What do you think?
Rate this book
Elon Musk: Risking it All
'How did a bullied, introverted Pretoria schoolboy become the world's richest person and arguably humanity's greatest change agent? Vlismas's extensively researched biography does a great job of unwrapping Elon Musk's remarkable life story.'– TOBY SHAPSHAK.
Often in the news for his entrepreneurial exploits and his controversial tweets, Elon Musk is one of the richest and best-known people on earth. In 2022 he made headlines worldwide with his bid to buy Twitter. Who is this boundary-pushing billionaire with grand plans of inhabiting Mars, and what lies at the heart of his vision? Why is he so utterly unafraid of risk?
As an awkward Pretoria schoolboy who loved comics and science fiction, Musk's early years and singular family background were crucial in forming his stellar ambitions. Journalist and author Michael Vlismas, who attended the same high school as Musk, knows well the environment that shaped him and offers new insights into Musk's development, including his troubled relationship with his father.
Tracing his remarkable life, from his South African childhood to his move to Canada at 17 and then to the US – where Musk made millions out of PayPal and built Tesla and SpaceX into two of the world's most famous companies – this is the story of a man driven to preserve the optimism he sees in humanity and find a future for humans 'out there among the stars'.
Often in the news for his entrepreneurial exploits and his controversial tweets, Elon Musk is one of the richest and best-known people on earth. In 2022 he made headlines worldwide with his bid to buy Twitter. Who is this boundary-pushing billionaire with grand plans of inhabiting Mars, and what lies at the heart of his vision? Why is he so utterly unafraid of risk?
As an awkward Pretoria schoolboy who loved comics and science fiction, Musk's early years and singular family background were crucial in forming his stellar ambitions. Journalist and author Michael Vlismas, who attended the same high school as Musk, knows well the environment that shaped him and offers new insights into Musk's development, including his troubled relationship with his father.
Tracing his remarkable life, from his South African childhood to his move to Canada at 17 and then to the US – where Musk made millions out of PayPal and built Tesla and SpaceX into two of the world's most famous companies – this is the story of a man driven to preserve the optimism he sees in humanity and find a future for humans 'out there among the stars'.
270 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 6, 2022
21 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 17, 2022
There are several Musk books on the market, but this is the first by a fellow South African.
I felt this would add previously untold layers to the story, and it did. The first half of the book, which details his South African roots, is rich in detail and offers fresh perspective. Many myths are put to bed and Vlismas does a fine job of explaining how Musk's personality was formed amid both a tangled (and fascinating) personal background and a country at war with itself.
The anecdotes and contextualisation of Musk's place within an environment largely at odds with his perspective are often extraordinary. He was clearly brilliant from a young age and to understand how he made his way from the tip of Africa to the heart of tech in the US is a journey Vlismas carefully, and astutely, takes the reader on.
Even knowing the broad dimensions of Musk's story, I could hardly put the book down. It's a superb read.
I felt this would add previously untold layers to the story, and it did. The first half of the book, which details his South African roots, is rich in detail and offers fresh perspective. Many myths are put to bed and Vlismas does a fine job of explaining how Musk's personality was formed amid both a tangled (and fascinating) personal background and a country at war with itself.
The anecdotes and contextualisation of Musk's place within an environment largely at odds with his perspective are often extraordinary. He was clearly brilliant from a young age and to understand how he made his way from the tip of Africa to the heart of tech in the US is a journey Vlismas carefully, and astutely, takes the reader on.
Even knowing the broad dimensions of Musk's story, I could hardly put the book down. It's a superb read.
June 27, 2022
Whilst I have read many biographies, this is the first I have read on Elon Musk, and it doesn't disappoint.
It has the perfect mix of his early years, challenges and recent events that keep you interested.
There was a bit of 'padding', which keeps this book within the 4-star territory. However, that should not prevent you from enjoying this.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher Icon Books for an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
It has the perfect mix of his early years, challenges and recent events that keep you interested.
There was a bit of 'padding', which keeps this book within the 4-star territory. However, that should not prevent you from enjoying this.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher Icon Books for an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
October 12, 2022
No doubt I am aware of the person Elon Musk, who I like to read about in his biography. Among the many written by different authors, this was the one I came across recently and also the first one I read. Of the chapters in the six parts of the book structure, the first five parts generally gave me a positive impression of Elon, especially his passions, abilities and determination in the domains that he ventured into.
Upon finishing part six chapters, which the author pulled in comments from others (e.g. Filip Piekniewski) who are doubtful of Elon's success from different perspectives ... the originality and how revolutionary the ideas on electric vehicles and rocket engine; the practicality to colonise Mars instead of exploring establishment on the Moon; the sustainability of on-going economic value with SpaceX reusable rockets after taking into account the amount of tail risk (savings may be wiped out by lost missions in long run of over 100 missions); unsafe state of Tesla's Autopilot and Full Self Driving etc.
My take is no one person, product or idea is perfect. Hence, the world has to accept the flaws and live with the consequences based on the decisions made (by authorities or us individuals). What I see in Elon from this non comprehensive biography is he is bold and confident to proceed in ideas that he believes are good for this world, and may even incentivise others to follow and advance to higher achievements benefiting all in the future.
Upon finishing part six chapters, which the author pulled in comments from others (e.g. Filip Piekniewski) who are doubtful of Elon's success from different perspectives ... the originality and how revolutionary the ideas on electric vehicles and rocket engine; the practicality to colonise Mars instead of exploring establishment on the Moon; the sustainability of on-going economic value with SpaceX reusable rockets after taking into account the amount of tail risk (savings may be wiped out by lost missions in long run of over 100 missions); unsafe state of Tesla's Autopilot and Full Self Driving etc.
My take is no one person, product or idea is perfect. Hence, the world has to accept the flaws and live with the consequences based on the decisions made (by authorities or us individuals). What I see in Elon from this non comprehensive biography is he is bold and confident to proceed in ideas that he believes are good for this world, and may even incentivise others to follow and advance to higher achievements benefiting all in the future.
September 7, 2022
This is the 3rd Elon Musk book I have read (well, one of those was actually Ludicrous: The Unvarnished Story of Tesla Motors) and I am still blown away by the sheer genius of the man.
I was very interested in Michael Vlismas’s perspective, having attended the same high school as Musk, and theoretically having the same roots as a child in South Africa (and being a child in South Africa myself, I was drawn to this fresh insight). However, at the end of those early chapters, the only connection Musk seems to have with the country of his birth, is that he wanted nothing more than to escape it and never return. Sure, those early experiences played a part in who he is today, but it doesn’t seem that he holds any love or affection for the place or the people.
The rest of the narrative traces Elon’s trajectory to ultimately becoming the richest man on the planet (and perhaps Mars one day) in a well written & easy to follow manner.
What are my take-aways? Well, I can’t help but to admire Elon for probably being the best conman to have ever lived. It is clear he is a genius, but he seems to go where he is going on the back of inflated promises on hidden flaws. Sure, he has single-handedly orchestrated progress in numerous fields, but is progress alone enough (well, clearly it is based on what he is worth).
I am sure any of the other major car manufacturers could have achieved the same progress more efficiently, but the fact of the matter is that they didn’t, and they wouldn’t have. Elon had the drive and the charisma to bullsh*t his way into selling the promise of transforming the industry whilst making sub standard vehicles along the way. But people bought into his vision, and he made billions out of selling credits and getting investments from other car manufacturers that were lagging behind. Is Tesla better than those other manufactures, probably not, but no-one else could have achieved what Tesla did in moving the industry forward. And that couldn’t have happened without Elon Musk.
And as for SpaceX. Has it really achieved anything other than invigorating humanity once again for what is possible? Again, the progress has been made off visions and promises and the backing of government contracts.
I’m just not sure. He is a legend and genius and certainly makes progress in fields he puts his mind to. But he seems to be making bubbles that are set to burst at some point leaving him rich and the rest of us confused as to how we got caught up in all of this.
Thanks NetGalley and Icon Books for a Review Copy.
I was very interested in Michael Vlismas’s perspective, having attended the same high school as Musk, and theoretically having the same roots as a child in South Africa (and being a child in South Africa myself, I was drawn to this fresh insight). However, at the end of those early chapters, the only connection Musk seems to have with the country of his birth, is that he wanted nothing more than to escape it and never return. Sure, those early experiences played a part in who he is today, but it doesn’t seem that he holds any love or affection for the place or the people.
The rest of the narrative traces Elon’s trajectory to ultimately becoming the richest man on the planet (and perhaps Mars one day) in a well written & easy to follow manner.
What are my take-aways? Well, I can’t help but to admire Elon for probably being the best conman to have ever lived. It is clear he is a genius, but he seems to go where he is going on the back of inflated promises on hidden flaws. Sure, he has single-handedly orchestrated progress in numerous fields, but is progress alone enough (well, clearly it is based on what he is worth).
I am sure any of the other major car manufacturers could have achieved the same progress more efficiently, but the fact of the matter is that they didn’t, and they wouldn’t have. Elon had the drive and the charisma to bullsh*t his way into selling the promise of transforming the industry whilst making sub standard vehicles along the way. But people bought into his vision, and he made billions out of selling credits and getting investments from other car manufacturers that were lagging behind. Is Tesla better than those other manufactures, probably not, but no-one else could have achieved what Tesla did in moving the industry forward. And that couldn’t have happened without Elon Musk.
And as for SpaceX. Has it really achieved anything other than invigorating humanity once again for what is possible? Again, the progress has been made off visions and promises and the backing of government contracts.
I’m just not sure. He is a legend and genius and certainly makes progress in fields he puts his mind to. But he seems to be making bubbles that are set to burst at some point leaving him rich and the rest of us confused as to how we got caught up in all of this.
Thanks NetGalley and Icon Books for a Review Copy.
April 17, 2023
I have read almost every book and article about Elon Musk and let me tell you--this one was the best.
It is quite interesting to still read about skeptics about what Elon is about...and they still do not get it. Somehow, they still believe he is full of you know what--even now! After confirming his initial strategy about why created electric cars--what was his primary purpose? To cause the other guys (car makers) to get to make them and that is precisely where we are now. In fact--his efforts have been heeded by many others now also looking into creating their own brand EVs--something amazing indeed. The more competition, the better for the end user, or consumer, us.
It was and still is interesting how it was that ICE vehicles are still being created--even though, they are polluting our air big time. Now, we need to focus on creating clean energy too--so that we can power these new cars.
In my own opinion, Elon is good for us. Let's hope he inspires more people to do what he is doing for us and help clean up our environment. But, do not believe me, you go ahead and read this book too, and let us have your opinion.
It is quite interesting to still read about skeptics about what Elon is about...and they still do not get it. Somehow, they still believe he is full of you know what--even now! After confirming his initial strategy about why created electric cars--what was his primary purpose? To cause the other guys (car makers) to get to make them and that is precisely where we are now. In fact--his efforts have been heeded by many others now also looking into creating their own brand EVs--something amazing indeed. The more competition, the better for the end user, or consumer, us.
It was and still is interesting how it was that ICE vehicles are still being created--even though, they are polluting our air big time. Now, we need to focus on creating clean energy too--so that we can power these new cars.
In my own opinion, Elon is good for us. Let's hope he inspires more people to do what he is doing for us and help clean up our environment. But, do not believe me, you go ahead and read this book too, and let us have your opinion.
December 9, 2025
I have read almost every book and article about Elon Musk and let me tell you--this one was the best.
It is quite interesting to still read about skeptics about what Elon is about...and they still do not get it. Somehow, they still believe he is full of you know what--even now! After confirming his initial strategy about why created electric cars--what was his primary purpose? To cause the other guys (car makers) to get to make them and that is precisely where we are now. In fact--his efforts have been heeded by many others now also looking into creating their own brand EVs--something amazing indeed. The more competition, the better for the end user, or consumer, us.
It was and still is interesting how it was that ICE vehicles are still being created--even though, they are polluting our air big time. Now, we need to focus on creating clean energy too--so that we can power these new cars.
In my own opinion, Elon is good for us. Let's hope he inspires more people to do what he is doing for us and help clean up our environment. But, do not believe me, you go ahead and read this book too, and let us have your opinion.
It is quite interesting to still read about skeptics about what Elon is about...and they still do not get it. Somehow, they still believe he is full of you know what--even now! After confirming his initial strategy about why created electric cars--what was his primary purpose? To cause the other guys (car makers) to get to make them and that is precisely where we are now. In fact--his efforts have been heeded by many others now also looking into creating their own brand EVs--something amazing indeed. The more competition, the better for the end user, or consumer, us.
It was and still is interesting how it was that ICE vehicles are still being created--even though, they are polluting our air big time. Now, we need to focus on creating clean energy too--so that we can power these new cars.
In my own opinion, Elon is good for us. Let's hope he inspires more people to do what he is doing for us and help clean up our environment. But, do not believe me, you go ahead and read this book too, and let us have your opinion.
August 8, 2022
Free courtesy of Netgalley.
I knew absolutely nothing about Elon Musk other than he was rich, launched Satellites and was looking to purchase Twitter.
As this book is an unofficial story of his life, you can tell the author has done his research, but he freely admits he has had no input from Elon or his father, which I think he was hoping to do.
It did give me an insight to whom the man is and I now now a bit more about him. It would have been nice to read something that was more official but it was an interesting read anyway.
I would recommend this book if you want to know more about this man, where he grew up and what influenced his life to make him the man he is today.
.
I knew absolutely nothing about Elon Musk other than he was rich, launched Satellites and was looking to purchase Twitter.
As this book is an unofficial story of his life, you can tell the author has done his research, but he freely admits he has had no input from Elon or his father, which I think he was hoping to do.
It did give me an insight to whom the man is and I now now a bit more about him. It would have been nice to read something that was more official but it was an interesting read anyway.
I would recommend this book if you want to know more about this man, where he grew up and what influenced his life to make him the man he is today.
.
February 12, 2023
A relatively "casual" biography of Musk. In comparison to what Ashlee Vance did, this one dedicates much more regarding Elon's youngest years as well as the history of the family (especially on the mother's side, i.e. Haldeman). That gives more outlook into what shaped young Musk (adventurous heritage, highly intellectual father Errol that constantly challenged Elon's young mind, violance at school and the "exile into books and fantasy world"). In terms of style, Vlismas put a lot of effort on accumulating pieces from all various sources, often refers to blog posts, YT videos or Twitts in his contents. A light and inspiring read, recommended to both critics and fans of Elon.
December 30, 2022
The first half of the book quite nicely details the background in South Africa, sets the story well.
The second half of the book is a compilation of information already available about Musk on YouTube, and other sources online.
No need learnings here.
I wish more data, facts and things like what it was like for him to work on creating the car, the kind of challenges.
His problems were engineering problems and would have loved to see how he solved it from an engineering perspective.
It's difficult to do.
The second half of the book is a compilation of information already available about Musk on YouTube, and other sources online.
No need learnings here.
I wish more data, facts and things like what it was like for him to work on creating the car, the kind of challenges.
His problems were engineering problems and would have loved to see how he solved it from an engineering perspective.
It's difficult to do.
June 27, 2024
This is one of the biographies of Elon Musk published in Bulgaria. The author admits that he never had the chance to talk to Elon, but he makes an impressive effort to tell his story as well as possible. The first part of the book describes Musk's childhood and how he was bullied in school, while later you can learn more about his actions as a world-class entrepreneur.
March 29, 2023
While I learned a lot about Elon Musk, most of the book was drawn from other sources so seemed more like a research paper than insights into the man. Appreciate the research required to put the book together.
September 27, 2022
No matter your opinion of Elon Musk, he is bold, his influence on the world is huge and his successes are unique.
November 27, 2022
Good overview and summary of available information to date. But a bit too leaning on his side.
Totally new part for me was his childhood details.
Totally new part for me was his childhood details.
February 12, 2023
Interesting biography on Elon Musk and his family. There is a lot of padding and unnecessary off topic content but overall this book makes for an easy read.
March 7, 2023
Interesting subject matter but very badly written- at times rambling and disjointed.
May 16, 2024
I was invested from start to finish!
February 25, 2025
Interesting to learn more about Musk
September 1, 2025
Really inspirational book of Elon Musk and his journey. Recommended if you like biographys.
January 19, 2025
I read a lot of biographies and memoirs. This one really sings the praises of the world's richest man. I wanted to know what makes him tick. Vlismas is clearly a fellow musketeer. 🙂
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews