this world better, greener, and more adventurous.
August 23, 2022
Greetings and hello!
I am an interstellar talent scout of the Castor Moving
Group Network. You may call me Glorbalorbl. My
home is in the Zubenelgenubi system, a multi-star
neighborhood which lies conveniently close to your
home system's ecliptic plane. As a result of this
geometric convenience, us Zubenelgenubians have
long been capable of analyzing your home planet
using techniques like the TTV method familiar to
you, and we are even fully capable of direct
spectroscopic analysis of your atmosphere, but even
if we were limited to your primitive methods, or
limited to one star system, we would still have
known about your biosphere since long before your
particular species showed up on the scene, because
we are a much older civilization that has migrated
into the area from elsewhere in the galaxy.
We have occasionally glanced your way in curiosity
since before the first campfires began dotting the
dark side of your planet. Upon observing your
behaviors as you developed your unique identity
among the lifeforms of your world, we quickly knew
that you showed a lot of promise, but also
possessed many problematic qualities. As for these
troublesome characteristics, you seemed apparently
unable or unwilling to recognize and remedy them in
as timely of a manner as we have come to expect
from most species that we consider to be developing
toward true intelligence.
We have long wanted to give you the benefit of the
doubt, noting that your home planet is as dynamic
as it is beautiful. The challenges faced by the
evolution of life on your world presented you with
many harsh realities and many long threads of
intergenerational trauma. We get it, you grew up in a
tough neighborhood. You did not have the benefit of
growing up slowly on a fully-stable paradise planet
orbiting neatly in a flare-free band of space around a
fully-convective star with an extremely long main-
sequence lifespan, like my species originally did... or,
in fact, like most of the intelligent species in the
galaxy did.
Nonetheless, it was frustrating enough watching the
constant setbacks that resulted from your
stubbornly persistent myopia that we decided to
stop paying much attention to what was going on
over here. The last time anyone in our network took a
serious peek must have been a few hundred Earth
orbits ago. Upon reflection, I must say this appears
to have been a significant oversight on our behalf,
as you have experienced a surprising amount of
change in that time interval.
During a normal shift break on a routine research
mission through the local void, my colleagues and I
were recreationally surfing the plasma veil on the
edge of your Sun's magnetic field when we
happened upon a small craft of yours containing
some cute cartoons and a record that appears to be
titled "THE SOUNDS OF EARTH THE UNITED STATES
OF AMERICA PLANET EARTH" - as lovers of music
and recording arts ourselves, we immediately threw
that shit onto the decks and put the needle down.
While the sound was a little bit primitive and mostly
contained what seemed to our sensibilities like under
-produced source material captured from a single
linear timeline, we had to admit it had some pretty
good tracks on it. Even Greglorbalor the Horrible was
delightedly clapping his digits at times.
As the resident talent scout on our mission, it was
incumbent upon me to reach out to you. Our team
quickly analyzed the current state of your common
languages and colloquialisms, as well as the state
of your science. Using that information I was able to
write you this message, and even select a few
anthems of my alien nation to share with you, which
I hope you will enjoy. My home system, after all, is
renowned for pumping out the phattest beats in the
Orion Arm.
Now, to get more serious. Some of the things I say
may feel to you like harsh criticisms, but I want you
to keep in mind that if I didn't see potential in you, I
would not bother to send you this message. With
that in mind, there are some things I would like you
to consider. In order to apply for galactic citizenship
and be liberated from your current state of
quarantined containment, you are going to need to
meet the following requirements:
1) You must cease your habitual engagement in
avoidable conflict. This includes conflict within your
own species as well as conflict between your
civilization and its environment. Amongst nearly all
enlightened interstellar civilizations, this is the
primary measure by which the relative intelligence of
a life form is established. Any civilization with a
tendency toward violence, duplicity, sabotage, and ill
-will is simply not considered mature enough to
populate beyond their native star system. As long as
you avoid making the breathtakingly obvious
decision to work in harmony with the world you are a
part of, then I must woefully inform you that you and
your music will not be welcome at any of our public
parks, or on any of our relativistic highways, or in
any of our universally-acclaimed utopian garden-
metropolis sanctuaries, or at any of our Galactic
Music Awards ceremonies.
2) You must eliminate poverty. Mismanagement of
resources is generally considered a bad sign when
analyzing the inhabitants of any world. By our
standards, as long as any one member of your
civilization is involuntarily unable to meet their basic
needs, including access to food, shelter, information,
and care, the title of "intelligent" will continue to
elude your species.
3) You must transmit a new collection of your best
music in the direction of my home system, the star
system you know as Alpha Librae, from between the
longitude you call 100°W and 110°W, at the time you
call 12:08 AM, on the date you call June 21, 2038. I
repeat: new mixtape, right ascension 14h 52m 07.6s,
declination 16°08'06.0", at the moment of the
solstice closest to your aphelion, sixteen orbits from
the time of this message, and from the part of your
planet facing most directly away from your Sun at
the time. This isn't an intelligence test like the other
two items I have listed, I simply want a more up-to-
date demo from you. We will have a
receiver/transmitter in position to then distribute
your message rapidly to the Zubenelgenubi system
and, from there, to my colleagues in the Castor
Moving Group Network.
To put it lightly, a good demo is a great first step
toward building your rapport with the rest of us, and
would make your application for galactic citizenship
much more likely to be approved. If your demo is
good, and you've met the other two requirements I
mentioned, then we might be able to finally invite
you to the party. If your application is indeed
approved, you will then have access to the collective
knowledge of the various networks tangling their
way around the Milky Way. That includes an
abundance of helpful information about travel,
communication, computation, longevity, and
spacetime itself, to name a few points of interest.
Good luck, Earth People.
Kindest regards,
Glorbalorblorlbrrgkjegrlkust6;l9[-t67/0
I am an interstellar talent scout of the Castor Moving
Group Network. You may call me Glorbalorbl. My
home is in the Zubenelgenubi system, a multi-star
neighborhood which lies conveniently close to your
home system's ecliptic plane. As a result of this
geometric convenience, us Zubenelgenubians have
long been capable of analyzing your home planet
using techniques like the TTV method familiar to
you, and we are even fully capable of direct
spectroscopic analysis of your atmosphere, but even
if we were limited to your primitive methods, or
limited to one star system, we would still have
known about your biosphere since long before your
particular species showed up on the scene, because
we are a much older civilization that has migrated
into the area from elsewhere in the galaxy.
We have occasionally glanced your way in curiosity
since before the first campfires began dotting the
dark side of your planet. Upon observing your
behaviors as you developed your unique identity
among the lifeforms of your world, we quickly knew
that you showed a lot of promise, but also
possessed many problematic qualities. As for these
troublesome characteristics, you seemed apparently
unable or unwilling to recognize and remedy them in
as timely of a manner as we have come to expect
from most species that we consider to be developing
toward true intelligence.
We have long wanted to give you the benefit of the
doubt, noting that your home planet is as dynamic
as it is beautiful. The challenges faced by the
evolution of life on your world presented you with
many harsh realities and many long threads of
intergenerational trauma. We get it, you grew up in a
tough neighborhood. You did not have the benefit of
growing up slowly on a fully-stable paradise planet
orbiting neatly in a flare-free band of space around a
fully-convective star with an extremely long main-
sequence lifespan, like my species originally did... or,
in fact, like most of the intelligent species in the
galaxy did.
Nonetheless, it was frustrating enough watching the
constant setbacks that resulted from your
stubbornly persistent myopia that we decided to
stop paying much attention to what was going on
over here. The last time anyone in our network took a
serious peek must have been a few hundred Earth
orbits ago. Upon reflection, I must say this appears
to have been a significant oversight on our behalf,
as you have experienced a surprising amount of
change in that time interval.
During a normal shift break on a routine research
mission through the local void, my colleagues and I
were recreationally surfing the plasma veil on the
edge of your Sun's magnetic field when we
happened upon a small craft of yours containing
some cute cartoons and a record that appears to be
titled "THE SOUNDS OF EARTH THE UNITED STATES
OF AMERICA PLANET EARTH" - as lovers of music
and recording arts ourselves, we immediately threw
that shit onto the decks and put the needle down.
While the sound was a little bit primitive and mostly
contained what seemed to our sensibilities like under
-produced source material captured from a single
linear timeline, we had to admit it had some pretty
good tracks on it. Even Greglorbalor the Horrible was
delightedly clapping his digits at times.
As the resident talent scout on our mission, it was
incumbent upon me to reach out to you. Our team
quickly analyzed the current state of your common
languages and colloquialisms, as well as the state
of your science. Using that information I was able to
write you this message, and even select a few
anthems of my alien nation to share with you, which
I hope you will enjoy. My home system, after all, is
renowned for pumping out the phattest beats in the
Orion Arm.
Now, to get more serious. Some of the things I say
may feel to you like harsh criticisms, but I want you
to keep in mind that if I didn't see potential in you, I
would not bother to send you this message. With
that in mind, there are some things I would like you
to consider. In order to apply for galactic citizenship
and be liberated from your current state of
quarantined containment, you are going to need to
meet the following requirements:
1) You must cease your habitual engagement in
avoidable conflict. This includes conflict within your
own species as well as conflict between your
civilization and its environment. Amongst nearly all
enlightened interstellar civilizations, this is the
primary measure by which the relative intelligence of
a life form is established. Any civilization with a
tendency toward violence, duplicity, sabotage, and ill
-will is simply not considered mature enough to
populate beyond their native star system. As long as
you avoid making the breathtakingly obvious
decision to work in harmony with the world you are a
part of, then I must woefully inform you that you and
your music will not be welcome at any of our public
parks, or on any of our relativistic highways, or in
any of our universally-acclaimed utopian garden-
metropolis sanctuaries, or at any of our Galactic
Music Awards ceremonies.
2) You must eliminate poverty. Mismanagement of
resources is generally considered a bad sign when
analyzing the inhabitants of any world. By our
standards, as long as any one member of your
civilization is involuntarily unable to meet their basic
needs, including access to food, shelter, information,
and care, the title of "intelligent" will continue to
elude your species.
3) You must transmit a new collection of your best
music in the direction of my home system, the star
system you know as Alpha Librae, from between the
longitude you call 100°W and 110°W, at the time you
call 12:08 AM, on the date you call June 21, 2038. I
repeat: new mixtape, right ascension 14h 52m 07.6s,
declination 16°08'06.0", at the moment of the
solstice closest to your aphelion, sixteen orbits from
the time of this message, and from the part of your
planet facing most directly away from your Sun at
the time. This isn't an intelligence test like the other
two items I have listed, I simply want a more up-to-
date demo from you. We will have a
receiver/transmitter in position to then distribute
your message rapidly to the Zubenelgenubi system
and, from there, to my colleagues in the Castor
Moving Group Network.
To put it lightly, a good demo is a great first step
toward building your rapport with the rest of us, and
would make your application for galactic citizenship
much more likely to be approved. If your demo is
good, and you've met the other two requirements I
mentioned, then we might be able to finally invite
you to the party. If your application is indeed
approved, you will then have access to the collective
knowledge of the various networks tangling their
way around the Milky Way. That includes an
abundance of helpful information about travel,
communication, computation, longevity, and
spacetime itself, to name a few points of interest.
Good luck, Earth People.
Kindest regards,
Glorbalorblorlbrrgkjegrlkust6;l9[-t67/0
November 8, 2022
I loved the insight into his own world and showed me how many times you are close to failing but shouldnt give up. Especially the last chapter was just motivating and inspiring.
But also - how crazy is Elon?!
Safe to say way too crazy and misanthropic.
But also - how crazy is Elon?!
Safe to say way too crazy and misanthropic.
July 9, 2024
My younger brother agreed to read Harry Potter if I read this biography.
I enjoyed it! It was intriguing to learn more about Tesla, SpaceX, and Musk’s vision for the future. And the part about Iron Man was interesting. :P
I enjoyed it! It was intriguing to learn more about Tesla, SpaceX, and Musk’s vision for the future. And the part about Iron Man was interesting. :P
September 19, 2019
Choice book #1 Quarter 1
Elon Musk: Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance is an incredible biography about the life of Elon Musk.
The book starts with Musk's humble beginnings in South Africa, describing Musk's school years filled with misery and bullying. However, Musk soon decided that South Africa was not the right place for his ambitions. Ashlee Vance follows musk to Canada, where tries to find work and school. Musk then moved onto America, where he started his two very well known companies.
This biography offers incredible insight into the life of Elon Musk, everything from his everyday life to his life at his companies. It's not just Elon Musk's life, however. We also get some insight into some less well-known but equally important characters. Some of these include Gwynne Shotwell, Mary Beth Brown, Franz von Holzhausen, and more. Vance explains in extraordinary detail how Gwynne Shotwell went from a girl who liked cars to cheif operating officer at SpaceX, and how Franz von Holzhausen became the cheif design officer at Tesla Motors.
The book tells us that Musk has a lot of problems he has had to face. Some are personal, like having to deal with bullies during his childhood or his divorce. Others are public, like trying to get a new electric car on the market or launching a rocket into space. Vance's book informs us of all of these, and it's fun to read about how Musk chose to solve those problems.
This biography is all about the life of Elon Musk, and it follows him every step of the way - from his tough childhood to running his amazing companies. It goes through all of the struggles and challenges, like designing an electric sedan that can hold seven people and building a rocket that can deliver a payload to space without blowing up. Through the course of the book, we see Musk turn from a timid kid in school to a tough software writer, and finally to an exemplary and arguably cool CEO of two of the world's most interesting companies. Musk is a person achieving great things, however, his lack of empathy for his employees has pushed some people to the conclusion that Musk might lay somewhere on the Autism spectrum.
In my opinion, this book was very enjoyable and informative. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about how Musk sent supplies to the International Space Station with SpaceX's rocket and how Tesla developed their electric vehicles. The book didn't feel quite complete, however. In my opinion, that is good, because many of Musk's plans lay in the future. I, for one, hope dearly that Vance will write another book in the near future when Musk has accomplished even more outstanding feats.
Elon Musk: Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance is an incredible biography about the life of Elon Musk.
The book starts with Musk's humble beginnings in South Africa, describing Musk's school years filled with misery and bullying. However, Musk soon decided that South Africa was not the right place for his ambitions. Ashlee Vance follows musk to Canada, where tries to find work and school. Musk then moved onto America, where he started his two very well known companies.
This biography offers incredible insight into the life of Elon Musk, everything from his everyday life to his life at his companies. It's not just Elon Musk's life, however. We also get some insight into some less well-known but equally important characters. Some of these include Gwynne Shotwell, Mary Beth Brown, Franz von Holzhausen, and more. Vance explains in extraordinary detail how Gwynne Shotwell went from a girl who liked cars to cheif operating officer at SpaceX, and how Franz von Holzhausen became the cheif design officer at Tesla Motors.
The book tells us that Musk has a lot of problems he has had to face. Some are personal, like having to deal with bullies during his childhood or his divorce. Others are public, like trying to get a new electric car on the market or launching a rocket into space. Vance's book informs us of all of these, and it's fun to read about how Musk chose to solve those problems.
This biography is all about the life of Elon Musk, and it follows him every step of the way - from his tough childhood to running his amazing companies. It goes through all of the struggles and challenges, like designing an electric sedan that can hold seven people and building a rocket that can deliver a payload to space without blowing up. Through the course of the book, we see Musk turn from a timid kid in school to a tough software writer, and finally to an exemplary and arguably cool CEO of two of the world's most interesting companies. Musk is a person achieving great things, however, his lack of empathy for his employees has pushed some people to the conclusion that Musk might lay somewhere on the Autism spectrum.
In my opinion, this book was very enjoyable and informative. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about how Musk sent supplies to the International Space Station with SpaceX's rocket and how Tesla developed their electric vehicles. The book didn't feel quite complete, however. In my opinion, that is good, because many of Musk's plans lay in the future. I, for one, hope dearly that Vance will write another book in the near future when Musk has accomplished even more outstanding feats.
November 19, 2018
Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future: Young Readers Edition by Ashlee Vance
This was a great find in my school's library! I immediately saw it and decided to pick it up after reading a couple of pages. I kept on reading this book from day to day--mainly in the morning--as I would eat breakfast. I was very lucky to be able to find this version too that gave me some wonderful insight into Elon Musk.
Ashlee Vance does a great job of letting young, ambitious, and curious readers into the world of Mr. Musk. While the original was probably more in-depth and had more information for the reader, this version does just as good with understandable text and vocabulary. I had been interested in the life of a CEO and an entrepreneur who has an interesting mind. This book did the job of letting me into that world.
Going from a complicated childhood to billionare CEO of two big companies, Ashlee Vance tells the life of Elon Musk in a book that gives a sneak peek into the mind of one of the most famous and hardworking entrepreneurs of his generation. Ranging from a biography to the point of view from Ashlee himself, and his experience with Elon Musk, the book tells of Musk's trials and tribulations in life. In this book, the reader is started off with the life of Ashlee Vance and how he was able to get to interview Elon Musk and study him for this book.
Some of the main points of this book-- that make it worth reading-- is the story of how Musk almost went bankrupt in SpaceX and how he was able to bounce back into the game and make a fast-growing space industry. SpaceX shows how much Elon is willing to risk to achieve his goals. Not only that but SpaceX also shows how much Musk is willing to work to achieve his main goal of flying to and colonizing Mars.
While there is no end to give away really I'll still hold my breath for the others so they can read the intriguing stories that demonstrate risk and reward.
This book may surprise some reader for how much it allows them to know about Elon Musk and can also shock them as to how much Elon is willing to throw away to achieve his goals. This book allows readers to understand the world of Elon Musk in a format that allows them to understand one of the meanings of risk and work. All you need for an example is "I would give up my family for this."
This was a great find in my school's library! I immediately saw it and decided to pick it up after reading a couple of pages. I kept on reading this book from day to day--mainly in the morning--as I would eat breakfast. I was very lucky to be able to find this version too that gave me some wonderful insight into Elon Musk.
Ashlee Vance does a great job of letting young, ambitious, and curious readers into the world of Mr. Musk. While the original was probably more in-depth and had more information for the reader, this version does just as good with understandable text and vocabulary. I had been interested in the life of a CEO and an entrepreneur who has an interesting mind. This book did the job of letting me into that world.
Going from a complicated childhood to billionare CEO of two big companies, Ashlee Vance tells the life of Elon Musk in a book that gives a sneak peek into the mind of one of the most famous and hardworking entrepreneurs of his generation. Ranging from a biography to the point of view from Ashlee himself, and his experience with Elon Musk, the book tells of Musk's trials and tribulations in life. In this book, the reader is started off with the life of Ashlee Vance and how he was able to get to interview Elon Musk and study him for this book.
Some of the main points of this book-- that make it worth reading-- is the story of how Musk almost went bankrupt in SpaceX and how he was able to bounce back into the game and make a fast-growing space industry. SpaceX shows how much Elon is willing to risk to achieve his goals. Not only that but SpaceX also shows how much Musk is willing to work to achieve his main goal of flying to and colonizing Mars.
While there is no end to give away really I'll still hold my breath for the others so they can read the intriguing stories that demonstrate risk and reward.
This book may surprise some reader for how much it allows them to know about Elon Musk and can also shock them as to how much Elon is willing to throw away to achieve his goals. This book allows readers to understand the world of Elon Musk in a format that allows them to understand one of the meanings of risk and work. All you need for an example is "I would give up my family for this."
April 24, 2021
Mlle Alice, pouvez-vous nous raconter votre rencontre avec Elon Musk and the Quest for a Fantastic Future ?
"Encore un livre repéré lors de ma lecture de Bibliophile, dont je vous ai beaucoup parlé sur Instagram. Le sujet, l'ambition du livre, celle d'inspirer les plus jeunes, ainsi que sa couverture et son petit prix ont formé un combo tout à fait irrésistible pour moi."
Dites-nous en un peu plus sur son histoire...
"Le journaliste Ahslee Vance nous propose une biographie d'Elon Musk, de sa naissance en Afrique du Sud à ses projets les plus fous avec PayPal, Space X ou encore Tesla..."
Mais que s'est-il exactement passé entre vous ?
"Je ne lis pas énormément de biographies mais de temps en temps j'aime bien découvrir des personnages hors-normes, des destins fascinants et Elon Musk fait incontestablement partie de ceux-là. Je dois préciser qu'il existe deux versions de ce livre et que j'ai choisi celle qui a été retravaillée pour les plus jeunes. C'était certainement une erreur et tout ce qui m'a gêné découle probablement de ce choix. Je n'ai pas eu l'impression d'aller au fond des choses ou d'en apprendre plus que ce que j'aurais pu trouver dans les journaux mais peut-être que ces éléments-là sont présents dans la version longue, va savoir. Ce n'est pas que j'aurais voulu connaître tous les aspects les plus personnels, le côté people du personnage ne m'intéresse pas vraiment, mais son état d'esprit, si. C'est même certainement le plus important ! Et puis, je m'attendais à quelque chose d'attractif pour un adolescent, et pas seulement pour celui qui se classe déjà dans la catégorie des génies, et de côté-là aussi c'est plutôt un flop. Si j'avais dû lire ça à 15 ans, je crois que je me serais ennuyée ferme.
En revanche, Elon Musk est aussi barré, génial, fou que ce à quoi on s'attend, dans le positif comme dans le négatif et son parcours est tout simplement dingue. Je ne regrette donc en aucun cas ma lecture."
Et comment cela s'est-il fini ?
"C'est sans doute un peu sévère mais pour résumer je dirais tout simplement que le biographe n'est pas à la hauteur de son sujet."
http://booksaremywonderland.hautetfor...
"Encore un livre repéré lors de ma lecture de Bibliophile, dont je vous ai beaucoup parlé sur Instagram. Le sujet, l'ambition du livre, celle d'inspirer les plus jeunes, ainsi que sa couverture et son petit prix ont formé un combo tout à fait irrésistible pour moi."
Dites-nous en un peu plus sur son histoire...
"Le journaliste Ahslee Vance nous propose une biographie d'Elon Musk, de sa naissance en Afrique du Sud à ses projets les plus fous avec PayPal, Space X ou encore Tesla..."
Mais que s'est-il exactement passé entre vous ?
"Je ne lis pas énormément de biographies mais de temps en temps j'aime bien découvrir des personnages hors-normes, des destins fascinants et Elon Musk fait incontestablement partie de ceux-là. Je dois préciser qu'il existe deux versions de ce livre et que j'ai choisi celle qui a été retravaillée pour les plus jeunes. C'était certainement une erreur et tout ce qui m'a gêné découle probablement de ce choix. Je n'ai pas eu l'impression d'aller au fond des choses ou d'en apprendre plus que ce que j'aurais pu trouver dans les journaux mais peut-être que ces éléments-là sont présents dans la version longue, va savoir. Ce n'est pas que j'aurais voulu connaître tous les aspects les plus personnels, le côté people du personnage ne m'intéresse pas vraiment, mais son état d'esprit, si. C'est même certainement le plus important ! Et puis, je m'attendais à quelque chose d'attractif pour un adolescent, et pas seulement pour celui qui se classe déjà dans la catégorie des génies, et de côté-là aussi c'est plutôt un flop. Si j'avais dû lire ça à 15 ans, je crois que je me serais ennuyée ferme.
En revanche, Elon Musk est aussi barré, génial, fou que ce à quoi on s'attend, dans le positif comme dans le négatif et son parcours est tout simplement dingue. Je ne regrette donc en aucun cas ma lecture."
Et comment cela s'est-il fini ?
"C'est sans doute un peu sévère mais pour résumer je dirais tout simplement que le biographe n'est pas à la hauteur de son sujet."
http://booksaremywonderland.hautetfor...
October 5, 2021
In a time when pursuing your studies and a career in engineering has become so common, mundane and what every Tom, Dick and Harry would do, Elon Musk has revolutionised technology with engineering and science in the automotive, sustainable energy and aerospace industries.
This book dives into Elon Musk’s life- both personal as well as entrepreneurial journey of Musk. Musk has become one of the most prominent innovators and industrialists of the 21st century. There are so many inspirational moments from Musk’s life which inspires the readers to think about creating an exciting future.
I enjoyed the book more from a tech-preneurial perspective. The fact that Musk was inspired to work on his ideas based on the video games he played as a kid is in itself amazing.
It is really inspiring that Musk has risked everything and pursued and believed in his ideas even when the odds were against him. One of the things that I really loved is he ensured that all his patents were open sourced, so that other people who are working on that technology can use it, without having to shell out extra money, for the betterment of human race. Musk put his money where his mouth is. He was a man of action and a visionary leader too.
Few of the lessons I learnt from this book are:
1. Discuss ideas with friends and family, no matter how crazy it can be. As Larry Page puts it-“Good ideas are always crazy until they are not “.
2. Surround yourself with people who share a same mindset as you. The way in which they work might differ, but those who share similar goals tend to refine you and build you as a person
3. Dedication and belief in oneself and one’s thoughts and actions are two of the greatest tools which help in facing any challenge that life might throw at you
4. Work selflessly and for the betterment of mankind. This is a lesson to be learned from Musk’s colleagues. All the credits and wealth that Musk has acquired cannot be achieved without people like Tom Mueller, Gweynne Shotwell, Mary Beth Brown etc.
5. It is better to try and fail that to regret not trying at all
6. Take up challenges- it can be taxing but in the end, gives a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction
This book dives into Elon Musk’s life- both personal as well as entrepreneurial journey of Musk. Musk has become one of the most prominent innovators and industrialists of the 21st century. There are so many inspirational moments from Musk’s life which inspires the readers to think about creating an exciting future.
I enjoyed the book more from a tech-preneurial perspective. The fact that Musk was inspired to work on his ideas based on the video games he played as a kid is in itself amazing.
It is really inspiring that Musk has risked everything and pursued and believed in his ideas even when the odds were against him. One of the things that I really loved is he ensured that all his patents were open sourced, so that other people who are working on that technology can use it, without having to shell out extra money, for the betterment of human race. Musk put his money where his mouth is. He was a man of action and a visionary leader too.
Few of the lessons I learnt from this book are:
1. Discuss ideas with friends and family, no matter how crazy it can be. As Larry Page puts it-“Good ideas are always crazy until they are not “.
2. Surround yourself with people who share a same mindset as you. The way in which they work might differ, but those who share similar goals tend to refine you and build you as a person
3. Dedication and belief in oneself and one’s thoughts and actions are two of the greatest tools which help in facing any challenge that life might throw at you
4. Work selflessly and for the betterment of mankind. This is a lesson to be learned from Musk’s colleagues. All the credits and wealth that Musk has acquired cannot be achieved without people like Tom Mueller, Gweynne Shotwell, Mary Beth Brown etc.
5. It is better to try and fail that to regret not trying at all
6. Take up challenges- it can be taxing but in the end, gives a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction
April 23, 2019
A little long-winded towards the end, but otherwise a fascinating look into the mind of America's most famous billionaire.
Musk grew up in South Africa. His parents were wealthy, but they didn't dote on their children. Musk was a bit of a loner. He wasn't into sports. His interests were more academic, reading a lot and tinkering with things. He endured the bullies. After graduation, he moved to Canada, did some interesting jobs for awhile, then enrolled in college. He excelled in college, where he was able to find a group of like-minded people.
After college, his brain kicked into high gear. He moved to San Francisco and founded a dot-com startup called zip2, a cross between Yelp and Google Maps. The computer company, Compaq, bought it, and he reinvested in his next startup, PayPal. When Ebay bought PayPal, he was on his way. He was now rich enough to build the company of his dreams. SpaceX. From there, he went on to found the electric car and solar panel company, Tesla.
Musk is a man of the future. He's all about saving Earth, hence electric cars and solar panels. But just in case Earth goes belly up, he wants a back-up plan. A colony on Mars. SpaceX is the company that he hopes will get the job done. He's a workaholic. An eccentric. A visionary. If you want to work for his company you have to be willing to give up your own life for the good of the company.
Ashlee Vance does a great job of helping you understand Musk and the nuts and bolts of his two iconic companies.
Musk grew up in South Africa. His parents were wealthy, but they didn't dote on their children. Musk was a bit of a loner. He wasn't into sports. His interests were more academic, reading a lot and tinkering with things. He endured the bullies. After graduation, he moved to Canada, did some interesting jobs for awhile, then enrolled in college. He excelled in college, where he was able to find a group of like-minded people.
After college, his brain kicked into high gear. He moved to San Francisco and founded a dot-com startup called zip2, a cross between Yelp and Google Maps. The computer company, Compaq, bought it, and he reinvested in his next startup, PayPal. When Ebay bought PayPal, he was on his way. He was now rich enough to build the company of his dreams. SpaceX. From there, he went on to found the electric car and solar panel company, Tesla.
Musk is a man of the future. He's all about saving Earth, hence electric cars and solar panels. But just in case Earth goes belly up, he wants a back-up plan. A colony on Mars. SpaceX is the company that he hopes will get the job done. He's a workaholic. An eccentric. A visionary. If you want to work for his company you have to be willing to give up your own life for the good of the company.
Ashlee Vance does a great job of helping you understand Musk and the nuts and bolts of his two iconic companies.
April 8, 2020
a quick and easy read that makes me want to check out the "adult" book now! recieved this book as a gift for my promotion. so interesting to learn more about the life of our company leader. I always had the feeling from what I've known in general about Elon is that's he's not in it for the money but truly passionate about saving the world and thinks less like a alpha CEO and more like a physicist and engineer. he can seriously nerd out on almost like a mad scientist level. with it an insane work ethic and I really do respect the guy for how much he has personally invested into his companies. he's become a huge public figure but at heart seems to just be the scrappy start up kind of engineer. anyways it was fun to learn more about his conversations with Robert Downey Jr and his influence and Teslas in the iron man movies and even for the character. it was interesting to learn more about Elons personal life as well - his friends, brother and family. the author I thought attempted to say that he was trying to be subjective as a journalist but at the end you can tell the author is a total fan boy haha so it did feel a little biased. all in all an easy enjoyable read to pass some rainy days at home and also makes me proud of be apart of tesla!
February 7, 2024
I received this book in a science-themed subscription box a few years ago and it's been on my shelf ever since, waiting for its moment. Receiving the topic of Technology for one of my reading challenges this year seemed to be that perfect moment.
I didn't know much about Elon Musk beyond what I see in the headlines, and based on those alone, I'm not his biggest fan, though I can respect his intelligence. This book was interesting in terms of laying out how the early years were formed, and some of the background of his companies in the years before Twitter/X happened. Being from the Bay Area, I remember the years of driving by the old Nummi plant, and then hearing the news that Tesla had bought it and was moving in, so learning more about how all of that happened was interesting.
This would likely have rated higher for me if I'd actually had interest in the topic or the man in general, but neither are really my cuppa. I was glad for the YR edition as it made the read a quick one, and while I'm happy to have learned some things I hadn't known, I'm also happy to be done and moving on to something else. However, I do have a nephew who I think will very much enjoy this one, so I'm excited to pass it along.
I didn't know much about Elon Musk beyond what I see in the headlines, and based on those alone, I'm not his biggest fan, though I can respect his intelligence. This book was interesting in terms of laying out how the early years were formed, and some of the background of his companies in the years before Twitter/X happened. Being from the Bay Area, I remember the years of driving by the old Nummi plant, and then hearing the news that Tesla had bought it and was moving in, so learning more about how all of that happened was interesting.
This would likely have rated higher for me if I'd actually had interest in the topic or the man in general, but neither are really my cuppa. I was glad for the YR edition as it made the read a quick one, and while I'm happy to have learned some things I hadn't known, I'm also happy to be done and moving on to something else. However, I do have a nephew who I think will very much enjoy this one, so I'm excited to pass it along.
May 23, 2018
My big boy is the next Elon Musk. That, or a supreme court justice. But a justice requires study and booksmarts, whilst Elon's life requires streetsmarts, so that's more fitting.
I told him such, and he asked for some material, so I whisked to the library and gave him this book, which he devoured, and is now part of his consciousness, and if Elon doesn't get to Mars, then my boy will, just you watch. So shall it be written, so shall it be done.
In order to prove out what I'm saying, I needed to review the material myself, so I'm prepared properly for the future. I came away with an even larger admiration for the man than I had before, and I did not feel talked down to at all. This version suffices plenty to get the background, and I can do without further adult exposition.
My only complaint is the The Boring Company was left on the cutting room floor. There are things going on there that might be the most fascinating of all things Musk will accomplish.
I told him such, and he asked for some material, so I whisked to the library and gave him this book, which he devoured, and is now part of his consciousness, and if Elon doesn't get to Mars, then my boy will, just you watch. So shall it be written, so shall it be done.
In order to prove out what I'm saying, I needed to review the material myself, so I'm prepared properly for the future. I came away with an even larger admiration for the man than I had before, and I did not feel talked down to at all. This version suffices plenty to get the background, and I can do without further adult exposition.
My only complaint is the The Boring Company was left on the cutting room floor. There are things going on there that might be the most fascinating of all things Musk will accomplish.
February 23, 2018
This book is a life-changer. I am really amazed by Musk's ambition and determination. His story is even crazier than the most insane scientific fiction, yet it is a huge source of inspiration. I've learned a lot from Musk. Though he's not a perfect human being (well he's probably not that friendly or getting-along-with-everyone type of guy), I always look up to him. He's an inspiring role model who motivates me to use my time wisely, to become a dream pursuer and make impossible things possible.
I also appreciate Ashlee Vance - the author of this book. I really mean it. To finish this beautiful work, I imagined he must have spent a lot of time and effort. But it's worth it after all. I love the way you portray Elon Musk and your perspective towards him. I've known Musk long before but not until I read this book did I realize how amazing he is or what I should really do for the rest of my life. Thank you so much! Great respect for your writing and your passion!
Ashlee Vance
I also appreciate Ashlee Vance - the author of this book. I really mean it. To finish this beautiful work, I imagined he must have spent a lot of time and effort. But it's worth it after all. I love the way you portray Elon Musk and your perspective towards him. I've known Musk long before but not until I read this book did I realize how amazing he is or what I should really do for the rest of my life. Thank you so much! Great respect for your writing and your passion!
Ashlee Vance
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